自2021年以来，超过1.500万阿富汗人离开了阿富汗. Somaya is one of them, 和 like hundreds of others, she arrived—决定留下来在明尼苏达. 在 她在这里的第一年, she’s been serving in 安置队, where she connects fellow refugees 和 immigrants to employment opportunities.
“我是作为难民来到这里的, 过着新难民的生活吗, 并且能够理解所有的问题, especially for those who don’t know English,她解释道. “You’re encountering different beliefs 和 a different culture.”
了解她独特的经历, 人才, 天生的同理心, a friend already living here told Somaya about 安置队. 她马上就感兴趣了. “Helping new immigrants like me 和 creating changes in their lives was my dream,”她说。.
Serving refugees 和 immigrants every step of the way
在 the 2021 arrival of Afghan refugees in Minnesota, the Department of Human Services (DHS) asked ServeMinnesota how AmeriCorps could help. ServeMinnesota launched a pilot program in which AmeriCorps members help Afghan refugees navigate life in Minnesota, 帮助新来者进入 住房、就业和澳门皇冠国际官方APP客户端. 试点项目是 全州范围的努力 led by DHS to support the Afghan refugees.
The pilot program was a resounding success, so ServeMinnesota launched a full program, 安置队, 第二年. AmeriCorps members who serve in 安置队 support immigrant 和 refugee families arriving in Minnesota. 像Somaya, many of the people serving with 安置队 are immigrants or refugees themselves.
与索马里移民安置团合作 helps connect immigrants 和 refugees to employment. 在她的主办单位, the Minnesota Council of Churches (MCC) Refugee Services program, she enrolls participants – called “clients” – in the Employment Achievement Resettlement Network (EARN) hosted by the MCC. Her clients have come to Minnesota from all over the world, 包括缅甸, 墨西哥, 索马里, 阿富汗, 西班牙, 和埃塞俄比亚. Somaya loves what she does – she calls the day she interviewed for 安置队 “这是我一生中最美好的一天.”
Somaya supports each new client as they enroll in EARN 和 create a 的简历, which many clients have never had before. 然后, they work together on online job searches 和 applications — also an entirely new experience for many clients who have never used a computer. “We search for many jobs for each person, 我会和他们一起去面试, 有时两三次,”她说。.
一旦客户被录用, Somaya accompanies them to orientation 和 training, helps them set up reliable transportation with bus passes or gas cards, 和 purchases work shoes or required uniforms. MCC then provides an interpreter for the client’s first week or two on the job as needed.
Her clients are now working in jobs at organizations that include a health care linen 和 laundry service, 印刷公司, 辅助生活社区, 和零售商店(一个客户), 她自豪地报告, has already been asked to apply for a promotion).
“The job is interesting day by day, solving new problems.”
Somaya’s language skills are in great dem和 throughout 安置队. She often accompanies other members on 家访, where she acts as an interpreter 和 can assist with issues like obtaining benefits or enrolling children in school. “For clients who come here with no English, it’s comfortable for them to find someone from their own country. 他们和我分享问题，我帮助他们.”
“One client had a problem needing to pay the Xcel Energy bill but didn’t know how,”她说。. “I had to explain that they would get a bill in the mail, 和 it would arrive in their mailbox. 然后我解释了邮箱是什么.”
后服务, Somaya hopes to return eventually to a position that uses her expertise in finance 和 accounting. She recently completed a 12-week leadership class through the International Institute of Minnesota (和 hosted a graduation party to celebrate her achievement). In the meantime, she’s honored to be part of 安置队.
“这是我生命中有趣的一部分, to be part of a group that can create change in the life of people who need our help 和 support,”她说。. “The job is interesting day by day, solving new problems. It gives me a better feeling for my life — not only helping with employment but also working on teamwork 和 policy, 家访, 公寓设置, 杂货店购物.
“One of my colleagues, in our weekly staff meeting, said ‘Somaya is so good for us!’”
有兴趣为美国军团服务? 看看 安置队 和 我们的其他项目. 如果你有问题， 皇冠官方APP客户端的招聘团队.
