The American Red Cross Central Valley Region proudly
provides disaster relief, emergency preparedness education, service to the
Armed Forces, and courses in health & safety to seven counties in
California’s San Joaquin Valley. As of last weekend, and just in time for World
Refugee Day, they can also add Restoring Family Links (RFL) to their list of
services.
Restoring Family Links is service of the International
Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) that reconnects families who have been
separated internationally due to disaster, migration or other circumstances.
Having this program both locally and globally greatly benefits refugees around
the world who have already gone through many challenges in their lives and, on
top of those challenges, have found themselves separated from their family.
To quote the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR),
World Refugee Day was established by the United Nations to honor the courage,
strength and determination of women, men and children who are forced to flee
their homes under threat of persecution, conflict and violence. There are
millions of refugees around the world. In honor of them and their fortitude,
the Central Valley Region is proud to finally have the ability to lend a
helping hand and ease some of the hardship in their lives.
Thanks to a generous grant from American Red Cross
National Headquarters, the Central Valley Region was able to train their first
12 RFL Caseworkers over the weekend, with some driving up to 2 hours to attend
the class. The enthusiasm of
this group was infectious. They are eager to start building this new program by
working as a team to provide constructive outreach. With good outreach, we hope
to reach people who need our services. The success of a RFL Caseworker is
surmised by the amount of compassion and determination they hold, and this
newly formed team of caseworkers is full of it.
Bringing the RFL program to the region is important not
just for World Refugee Day, but for everyday. The Central Valley is made up of
a multitude of ethnic groups. 50% of the region is of a race other than White.
After English, Spanish and Hmong are the most widely spoken language. Out of a
population of 2.3 million, 700,000 people speak Spanish and 4,200 speak Hmong.
Having an active RFL program in the Central Valley will provide a broader range
of services to people within our diverse region.
Even within the Central Valley Red Cross, we have
several volunteers and staff who can identify first hand with how it feels to
be separated from their families. Some have come to America as refugees to
escape armed conflict or leave behind tense political situations; and everyone
came because of the promise of a better life. It takes a devastating toll on
people when they do not know the fate of a family member. Oftentimes the
unknown is more agonizing than the truth. As anyone in the RFL network can
attest to, there is an extraordinary relief found in learning the fate of a
loved one after months, years or decades of no contact.
World Refugee Day is an opportunity to reflect on the
people you have in your life as well as a time to provide a spark of hope for
those that may be less fortunate to have their loved ones by their side or a
phone call away. That is what being an RFL Caseworker is all about.
There is no better way to show compassion and support
for people across the globe and within our region than to bring the Restoring
Family Links program to the Central Valley on the eve of World Refugee Day.
Congratulations to our first RFL Casework team:
Cayce Baierski, Debby Dailey, Drew Rosado, Jackie
Dickinson, John Ortiz, John Supino, Kevin Matsuyama, Linda Benjamin, Mark
Bryson, Michael Lam, Patty Dunn, and Tiffany Tryon.
Many
thanks to RFL Mentor, Mike Farrar, for making the drive to Fresno and teaching
the RFL Casework course to us.
