To get some more background on the situation, The Washington Post has created a helpful timeline of events, and The New York Times has provided some context about what’s next for Afghan allies who remain in harm’s way.

By the end of August, more than 122,000 people had been flown out of Kabul, and refugee resettlement agencies across the state are already receiving Afghan SIVs and Parolees fleeing Afghanistan. So we can all expect to see more people arrive in the coming weeks.

Missouri Senator Roy Blunt sent a letter to the Secretaries of State and Health and Human Services asking them to strongly consider Missouri as a final destination for Afghan SIVs and Parolees. The US Department of State’s Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration also included St. Louis on their list of 19 cities ready to welcome Afghan refugees. And the mayors of St. Louis, Columbia, and Kansas City have stepped up to welcome and offer their support to incoming refugees and refugee resettlement agencies.

A devastating 7.2 magnitude earthquake also struck Haiti in August, and more than 2,000 people were killed. This may result in an increase in refugees with Cuban/Haitian entrant status in the coming months, and we’ll be ready to support them if that’s the case.

Since you’ve last heard from us, there have been some bright spots, though, such as the delayed 2020 Tokyo Olympics! The Refugee Olympic Team (EOR) participated in the Games for the second time with 29 athletes from 11 counties and competed in 12 sports, and this was also the first year there was a Refugee Paralympic Team. For some of the coverage featuring these athletes, check out here, here, and here.

And last but certainly not least, Missouri finally got Medicaid Expansion! Despite the support of voters, legislators attempted to thwart and then delay its implementation, which eventually sent the issue to the Missouri Supreme Court. In August, a judge ruled that the State of Missouri cannot deny newly eligible individuals from enrolling in expanded Medicaid and also blocked the state from imposing additional burdens or restrictions on eligibility or enrollment for those individuals.

To learn more about how you can support new Afghan arrivals and other opportunities to get involved, check out the last section of this newsletter, our blog, and the Get Involved page of our website.

Welcoming Week is a national initiative led by Welcoming America. Each year during Welcoming Week, organizations and communities strive to build cross-cultural partnerships and strengthen their commitments to welcoming immigrants and refugees.

This week is chock-full of events nationwide and brings together “neighbors of all backgrounds to build strong connections and affirm the importance of welcoming and inclusive places in achieving collective prosperity,” from the Welcoming America site.

This year’s theme is Belonging Begins With Us. Because we all know how it feels to be excluded, we also know how to make others feel they belong.

You can follow local service providers on social media to keep up with their events! Here’s a list of links to get you started:

One event we can flag for you: Belonging With Us: Understanding the Refugee Journey in KC. Hosted by Communities Concerned for Refugees and Immigrants in honor of Welcoming Week, join reps from Catholic Charities of Northeast Kansas, Della Lamb, and JVS as they provide insight on U.S. policies and procedures that impact refugee arrivals.

The International Institute’s Southwest Missouri Branch (IISMO) has been spending the summer building relationships with the Springfield community in the hopes of establishing Community Support Groups.

These groups will partner with the agency for the refugee resettlement process and support a refugee family for the first six months after arrival. As resettlement agencies across the state work to build capacity ahead of new arrivals, keep an eye out for community sponsorship opportunities near you! Learn more about community support and sponsorship groups here.

Staff from IISMO were also able to join in the celebration of the Annual Missouri Chin Fellowship. A weekend event for Chin youth in Missouri, people gathered to participate in soccer, volleyball, track and singing competitions. “I stand in constant awe of the American experience as I witness these communities that we work with thriving and maintaining their cultural identity,” said Rebekah Thomas, IISMO’s Site Manager.

Jewish Vocational Service (JVS) had the opportunity to showcase their programs when they were visited by two U.S. Senate staffers in August. The staffers, Anna-Lanier Fischer and Emily Slack work with Senator Blunt and are a part of the Senate Appropriations Committee that oversees funding to the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR). Also taking part were Hilary Cohen Singer, Executive Director of JVS; Jim Ellis, JVS Board President; Sara Pitia, Refugee Social Services Manager; Martha Baird, Board Vice-President; Morgan Merrell, Social Work Manager; Paul Costigan, Missouri State Refugee Coordinator.

Hilary, Morgan and Sara briefed Anna-Lanier and Emily on the wide range of services they offer their clients, including resettlement, employment, health and mental health, youth and their Happy Bottoms diaper program among others. This was followed by a tour of their beautiful facility along with further information on their many community partners, staffing structure and outlook for arrivals in the coming year.

Most impressive to the staffers were the individual success stories told by Sara and Morgan. They were looking for how government funding along with other funding sources lead to self-sufficiency and to refugee families prospering, and that’s exactly what they heard. After an hour, Anna-Lanier and Emily left with a sense of the remarkable work that is being done on behalf of refugees by JVS and all the other refugee service agencies across the state.

RESOURCES: Read, Watch, Explore

OPPORTUNITIES: Get involved

on what you may have missed in our previous newsletters here.