UpstateVibe365 - Current Info From Across the Upstate

December 2, 2021 Vol. 11, Issue 24

TEN COUNTIES | ONE UPSTATE | STRONGER TOGETHER

Creating Welcoming Communities in the Upstate

Written By: World Relief Upstate SC

At World Relief Upstate SC, we believe in welcoming and loving refugees and immigrants in the Upstate as our own and are eager to show hospitality to strangers from all backgrounds and countries. Part of a nationwide network of resettlement offices, we opened our doors in Greenville in 2015. Since that time, and in partnership with churches and other organizations, we have welcomed over 500 refugees to the Upstate.

We have seen an increasingly diverse group of refugees coming through our office, with seven different countries represented in our resettlement numbers over the last three months alone. Most recently, we have had the opportunity to welcome a small number of Afghan families to the Upstate for the first time. While the Afghan crisis is arguably the most urgent, it highlights a broader refugee crisis in which over 27 million individuals have been forced from their homes. This is the highest number of displaced people since the end of World War II.

Lutheran Services Carolinas to Serve Refugees in Greenville, SC

Written By: Lutheran Services Carolina

Lutheran Services Carolinas is opening a new refugee services program in Greenville, South Carolina. The new program will serve legal refugees from around the world, including Special Immigrant Visa (SIV) holders from Afghanistan, the allies who supported U.S. troops. LSC will begin providing services as soon as new teammates are hired and office space is secured.

The expansion of services requests were approved by the U.S. Office of Population, Refugees, and Migration.

In collaboration with Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS), LSC has a long history of supporting refugees on their journey to self-sufficiency in this country, including welcome at the airport upon arrival, food and shelter, transportation, medical care, school enrollment, employment services, and cultural assimilation.