[Engaged] International Rescue Committee/ any local refugee center
As I mentioned in another post of mine, working with refugee centers is a caustic, boiling hot dose of reality, but also essential and rewarding work. And we need the cold slap in the face sometimes to get ourselves out of our own heads and hone that sense of compassion.
They receive lots of grants, but of course there is always more need than money.
I am teaching ESL there, but I see that there are so many needs, big and small, from lump sums of cash for improving the computer lab to helping pack toiletries in a welcome box for the clients. Some of them seriously come over here with nothing but the clothes they are wearing, and severe PTSD.
These agencies welcome anyone who can do or give whatever they can. There are many branches of the IRC all over the world, but there are other centers that are doing the same work and have the same demand for donated resources and services.
If you do donate anything or work with these agencies, please take the time to learn about some of the stories of the clients and what they have gone through to get here. Much of it is hard to swallow, but it is life changing and offers a significant shift in perspective towards the 'right thinking' we are trying to cultivate in ourselves.
