Refugee Resettlement Office

Every year, millions of refugees around the world leave their homes in hope of escaping tyranny, poverty and persecution. A small percentage are allowed permanent residence in a new country such as France, Canada or the United States. Some of them arrive in Seattle, Washington. Episcopal Migration Ministries (EMM) and Church World Service (CWS) are two of the 14 organizations that through sponsorship, give newly arrived refugees a chance at a new life in the United States.

The Diocese of Olympia's Refugee Resettlement Office, a local affiliate for EMM and CWS in Seattle, Washington, has assisted refuees from around the world since 1978. Our programs have welcomed over 15,000 newcomers to King County, Washington State and provided variety of services including food, shelter, orientation to Seattle, English tutoring, job placement, work-place training and financial literacy education. The Refugee Resettlement Office primarily serves Seattle but also serves low income refugees, immigrants and mainstream citizens in greater King, Pierce and Snohomish counties.

RRO's Mission:

The Diocese of Olympia's Refugee Resettlement Office helps newcomers, citizens and the working poor to achieve economic self-sufficiency. Our mission is accomplished through job placement activities and business development that promotes self-employment.

There are six main sources of services available through the RRO:

1.      Resettlement
2.      Job Development
3.      Jump Start (Micro-Enterprise Development)
4.      Individual Development Accounts
5.      Social Services
6.      English as a Second Language (ESL) Classes

Letter from the Director:

December 2, 2008

Dear Friends and Associates,

Christmas 2008 concludes a varied year. Overall, we saw 105 refugee arrivals. Rescued from desparate environments overseas, many of those refugees found new forms of struggle in the United States, while keeping a modest hope that life in their new homeland may eventually deliver peace of mind. This year, the majority of our new clients represent the many factions of Iraqi society. They are the Kurds, Sunnis or Shiites who have lived underground in Syria or Jordan. In addition, we've had new arrivals from South Asia, including Bhutanese Hindus, who were exiled to Nepal over twenty years ago and just recently found their petitions for resettlement accepted. Although Somali Muslims continue to arrive after ten or twelve years in crowded refugee camps, their numbers have diminished to a trickle this year.
Most of the refugees that we have sponsored live in the Rainier Valley, Seattle. As part of their resettlement program, they travel daily to English classes at our offices, only a short bus ride from their homes. With our assistance, nearly fifty percent of the adults have found work at downtown hotels, Goodwill Industries, manufacturing companies in the SODO area and at the Sea-Tac airport. Although they live below the poverty level and struggle to understand the school system that has swept up their chldren, and even though they find a constant need for medical attention for long neglected ilnesses, and they sometimes think with despair and frustration that they may not survive in a strange country, they still manage to greet our volunteers, sponsors, friends and staff with a warm smile and a loud "Hello" every time they come to our office. This holiday season their dignity and perseverence give meaning and purpose to our work.

All of us at the Refugee Resettlement Office join in saying Thank You and wishing you a Happy Holiday and a prosperous New Year.
- Greg Hope and the RRO Staff

When you make a donation, you not only support our programs but also support the community of people who have escaped tyranny, persecution, and extreme poverty. You are helping people who have gone through tremendous ordeal that none of us would ever wish to experience.

MAKE A DONATION...
...AND CHANGE A REFUGEE'S LIFE

To find out more about how you can become a supporter of one of our programs or how to sponsor our ESL students, please follow the link to our Donations website by clicking on picture below:

We would like to thank all our last year patrons, whose contributions helped strengthen our programs and enabled us to provide more help to the Seattle area refugee community.

A. Van Tran
Ai-Lam Van
Bach-Tuyet Nguyen
Beverly Grant Reed
C. Levin
Chris Smith-Clark
Diocese of Olympia Staff
Eddie Reed
Eva Agrawal
John Riess
Linda Slater
Lutheran Comminity Services
M.H. Slawinski
Paul Kassen
Sue Tait
Margo Siegenthaler
Terry Pile

and all the parents and children at the King Street Cooperative Preschool who organized a Holiday Gift and Toy Drive for the Refugee Resettlement Office kids.