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Event Details
Join Zoe Pollock with Jewish Family & Community Services East Bay to talk with NorCalPCA members about possibly forming a community welcome team to help a newly arrived (likely Afghan) refugee family in the bay area and also to learn about other volunteer options with JFCS.
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JFCS East Bay has served over 300 refugee clients in the past few months. In February alone, we served over 80 new arrivals. We’re expecting at least 5 new families each month.
In the two years since we launched our Community Welcome Team program, we have connected 40 refugee families with volunteer teams. In total, over 230 clients have benefitted from the support and connection from more than 250 volunteers.
The feedback we’ve heard from our clients tells us that having the support of our volunteers has given them hope and made it easier for them to settle in their new homes. We’re so proud of all that our volunteers have accomplished.
And now, we need more teams.
As the wave of clients needing support continues to arrive at our doors, we are looking for more compassionate community members that are interested in forming community welcome teams and volunteering directly with refugee families.
The Community Welcome Team program matches groups of 4-8 volunteers with a refugee family for a period of 3-4 months. Volunteers partner with these families to support them in integrating into their new environment and meeting their goals, including:
- Showing people how to access public transit and offering rides to medical appointments, grocery shopping, etc.
- Assisting families with school enrollment for their children.
- Enrolling in ESL classes or simply practicing English conversation.
- Helping to navigate complicated systems like our healthcare system or the DMV.
- Finding donated items or affordable places to buy necessary items.
- Introducing families to local parks, hikes, and children's activities.
- Working with clients to build resumes, search and apply for jobs, and prepare for interviews
