The question is not whether human trafficking happens here but what will we do about it. World Relief Durham supports survivors of human trafficking as they rebuild their lives. We also work to organize the community so that we can end human trafficking in the Triangle (here’s a short video on our program by CNN).

The 5k walk will raise funds for both aspects of our work. Here is our donations page. I can’t stress this enough: without raising local funds to supplement our grants, we cannot adequately care for our clients. Without client service programs, law enforcement is reluctant to get involved as the people they freed will end up back on the streets and most likely working again as someone’s slave.

If you are ready to walk with us, here is what you need to do. First, sign up for the race and create your own personal fundraising page (download our walkers/runners packet). If you have any problems, check out our more detailed instructions or email me (tmcgee@wr.org) . Please email me once you have signed up.

Secondly, email, facebook, tweet, write letters, and otherwise let everyone know what you are doing. Ask your neighbors, co-workers, church members, church, work, and other businesses to sponsor you and/or our program (or walk with us!). We have donation envelopes that you can pick up from our office to keep track of the checks or they can donate online.

Drop off your checks to our office by 3/16/2012. Meet us at the World Relief Durham table at the Great Human Race the morning of the event, 3/24/12.

Details:

Date:  Saturday, March 24, 2012 (Rain or shine)
Location:  Northgate Mall (near Sears Automotive)
Runner Registration: begins: 7:00am, meet at the World Relief booth by at 8:00am.
Run starts: 8:30am, walkers start after the runners.

Please invite friends through our facebook event page.

You can also download our promo kit (flyers, posters, business cards); ask people to follow our human trafficking pinterest board. We’ll be using our website, facebook, and twitter accounts to drive awareness.

Graphic Design folks: we’d love help branding the event (e.g., facebook event picture; posters; etc).

Those with business connections: we need some high end donors to raise enough funds. Please connect us.

Everyone: use the gifts and connections you have to help us spread the word and raise the support we need to care for some of the most vulnerable people in the Triangle.

Since Help Portrait started a few years ago, I’ve wanted to be part of something like that: giving away photos to those who’d never otherwise be able to have them done.  I was always a bit daunted by the organizational/event planning type stuff that would go into pulling something like that off. Fortunately, World Relief Durham decided to put one together, and Stephen Garrett, Carolyn VanHouten and I jumped on the idea! We also met some really great photographers at the event, which was held at All Saints Church.

These first two guys are both from Kenya but didn’t know each other until they met here as refugees and became fast friends. I believe they said they’ve been here about 6 months. I’m terrible with remembering names, especially ones I hard a hard time understanding in the first place… But two really nice guys.

This young man is from Bhutan.

In between groups we had a little bit of fun…

This last image I did from the parking lot because Janga (the man sitting proudly on his moped) showed up a little bit late. Luckily, Stephen and I were still talking shop in the parking lot and were able to take his picture. Kudos to Stephen for convincing Janga to bring his moped into the photo and turn on the head light!  That’s his daughter with the guitar. They’re from Bhutan and have been here for two years. They seem to be doing very well.

Can’t wait for next year!

[UPDATE: Photos from other photographers are up. Check them out. ~WRD]

The John O’Daniel Exchange building was a busy place on Saturday, as World Relief Durham hosted our first Employment Skills Workshop. Volunteers from the community shared their knowledge, skills and resources with refugees anxious to find employment.

The refugees separated into groups based on language and rotated through five different sections. David Benfield, owner of Brightside Bamboo, a company he started over a year ago, showed refugees a slideshow of what working for his company entails. Hillary Winter helped lead a session on working in the restaurant industry, drawing on her experiences as a server and hostess. The other three workshops offered the refugees information about how to find and keep a job in housekeeping, sewing, and landscaping and construction.

The volunteers also made a point to emphasize employment basics. Professional attire, strong work ethic and English speaking skills apply to all areas of work, they pointed out.

“We are ready to do any type of job,” one Somali refugee said. Most refugees come to the U.S. willing to work as soon as possible, and it’s easy to get discouraged when language barriers and the job market make the search difficult. Taking English classes and developing job skills are necessary, but often frustrating, steps that refugees have to take.

Around 40 refugees came out to the event on Saturday, all highly motivated and ready to learn. Many took notes during the sessions, and enjoyed standing up to introduce themselves in English. The Karen women enjoyed making bags in the sewing workshop, and many refugees were able get contact information from volunteers to help their job search.

David Benfield recognized that refugees are hard workers, and exclusively hires Burmese refugees at Brightside Bamboo. He said he initially saw it as a good idea, and then it became his mission. He found that bamboo is an underutilized resource, useful as food as well as timber. One bamboo plant can be harvested hundreds of times, compared with about thirty for other hardwood. It is also protein-rich and can aid in weight-loss. Bamboo is mostly imported from China, although the Southeastern U.S. has a similar temperate climate, which can grow up to 400 varieties of bamboo. David found a way to combine business with missions, and was able to speak to a group of Burmese men seeking employment at Saturday’s event.

As an employer, David is looking for refugees with strong English skills. Alyssa, a Ph.D. student at Duke who is learning Arabic, met a refugee from Iraq who reads and writes English very well, but needs help with professional conversational English. Alyssa and the refugee decided to begin a language exchange in Arabic and English. Partnering up with refugees not only builds relationships, but can help them acquire important job skills through something as simple as practicing their English. Come meet refugees at our next event, Portrait Day on February 4^th!

Thanks so much to all the volunteers who made this day possible!

1. REGISTER

First, you can find all the practical details here (when, where, route map, etc).

Secondly, you actually will sign up through this site. For walkers who aren’t interested in getting their walk timed, it’s free (select “community walk” after you hit the button to register). All others have to pay a fee.

Enter in your contact info. Type in “World Relief Durham” for the nonprofit you will support. You will also need to select “World Relief Durham” as the existing group you’d like to join. Once you submit the information, you will need to “pay” for the event (it’s free, so it automatically processes it and emails you the receipt).

2. BECOME A FUNDRAISER

There are three ways to raise funds through this walk. First, we have donation envelopes at our office (801 Gilbert St. #209, Durham 27701). People will write checks to the Great Human Race or to The Volunteer Center of Durham. Put World Relief Durham in the memo.

Secondly, you can direct people to our online donation page.

Finally, you can set up your own personal online site by clicking here.

You will see a green banner near the top with the option to “create a team member fundraising team.” Select it.

The “active giving” site will prompt you for your username and password. Since this is your first time, click that you do not have them. Fill out the form. Once complete, it will now allow you to log in.

After you log in, you will have the chance to create your own URL (website address). I recommend just using your first and last name, no spaces. You can then personalize your own site (name, tagline, message, goals, etc). Be as creative or simple as you like.

3. FUNDRAISE

Now that your site is set up, you can email, facebook, tweet, write letters, print flyers, and do everything else to connect people to your own personal fundraising site so they can  support you. If you used for first and last name, your webpage will be: http://www.active.com/donate/ghr2012/firstlast (so, for example, my own is: http://www.active.com/donate/ghr2012/timmcgee).

Please encourage the people you contact to join us in the walk and/or raise funds on their own (you can raise money even if you aren’t walking!). Flyers, the facebook event, and other promo material can be found on our previous blog post.

One IMPORTANT NOTE: if it is at all possible to actually collect checks instead of having people donate online, please do it. The online donation subtracts almost 7% of the donation as a “fee.” You can include this information, though, on your website as part of your message!

Some final details about fundraising (other places to pick up envelopes, how to submit your donations, etc) can be found on the Great Human Race website. The end date for collecting checks (and getting your completed packet to us) is March 16th. The online fundraising keeps going even after the run!

Please email me (tmcgee@wr.org) with any questions.

UPDATE: Here’s how to register for the race and set up your own, personal fundraising site.

President Obama has declared January to be National Slavery and Human Trafficking Prevention Month. In the course of his declaration, Obama outlined the essential components of any effort to effectively end modern day slavery:

By coordinating our response across federal agencies, we are working to protect victims of human trafficking with effective services and support, prosecute traffickers through consistent enforcement, and prevent human rights abuses by furthering public awareness and addressing the root causes of modern slavery.

The effort to end human trafficking has two main components: supporting survivors and eradicating the causes. Our program is designed to address these two needs. Client services works to identify and support survivors as they rebuild their lives. Community engagement coordinates with the wider community to attack the demand that leads to trafficking.

This year, World Relief Durham is participating in the Great Human Race to raise awareness and funds to support both aspects of our program.

Please join us March 24th as we walk to end human trafficking in Durham.

For more information on the Great Human Race, click here.

To donate, click here.

Download flyers (version 1; version 2).

We have information on our website and will be coordinating efforts through the facebook event page.

To learn more about the realities of modern day slavery in the U.S., check out the CNN Freedom Project or watch this talk by Danielle Mitchell at last year’s Justice Conference.

Photo by Franklin Golden

UPDATE: We still need volunteers to greet,  direct refugees to the right place, provide refreshments, and just assist as needs arise. Please SIGN UP to help out.

Having your portrait taken is always a memorable event. We want to share this joyful–and occasionally awkward–experience with refugees in Durham. On February 4th, we’ll have a free portrait event, similar to Help-Portrait. Refugees and will be able to come and have their individual or family picture taken by local photographers for free.

The event will be on Saturday, February 4th in the afternoon (1p-4p). The location will be at All Saints Anglican Church, on 15-501 and Garrett Rd, in the shopping center next to Oak Creek Village Apartments.

We need all kinds of volunteers to help with this event. Photographers (and assistants), videographer (to capture the event, interview refugees, etc), event planners, administrators, and general assistance (working to set-up, tear down, and just hang out with refugees while they wait). We’ll need some financial contributions (to cover the costs of printing the portraits) and food donations (snacks!). We’ll also need to access to various equipment (lighting, for instance). Finally, we hope all of our volunteers who are connected to refugees can let them know about the opportunity and help them get there.

We’re excited–there’s a lot to do but it’s a wonderful opportunity to serve and build relationships with our refugee neighbors.

Spread the word through our facebook event page; sign up to volunteer; email Emily Paules (epaules@wr.org) and Tim McGee (tmcgee@wr.org) if you have any questions.

Download a flyer to give to refugees.

As you know, jobs are hard to find these days, especially for people with little English or previous work experience. We’re putting together our first ever Employment Skills Workshop to assist refugees as they look for work.  This is a great chance for you to help refugees and also to raise awareness and excitement in your church and your community. Here are the details:

What: A series of practical workshops, running in rotation through the afternoon, led by community members who love refugees!

Why: To elevate refugee employability by giving them practical, hands-on training and/or experience with some categories of entry level work.

When: Saturday, January 21 From 12-5PM.  (The Workshops can run from 1-3.30PM.)  Setup from 12-1 and tear down from 3.30-5.00PM?

Where: The World Relief Durham office (John O’Daniel Exchange – 801 Gilbert St. Durham, 27701)

Who can be involved: ANYBODY!

What does this look like: If you have any experience in any of the categories below (even in your own home), you are fully qualified to help a refugee learn what you know.  Once you sign up, we’ll connect you with the team teaching the topic you choose and you can work together to plan to teach the basics of your topic in the workshop (each workshop lasting from 30 minutes to no more than 1 hour).

Topics to be taught in workshops:

• Janitorial (home/business cleaning)
• Hospitality/Restaurant
• Dishes/Laundry
• Car Wash
• Handyman/Maintenance
• Construction
• Sewing

Other Needs:

• Refreshments for the afternoon
• Photographer/Videographer to document the event

This is a wonderful chance to continue empowering refugees and also to introduce others in the community to the refugees living in Durham. We’re encouraging volunteers to bring at least one friend who you think would benefit from seeing this vibrant ministry in action.

Given the urgency of this need—jobs!—we are working diligently and quickly to pull this workshop together.  Emily Paules is our staff person coordinating all of the details for this event.  Pleases contact her at epaules@wr.org  to let her know of your interest and what specific workshop you would like to lead or be involved in.  Of course the information covered in the workshop needs to be very basic, so anyone should be qualified to do any of these (with a couple of exceptions).

We’ve got a streamlined process put together for this to make it as simple as possible for you to be involved.  So take the first step and let Emily know of your availability, and she will get you plugged in.

We look forward to great things with this upcoming weekend.  Thanks for your involvement!

He secures justice for the orphan and the widow; he loves the foreigner, giving him food and clothing. Therefore you are to love the foreigner, since you were foreigners in the land of Egypt. Deut. 10:18-19

A refugee wanted us to meet with his friend. We asked if this friend was another refugee. He said no. His friend was a man who immigrated to the U.S.A. years ago, and whose visa had expired. This friend was now an undocumented immigrant. After we asked what he wanted to meet about, the refugee shared: this man’s boss knows his friend can be deported. He makes him work long hours, for very little money, and threatens to turn him in to the police if he complains, tries to leave, or tells anyone. He’s very scared, but I told him he could trust you.

World Relief began working in Durham with refugees over three years ago. Over the past year, we’ve started working with two other highly vulnerable displaced populations: undocumented immigrants and people sold into modern day slavery in North Carolina. We’ve moved in this direction because we believe that is where God is calling the local church to serve.

These verses in Deuteronomy pull together two threads present throughout Scripture. God is present and active on behalf of vulnerable social groups, people who lack social networks to provide for their basic needs. God also passionately defends and provides for foreigners (immigrants, strangers, sojourners). He commands Israel to do the same, reminding that they too were foreigners (and vulnerable slaves) in Egypt.

World Reliefs empowers churches in Durham to work right at this intersection, among the most vulnerable of our foreign-born or displaced neighbors. Why? Because God has a deep, passionate commitment to act on behalf of foreigners and the vulnerable. We expect God to be especially present and active at the intersection of the two groups: refugees, undocumented immigrants, and victims of human trafficking. We simply want to be where God says God will be, participating in the work God promises to do.

For immigration, right now we are relying on broader World Relief initiatives like Undocumented.TV and Welcoming the Stranger to encourage churches to approach undocumented immigrants–and the question of immigration reform–in light of verses like Deuteronomy 10:18. We are building partnerships that will allow us to more effectively continue this advocacy work and also provide legal guidance to immigrants throughout RDU in the next year.

With human trafficking, we had our first awareness event in August and have recently restarted the client care aspect of our work. We will continue promoting awareness in our community, reaching out to potential victims, and caring for those who are liberated.

Throughout these changes, our work with refugees has only grown stronger, as has our commitment to work in relationship with local churches.

We are excited to continue following God’s passionate action among our most vulnerable foreign-born neighbors. Join us as we follow the God of the displaced.

Earlier that week, I met with a Kenyan pastor. Their church wants to work with refugees from Nepal. He told me of a recent meeting he had with a Burmese pastor in Raleigh. Apparently, this Burmese pastor was trained by a Korean missionary in Thailand.

It’s a small world. And that is what I’m thankful for this year. I am thankful for all the unexpected and unusual connections among diverse peoples right here in Durham. God is obviously doing things far greater and more unpredictable than we could ever imagine. 

Over the last few months, we’ve posted a series of interviews in which refugees tell us their own stories. We’re so accustomed to refugees coming that we forget how amazing it is: their voices were silenced and lives threatened, and now, they are here, our neighbors, speaking to us freely. Each voice, each life, is a gift. For them, I am thankful.

Here are a few other things, in no particular order,  for which I am thankful:

• Our case management grant for survivors of human trafficking was renewed.
• We are exploring ways to support vulnerable immigrant populations, both with legal services and advocacy for immigration reform.
• Almost all of the refugees we’ve resettled this year have church volunteers or partners.
• We continue to find jobs for refugees.
• A coalition of churches and volunteers has formed in Raleigh to help us start resettling refugees there.
• The two AmeriCorps members with our office are doing amazing work.
• We started a partnership with Durham Tech’s nursing school to provide refugees with more extensive health education and assistance.
• Our staff, who wonderfully guide refugees through the complex process of resettlement and demonstrate remarkable compassion throughout.
• Our volunteers: you all amaze me with your willingness to open up your lives to strangers (Matt 25).

I am thankful, most of all, for all the clear reminders that this is not “our work” but your work, the work of the local church. Every success is your success. So thanks for letting us join you in this strange work of God: “God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ” (2 Cor 5:19).

Refugees opening gifts Christmas 2010.

I have a simple idea for Christmas this year. Instead of collecting gifts for refugee kids, what if we help refugee parents shop for their kids themselves? It’s one thing to see your kids receive gifts from others. It’s different when you get to pick out the gifts yourself.

I assume everyone agrees that this is a good idea, so the question is, how do we do it? How do we give the gift of giving?

It’s pretty easy, actually. Over 90% of our clients have church and community volunteers working with them. They are already in relationship with these families. Not all of them can afford to give these parents enough money to buy gifts for their kids, but my guess is most would have the time and desire to take the parents shopping.

So, all we need to do is raise the money to give to the refugees and volunteers. The volunteers can take pictures and we will post them here so that those who give can share in the fun.

I know it is less satisfying than buying and wrapping the gifts. I get it. But sometimes the less satisfying choice for us is the best way to love and serve others. We give gifts at Christmas not to feel better about ourselves anyways. We give to remember the joy that is ours because God so selflessly gave everything God had, God’s very life, to us.

To give parents who have arrived in the last year $30-$40 for each kid under 18 means we need to raise $1,800-$2,500.

Donate online now.

Checks can be mailed to our office: 801 Gilbert St. #209 Durham, NC 27701. Please let us know on the memo line that it is for Christmas giving.

We know we’re running a little late on announcing this: sometimes obvious ideas take a while to think up. Please help us spread the word to your church, office, neighborhood, friends, family, and anyone else you know.

More from Christmas 2010