I don’t know him, but I know him. I see him every Tuesday and Thursday as he shows up diligently for English class. A man in his 70s. Learning a new language. He greets me with a smile that spreads ear to ear – he’s usually the first one here. His English vocabulary isn’t huge,
Hi! My name is Emili Pezall, and I serve as the Youth Empowerment Specialist at City of Refuge. I have been with City of Refuge for almost 2 years (coming up at the end of July!), and I recently transitioned into this role in January. These past few months have been incredibly rewarding as I
If your 2026 has been anything like mine, the days have stacked up quickly behind you, and you’re wondering where all the time has gone. One day at a time… get through this task, meet with this person, pick up this kid, brush your teeth … wash, rinse, repeat. I feel like I’ve been pretty
When our refugee parents told us that they wanted a safe place for their preschoolers to learn English, make friends and prepare for the kindergarten experience, we set out to do something about it. This became a unique opportunity to serve not only our refugee community, but Columbia at large. So, guided by our mission
We’re skating into the 2nd quarter of 2026 with lots of anticipation and a certain open-handedness that we continue to learn is quite necessary in our line of work. So far, 2026 is keeping us on our toes. Again. Delayed federal grant reimbursements almost caused us to go into panic mode – half a year
It’s almost time to kick off our fourth annual Poem-a-Thon! Today we hear from guest writer Ann Youmans, our volunteer Poem-a-Thon coordinator, about why she approached City of Refuge with the idea and how she hopes to impact our refugee community through the power of the written word. __________________________________ “When I graduated from college, I
Before I was a care coordinator, I was an intern, and before I was an intern, I was a volunteer, and at the beginning of all of that, I met Aqal. Aqal is a refugee from Afghanistan. He’s a family man in the traditional sense, my friend in the non-traditional. I have had some level
I wouldn’t ever claim to be a writer, but I do like to write. Usually. So when, three years ago, Ann approached us about the idea of a Poem-a-Thon, I was intrigued by the idea. Raising money for City of Refuge through our words? It felt powerful. Purposeful. We were all in. We still are.
It usually starts with a message. This time, it was a request to call a community member before Christmas. When I get a message about fabric donations my heart races a bit and I try not to hold my breath. What will be in the bags and boxes? Treasured lengths or tiny scraps? This message
“….I have the same feeling of helplessness that I’m sure so many in our Columbia community have: What can I do to help our neighbors?” This email from a concerned citizen sits in my inbox, awaiting a response. I toss around a million possible drafts in my head, unsure that there’s really one answer to
