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2019 ANNUAL REPORT

2018 ANNUAL REPORT

Global Friends Orientation Packet (click to download)

Global Friends Resource Guide for Refugees and Mentors (click to download)

Citizenship Study Materials (click to view materials)

​Welcoming Community Roadmap
Grand Forks is striving to be a city that welcomes newcomers. A five-year strategic plan, developed with a technical assistance grant from Welcoming American and New American Economy, was endorsed by the City Council in November 2018. The project was launched in January 2019. Global Friends Coalition plays a role in the Welcoming Community Roadmap.

Cultural Orientation Resource Center
The Cultural Orientation Resource Center provides technical assistance regarding new refugee groups and the orientation they receive either before their resettlement in the United States or after their arrival. 

New American Services (NAS)
New American Services (NAS) is a program of Lutheran Social Services (LSS) that works with the United States Government to help refugees establish a home in North Dakota after they are approved for admittance into our country. The goal of NAS is to help refugees achieve economic self-sufficiency as soon as possible. Partnerships play a vital role in a successful resettlement experience. NAS works with many state and local agencies including the North Dakota Department of Human Services, the public schools, churches, health care organizations, social service agencies, adult learning centers, civic groups, employers, plus individual volunteers and mentors.

Greater Grand Forks Convention and Visitor's Bureau (CVB)
Open seven days a week, the Visitor Center is a friendly stopping point for information on area and statewide attractions, shops, restaurants, and accommodations. The CVB's professional travel counselors are ready to help, whether you're planning a family vacation, a business meeting or a major convention. 

Lutheran Social Services of North Dakota
Lutheran Social Services (LSS) is a statewide social services ministry that provides a lifespan of care to individuals, families and communities. Over 68,000 people were served through the agency's 19 programs this past year. Lutheran Social Services puts faith into action by working to prevent child abuse and neglect, helping troubled youth get back on track and providing addiction and mental health counseling and treatment. The agency also addresses community concerns such as hunger relief, the rural housing shortage and disaster recovery. Lutheran Social Services provides assistance without regard to clients’ race, religion, gender or economic status. 

The UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR)
The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees was established on December 14, 1950 by the United Nations General Assembly. The agency is mandated to lead and co-ordinate international action to protect refugees and resolve refugee problems worldwide. Its primary purpose is to safeguard the rights and well-being of refugees. It strives to ensure that everyone can exercise the right to seek asylum and find safe refuge in another State, with the option to return home voluntarily, integrate locally or to resettle in a third country. It also has a mandate to help stateless people. In more than six decades, the agency has helped tens of millions of people restart their lives. Today, a staff of some 7,685 people in more than 125 countries continues to help some 33.9 million persons. 

City of Grand Forks
Official website of the City of Grand Forks. Information on city attractions, services, voter information, and history. ​

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

What is a refugee?
Refugees are people who have fled their country because it is no longer safe. A refugee is defined by the 1951 Refugee Convention as someone who "owing to a well-founded fear of being persecuted for reasons of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group or political opinion, is outside the country of his/her nationality."
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How many refugees are in the world today?
According to Global Trends data published by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, by the end of 2018, 70.8 million individuals have been forcibly displaced worldwide as a result of persecution, conflict, generalized violence, or human rights violations. This 2018 data is 2.3 million persons more than the year before (68.5 million). Of the 70.8 million forcibly displaced, 41.3 million have been uprooted within their own countries, and 29.4 million are refugees and asylum seekers.
https://www.unhcr.org/globaltrends2018/

How long do refugees live in refugee camps?
Stays can vary from 1 month to 20 years. Refugees stay in a camp until they are able to return safely to their homes (repatriation) or until the UNHCR decides to resettle them permanently in another country. This decision is sometimes reached only after a generation living in refugee camps. Currently, there are actually more refugees living in urban settings than in camps.

Do refugees come here speaking English?
Some refugees learned English in their home countries before they were displaced, and some had access to some English education in the refugee camps. While some arrivals are fluent English speakers, others have had few opportunities to learn it, although they may speak many other languages.
 
Do refugees come here with an education or job skills?
Some refugees were highly educated working professionals before they were displaced, while others have been essentially warehoused in refugee camps for most of their life and were unable to work. Some camps provide good educational opportunities for the children, and others do not.

Do refugees get to decide where they want to go?
No. They could be sent to any of the 37 countries which resettle refugees. They can turn down a resettlement placement, but would then have to wait again for another option elsewhere.
http://www.unhcr.org/en-us/information-on-unhcr-resettlement.html

What countries do refugees come from?
In the last two decades, Grand Forks has become home to refugees from Bosnia, Burundi, Bhutan, Ethiopia, Iraq, Liberia, Somalia, Sudan, Uganda, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Currently most arrivals to Grand Forks are coming from Bhutan and Somalia.

What agency performs refugee resettlement in Grand Forks?
Lutheran Social Services New Americans is the agency in charge of resettling refugees in North Dakota. The headquarters is in Fargo, with a branch office of New American Services in Grand Forks as well as in Bismarck. Beginning in 2019. Grand Forks became a satellite site so the only refugees who can be resettled here must be related to a family member who is already here.

What kind of support do refugees get when they come to the U.S.?
Essential services through Lutheran Social Services New Americans include helping to locate initial housing, providing referrals to health programs and screenings, registering children in school, and assisting with the application process for social security cards. Additionally, Lutheran Social Services New Americans must assure that new arrivals receive an appropriate orientation to their local community and a description of what to expect during the resettlement process. Refugees get limited financial support up to the first 8 months in the United States. Lutheran Social Services primary goal is to help New Americans reach financial self-sufficiency as quickly as possible. Many refugees are able to gain employment in three to five months and then this financial support is ended.

What responsibilities do resettled refugees take on?
When a family is notified, they have been granted permanent placement in another country, it is definitely good news. However, it is not a simple happy ending to their story. Their arrival in the U.S. is the beginning of a new journey with new challenges for them. Former refugees work very hard to learn English, acclimate to the culture, and become economically self-sufficient within their first 8 months here. They need to pay back their travel loan.

What does Global Friends Coalition do for refugees?
Global Friends Coalition fosters refugee integration through work with New Americans and the Greater Grand Forks community. We educate, empower, and embrace New Americans through three main programs:  The Family Mentors and Adult Education Program, Resilient Youth Program, & the Outreach and Advocacy Program. Global Friends Coalition provides in-home and in-school volunteers to help New Americans with English language learning. Global Friends Coalition offers basic English and citizenship classes, as well as driving and sewing classes.
 
How do refugees benefit our community?
Refugees strengthen the local economy by supplying labor, renting apartments, purchasing goods, and paying taxes. They diversify our community and allow us to learn about a wide range of experiences and cultures. And as they spend more time in the area, they become citizens, community leaders, and business owners.
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