Entertainment for the day from 11-7

• Enjoy a showcasing of talents from around the globe, including Nepali dancers, African choirs, and a Zumba how-to
• Learn to write your name in Arabic or get a Henna Tatoo
• Visit www.risva.org, find us on facebook, or contact Abby Sine at (804)355-4559 x22 or asine@richmonddiocese.org

Click here for Barnes & Noble voucher you can print and use anywhere in the USA on November 14 and 15

The fundraiser will benefit RIS's educational programs in Richmond, including:

• our adult ESL program, funded by the Virginia Department of Education;
• our School Liaison program, funded by the United Way of Greater Richmond and Petersburg; and
• the Virginia Refugee Student Achievement Project (VRSAP), with funds administered by the Virginia Office of Newcomer Services.

November 7th
Roanoke
Holiday Event

The Unitarian Universalist Church of Roanoke is hosting a special holiday event for refugee children. Twenty children will have the opportunity to "shop" for presents for their parents. (More)

Warm Tidings of
Comfort and Quilts

by Carol McElhinney

While enjoying fellowship with one another, The Quilters express their gratitude for God's love through sharing the warmth and comfort of their beautiful patchwork creations with those who are less fortunate. (More)

A Season for
Hospitality and
Partnership

by Suzi Smith

Embassy Suites Hotel in Hampton has been an outstanding employer for refugees. Lori Medford, the hotel's human resources director, has reached out and formed a strong partnership with HRIS by serving as a Community Board member and a volunteer as well as by hiring refugees for various positions at the hotel. (More)

Rhythm & Reading
VRSAP
Summer Program

The "Rhythm & Reading" Program was a five-week summer group program conducted by Richmond RIS, serving elementary level students living at London Towne, St. John's Woods, and Westover Hills apartment complexes. As in the past, it combined fun with learning in order to maintain and enhance English ability and social functioning. (More)

Elsa Álvarez
Steps Up

Richmond RIS Immigration Case Manager Elsa Álvarez has advanced to partial accredition by the Board of Immigration Appeals, the first step in a five-year process that leads to full accrediation. (More)

Easy Giving

This is the time of year when employers provide an opportunity for people to contribute to organizations they care about through regular pay check deductions. Small gifts of pre-tax dollars over the course of a year makes it easier to give. (More)

Do you want to
make a difference?
Do you speak English?

by Suwattana Sugg

Consider volunteering with Richmond Refugee and Immigration Services (RIS) to help newly settled families develop English language skills. Beverly Koerin, Jane Reeves, Mary Dolan, Ann Beall and Norm Kropp are retirees who teach English-as-a-Second Language (ESL) classes to adults from Asia, the Middle East and Africa. They help newcomers gain language skills needed for living and working in the United States. (More)

Immigration
Counseling
Program Report

by Marilyn Breslow

Refugee and Immigration Services, through its offices in Hampton, Roanoke, Richmond and Harrisonburg served over 6,000 new Virginians in the past year. (More)

In the Media

Roanoke Star-Sentinel writer Wade Thompson tells how Saturday soccer games put refugees into the social mix in Roanoke.

The visit to Goochland County by an Episcopal archbishop from Sudan raises awareness of the plight of this African nation's refugees, writes Ken Odor for The Goochland Gazette.

Jose Hernandez has risen from picking tomatoes as a Mexican migrant worker to orbiting Earth as a NASA astronaut , reports Associated Press writer Marcia Dunn on MSNBC.

In The Washington Post, writer Lois Romano interviews Christopher Lu, Assistant to the President and Cabinet Secretary at the White House, about the opportunities in the U.S. he has enjoyed because his parents immigrated here from Taiwan in the 1950s.

Some lawyers operate as predators who take advantage of illegal immigrants , reports Ramin Rahimian for The New York Times.

The Migration Policy Institute has data on historical trends in immigration .

One of the
WAVY-TV
"Ten Who Care"

by Suzi Smith

Santa Bir Gajmere, 30, is a classic example of someone who is very new to our country, yet is already making an outstanding effort to help his fellow man. This Hampton Roads resident is doing this totally on his own initiative and on his own time following a full day of working to support his family. (More)

The Warwick UCC
Language Lab
in Newport News

by Harlan "Bucky" Holmes

One computer provides access to the Internet. Many of the younger attendees want to communicate with their friends who are still in the refugee camp in Nepal. Because it costs money for refugee camp residents to send each message from Nepal, they send one message to their friend here, who then distributes it to a list of other friends both in the U.S. and elsewhere. (More)

Getting a GRIP
on Gangs

by Amy Wight Kube
and Thea Boland

This program hosts English as a Second Language (ESL) instruction and Citizenship classes within Richmond's refugee and immigrant community. It gives Spanish as a Second Language (SSL) classes to police officers and mental health workers. When this program funded additional police patrols in targeted Richmond areas, violent crime fell 41%. (More)

Friends of RIS . . .

Jennifer Spangler, a member of the Community Board of Richmond RIS, has created a Facebook page for Refugee and Immigration Services.
(Visit Facebook)

Thank You
from the
Bottom of our Feet

A huge THANK YOU to the First United Methodist Church of Salem, Virginia, and Miss Joan Dorsey of the Ecumenical Society for providing shoe vouchers to Roanoke refugee children. (More)

by Marilyn Breslow

It is anticipated that RIS will integrate with Commonwealth Catholic Charities on January 1, 2010. We will continue to provide a wide range of services, and our mission and office locations will not change. We will continue to partner with local, state, and national programs. Office telephone numbers will not change, but staff will have new email addresses: firstname.lastname@cccofva.org. (More)

This year, we are expecting our refugees from Bhutan, Iraq and Myanmar to entertain us with some traditional music and dancing after Santa Claus -- William Sutton -- gives all the children an opportunity to experience the Winter Holidays, American style! The Bernardine Franciscan Sisters will be there to help serve punch and cookies to all of our newcomers. (More)

Smile, Virginia

The collaboration with Smile Virginia has continued, and the dental team, saying that this was the best group of children they have ever worked with, has eagerly offered to return every two to three months to provide continuity of care for the Roanoke refugee children we serve. (More)

Medical
Interpreting --
Certifiably
Professional

by Rosemary Rodriguez

This training will count toward the prerequisites for the certification. RIS' Interpreter Services goal is to be the interpreter training service of choice in Virginia: it will align its training to meet all the requirements so that the program's current and future interpreters will be able to pass the exam and become credentialed. (More)

Celebrating
Their First Year
In America

by Abby Sine

Guests were greeted by a sea of brightly colored traditional attire and the pleasant aroma of Nepali cuisine. The event's program included entertainment from young and old. There were traditional dancers, Nepali hip-hop, singers, musicians, storytellers, artists and even a challenging game for the crowd. Refugees shared stories from the camps and pictures of friends and family still waiting to come to America. They told of triumphs of employment, education and new companions in their new lives. (More)

Short Notices

Bhutanese Festival
In September the Bhutanese community of Roanoke held a festival in honor of the god Durga. Food, music, prayers, and dancing were integral parts of this celebration. Many of the dances were filmed and posted on YouTube. They can be viewed on the YouTube website by typing in "Bhutanese Society in Roanoke".

Volunteer
Opportunities
Abound at
Richmond RIS

Flash Slideshow
by Dena Reynolds and Jeffrey Kraus

Lisa Pedraja and Ann Beall narrate a slideshow about volunteering at Refugee and Immigration Services. This work was produced by VCU journalism graduate students Dena Reynolds and Jeffrey Kraus and is hosted on Kraus' website.
(See Slideshow)