My experience started when we first visited our refugee family. My family is from Nepal. We first met the mom, the sister-in-law, and the kids. The mom has 3 daughters, one in 3rd grade, 7th grade, and 9th grade and she also has a son in 1st grade. The eldest daughter was very mature; she would help her mom in the kitchen and help clean the house. The daughter in 7th grade liked to hang out with her friends because we would see them go upstairs and blast music and laugh. The mom takes ESL classes and is looking for a job. The sister-in-law’s English was good; she was our translator and our way to communicate with the family. The family was very welcoming. The mom made us chai tea and gave us sweets. At first the sister-in-law was a bit confused why we were there but then after explaining they were grateful that we were there to help them. The two young kids were very excited, they wanted to play games, watch movies, and help them with their homework. The youngest daughter is very smart, and knows English pretty well. The boy was very smart too and he understood most of his homework. The daughter who was in 7th grade had very difficult time with her English and her homework. Every time we go visit them, there are always guests over or we would meet some of their extended family. By the end of our volunteering experience we ended up meeting their grandparents, and their aunt & uncle, also some of their close friends. We ended up meeting the dad on our last visit. He didn’t say much but he did have a strong, firm handshake. We took the kids to Loyola Park and they met up with some of their friends. They really like taking pictures. So we would take turns taking pictures of everyone.
For me this experience opened up my eyes to issues that I haven’t been aware about. If I haven’t taken this class and learned about the hardships that refugees face in America I wouldn’t have become aware of this problem. I learned that I shouldn’t only be aware of issues that are told on the news but also be aware of small issues that aren’t broadcasted on the news. I can become more aware by researching and learning about the problems going on in different countries. These experiences aren’t affecting me in a bad way but it is affecting me in a good way because these experiences are helping me grow as a person. I am becoming aware of issues around the world and I am very interested in learning about social justice. After meeting my refugee family I feel very confident that I will get a lot from this experience. I understand the hardships refugees go through first hand rather than just learning it in class and from these hardships we will learn to do something about it. I want to help make people aware of the refugee situation and I want people to do something about it. Already in class, we have spread awareness by doing a fundraiser for the Darfur Dream Team and having evening events where some of the Lost Boys came to talk about their refugee experience. Some other approaches we can take to raise awareness are to make Loyola students to become aware of this issue by organizing events, having fundraising dinners, or having more classes about the topic of social justice. We need people to take action and it all starts from students learning about in a classroom and then telling their friends and family about these issues. One question that has been pondering in my head for a while is why does the U.S. accept refugees if we can’t provide enough resources for them? Because watching the different documentaries in class, it is clear that refugees aren’t getting enough help from the social services and are struggling to live in the U.S. As someone who is aware of this situation, I plan on visiting my family again next year to check up on them and see how everyone is improving with their English and how the kids are doing in school. I don’t want them to feel like I was their friend and then left them, especially to the kids because they enjoyed our company. I have learned a lot from this class and about social justice. I plan on continuing to work for future services and social justice projects around campus and to continue my engagement with my refugee family.