A REFUGEE'S SUCCESS STORY
In 1978, a family consisting of parents and their nine children fled Vietnam on their boat and headed out to sea. With luck on their side, they made it over to Malaysia at the Refugee camp waiting for someone to sponsor them. Months passed and good news finally came to the family. They were sponsored by St. Stephens Catholic Church in Pensacola, FL. Today all children are graduates from universities or are currently in Medical School. All are honor students that graduated top of their class.
Many refugees leave their country to seek freedom and a better life. Refugees often sneak out of their country during night time, leaving everything behind, including their families and homes. The risk is often a brutal journey to make it to the United States, thereby putting their lives in danger. Many risk their lives to give themselves and their families opportunities for a better future.
Catholic Charities has resettled and continues on resettling refugees and their families to help achieve self sufficient goals. Catholic Charities works closely with the sponsoring family and community organizations in order to ease the transition of the refugee. These services include, but are not limited to, an initial housing allowance to allow refugees to find appropriate housing, as well as formal and informal networking within the local ethnic community.
