“The concept of home has always been an abstract one for me. Growing up as a young girl in the Democratic Republic of Congo, people often made comments about my family heritage as if it were foreign….I am sure there is a connection between my lived experience of never feeling quite at home and the work I now do at CRIS.”

“I started teaching English to refugees in 1986 and never stopped…”

“I feel like I am in the right place at the right time to be here in Columbus, working for CRIS, providing real help, and caring for others’ needs. I only wish I could’ve started [this work] earlier.”

“Every time I meet an arrival at the airport, I feel like it is December 12, 2000. The memory is always fresh. I always become emotional, and I feel that I have a special connection with them because I came here in the same way.”

“I sometimes share parts of my own story with families I serve—relocating to the U.S. as a teen, struggling to learn English and navigate the culture. I explain that though there were challenges, my adoptive parents were there to support me through it all. Now I can offer this same kind of support to others.”

“Working for CRIS now and helping others in a situation similar to what I experienced a few years ago gives me joy, peace, and purpose.”

“I do not see [my work at CRIS] simply as a job. I see it as an opportunity…to offer hope to others. I want to live as a person of hope.”

“When I began my journey into medical school, I knew I wanted to help people. I now see that CRIS was the missing puzzle piece for exactly how and who I want to help.”

“I filed for asylum once I arrived in Miami in 1993, and my application was accepted within two weeks. I felt such relief at being granted asylum, but I was not really sure what to do next.”

“At 17 years of age, I applied to become a student at the University of Minnesota. After being accepted, I left my home country of Palestine—and all that I knew until that point in my life—and moved to Minneapolis.”