Our Stories

A small investment of bikes and cell phones is making a big impact for refugee communities to be able to monitor and protect children.

Rouba is a teacher at a school at JRS Lebanon who is learning how to make sure she can still teach her students while not in the classroom during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Jean Pierre was born in Congo as a child of Rwandan refugees. He is now a Doctoral Candidate in International and Multicultural Education at the University of San Francisco (USF). At USF he is a Resident Minister working on Solidarity in Action (SIA) social justice volunteer programming. Jean also works at Partnerships for Trauma Recovery (PTR), a nonprofit where he provides psychosocial support to refugees and immigrants in the area.

JRS Projects in Cameroon and CAR, funded with support from the US Department of State’s Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration, are working to adapt their programs during COVID-19, and using their networks within the community to raise awareness about the disease and pandemic.

JRS/USA joins other Jesuit organizations in the US, Canada, and Latin America in calling for solidarity across borders and recognizing that we are a community and only in a community can we move forward without leaving anyone behind.

Patience Mhlanga is a former refugee from Zimbabwe, and currently an MPH Candidate at George Washington University in Washington, DC. She is also a graduate of Fairfield University and studied Theology at Duke University. Patience served in the AmeriCorps teaching math and served in the Peace Corps in Zambia, and most recently served as JRS/USA’s Advocacy and Outreach Intern.

Maria is a 30-year-old mother of two young children, who fled from Honduras after her family’s lives had been threatened by gangs. After a long journey, being kidnapped and extorted in Northern Mexico, crossing the Rio Grande River, and being arrested by US Border Patrol, the family of three were told to return to Mexico, threatening their safety and lives. Maria and her family are stranded.

Karen Perez, JRS Mexico Legal Coordinator shares her experience working with asylum seekers who have given up on their claims in the United States.

Ana never thought that she would have to leave her home in El Salvador. She was forced to flee because of gang violence and is now stuck in Mexico, unsure of what her future holds.