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WHO IS A REFUGEE? A refugee is a person who has fled from persecution in his homeland. To attain official refugee status from the United Nations High Commissioner on Refugees, a person must prove that they are unable or unwilling to return to their home country because of a well-founded fear of persecution on the basis of race, religion, ethnicity, membership in a social group, political opinion.
Interfaith Refugee Ministry, the official U.S. government refugee resettlement agency in New Bern, is dedicated to helping refugees rebuild their lives in a safe land. Each year, the Ministry resettles new refugee families from around the world. Their staff, working with volunteers, civic groups and faith communities, ensures each refugee will receive basic initial support as they begin a new life in a strange land. Interfaith provides a bridge to a new life for these persecuted people who are coming out of the darkness of a shattered life into the bright hope of a better future.
Since its beginning in 1992, IRM has resettled over 1,200 refugees in eastern North Carolina cities. Ethnicities include: Russians, Ukrainians, ethnic Vietnamese, Bosnians, Croatians, Serbians, Burmese, Chin, Karen, Mon, Shan, Rohingya, Chinese, Montagnards, Kosovar Albanians, Iranians, Cameroonians, Uzbeki, Sudanese, Rwandans, Iraqis, Cubans, and Colombians.
Come and support this important work. Tickets are free, but donations are encouraged, 100% goes directly to refugee support. For more information contact Susan Husson at 252-633-9009 or Roselie McDevitt at (252) 633-6715. Entrance tickets are available at the door. Get your tickets at the Interfaith Refugee Ministry offices 1233 Colony Drive, New Bern or Mount Olive College, 2912 Trent Road, New Bern.
Submitted by: Roselie McDevitt, Event Chair for Interfaith Refugee Ministry, 252-633-6715