Public meetings on the refugee project will be Sunday, Sept. 18,  6:30-8:30, JFK Middle School and Sept. 22, 2-4, Northampton Senior Center.

By Doug Rennick

You’ll recall that this spring we collected many welcome kit items for refugees, which we delivered on June 12 to Jewish Family Service in Springfield. These welcome kits were much appreciated. That was an initiative of the PVIRAG (Pioneer Valley Interfaith Refugee Action Group) and P&JSC. There were also two furniture pick up and delivery days and the furniture was taken to an ASCENTRIA Care Alliance (formerly Lutheran Social Services) storage site in Westfield. No further furniture collection will occur until storage facilities are identified.

Now Catholic Charities has submitted an application to the US State Department to resettle fifty-one refugees in Northampton. Refugees will come from North Africa and Syria. Catholic Charities will know in mid-September whether they were awarded the contract. A steering committee for this project has been formed. The City of Northampton is on board and will be involved.

On August 8, a lead Catholic Charities person, Kathryn Buckley-Brawner, briefed PVIRAG about the project. There was general agreement that PVIRAG and its member congregations will support the resettlement of refugees in Northampton if the project gets the green light. We will probably not see refugees and their families before the end of the year, but preparations for their coming is starting now.

To receive email updates about refugee resettlement in Northampton go to: http://eepurl.com/b_aWcD to sign up. Public conversations about the project will be held on Sept. 18, 6:30-8:30, JFK Middle School and Sept. 22, 2-4, Senior Center. Susannah Crolius is the Outreach and Development person for Catholic Charities for this project. Stay tuned. 

– Doug Renick represents the HCC Peace and Justice Steering Committee on the PVIRAG.