Repairing the World, One Family at a Time

Every year tens of thousands of people from around the world fleeing war or persecution because of their race, religion, ethnicity, sexual persuasion or political beliefs, arrive in the United States, seeking safety and stability. For them, America remains a beacon and a chance at a better life. The Westchester Resettlement Coalition (WRC) is an initiative by concerned local residents to help refugees rebuild their lives in an unfamiliar land.

Westchester Resettlement Coalition (WRC) welcomes refugees
to Westchester County, providing them with the support they need to reclaim their lives and work toward becoming self-sufficient.

WRC acts as both a financial and emotional safety net for new refugees, helping families and individuals:

Find and Obtain Housing
Learn and Practice English
Find Employment
Enroll Children in School
Manage Healthcare Needs
Facilitate Transportation

Updates & Milestones

Whoever saves a single life is considered by scripture to have saved the whole world.

Talmud (Sanhedrin 37a)

Latest Updates

Fall 2025 Update

WRC is delighted to report that the two families we have been assisting over the last year have made tremendous progress toward living independently despite the challenging environment. Their success means progress for us too, as it allows WRC to assist a new family in the near new year.

The K family (parents and their two-year-old daughter) recently moved to upstate New York, where the living expenses are much lower than in Westchester. The dad successfully pursued his truck driving license and now earns a sufficient wage to pay their expenses. Mom is home with their child as they integrate themselves into their new community. Though they no longer require WRC’s financial assistance, we remain in touch and check in regularly.

The F family remains in Westchester. The mom’s part-time job became a full-time position (with benefits!) when her employer learned she might leave because she needed full-time work. Her 19-year old daughter graduated high school in June and now works part-time. Her goal is to find a full-time position or a second part-time job. When she’s ready, she has been accepted into Westchester Community College. Fortunately, we have connected the family with Catholic Charities in Yonkers, where there is a job developer and a case manager who can help them renew any public benefits and apply for green cards. Between the two salaries, they could just cover their expenses. With recent changes in public benefits, such as SNAP, this becomes more difficult. Meanwhile, the two boys (ages 10 and 12) are attending middle school and playing weekend soccer.

WRC is working with other refugee organizations to stay on top of ever-changing government policies about who can enter the US and what benefits are available to them upon arrival. While few refugees are entering the US, there are families currently living in shelters who need assistance in settling here. That’s where WRC comes in, helping to find housing and furnishings, jobs, medical care, English language lessons, introducing the family to their new community.

In anticipation of WRC hosting its fifth family, we’re putting the process in place: finding a reasonably affordable apartment in a safe neighborhood; furnishing and stocking the apartment; and, preparing a welcome dinner, to start. WRC will assist them financially with rent; help get whatever clothes they need in order to comfortably face the season; and, provide transportation to appointments. If they have children, we will help register for school and/or day care. Also, WRC will assist them in applying for Medicaid, SNAP, and other available public benefits, and introduce them to their new community, public transportation, and English tutoring, if necessary.

Thanks for your support. We have much to celebrate as we end this year and start the new one.

Spring 2025

Since our last update, much has changed in the world of refugee resettlement. Over the last three years, WRC has worked with four different refugee families, though each with a different relationship to the current U.S. immigration “system” depending on their countries of origin.

At this time, we are helping two different families settle into life in the U.S.

One of the families (from Central America) came here through the Welcome Corps program that has now been eliminated. Our family was already in the U.S. and on their way to independence at the time the Welcome Corps was shut down. Welcome Corps families were thoroughly screened before coming into this country and they are designated as refugees with a path to citizenship.

Our other family is seeking asylum, and has been awaiting a hearing, but it appears that few, if any, asylum hearings are happening. As you might imagine, the families are extremely fearful of what might happen going forward. Parents in both families are working hard while looking for jobs that will better support their families. Our goal is for both families to become independent of WRC in the coming months. This may turn into a greater challenge should the public benefits be cut. Both families have been depending on these benefits to supplement their incomes, such as SNAP, the availability of Food Banks, and Medicaid.

LATE SUMMER 2024

After frustrating months of waiting on the sidelines, the Westchester Resettlement Coalition (WRC) needs assistance in helping two refugee families start their new lives in America. Both families arrived safely in Westchester, and as I write, WRC is setting up two apartments in Hastings-on-Hudson.

Family #1 -
The K. family — father AK (31), mother BK (28), and daughter ALK (8 months) — have been living at the Ardsley Motel for the past 10 months and are relieved to finally have a quiet space for their baby, and a kitchen!! They left their home in Turkey because of their fears of living under the authoritarian rule of the President and their desire for greater freedom and a better life. They arrived in the US in July 2023, and lived for 90 days in a Brooklyn shelter before being transferred to the Ardsley motel. Their court date for asylum is set for March 2025. ALK was born Oct. 12, 2023, after the family entered the U.S. and is an American citizen.

The K’s are a lovely couple driven to launch their new lives. Their wonderful news is that AK found a full-time job at Federal Express!! So now housed and with one parent employed, they are on the road. Adem possesses a college degree in communications, and has his NYS driver license and purchased a car. He has been working as a delivery driver for Doordash and Uber Eats. Betul is a high school graduate and worked in textile sales in Turkey. Both are motivated to learn English and have been taking free language classes at a Yonkers library.

Our priorities to help this family become self-sufficient are:

Provide tutors and other resources to help them learn English, which is key to their adjustment in the community and to job advancement.
Explore with BK availability of childcare, and help her find a job, perhaps as a healthcare aide or in a childcare situation.
Continue to provide help supplementing their rent over the next few months, as they take over their rent and other living expenses.

Family #2 -
Our second family is from Costa Rica. EF, 34, the mother of the family is Nicaraguan. The three children , K (18), J (10), and J (8), are Costa Rican. We picked them up at the airport on July 18 and are now settling them into their new place. We’ve started from scratch to provide this family with basic necessities. WRC pays the rental deposit and rent for some months until the family is earning income.

Our goals for the F family:

Help EF find a job where she can speak Spanish and help KF find an after-school job, ideally close to Hastings. They are both anxious to start work!
Register the children in school. We are not yet sure what their level of education, but it seems that KF was in the equivalent of 11th grade in Costa Rica.
Provide tutors for the whole family.

Spanish-speakers are needed to serve as translators with this family, especially for planning any serious conversation.

If you would like to volunteer to assist these new arrivals finding their footing in their new country, please visit the WRC website for a list of committees that you can join. (Note: Anyone seeking to work directly with WRC families is required to undergo a background check.) We are always on the look out for people with real estate and legal expertise to assist with housing placements.

Here comes the ask: At this particular time, we seek funding to help support our families through the next months. WRC is an all-volunteer organization and financial donations will help these families and help us continue our mission of “Repairing the World, One Family at a Time.”

Latest Updates

Fall 2025 Update

Spring 2025

LATE SUMMER 2024

Provide tutors and other resources to help them learn English, which is key to their adjustment in the community and to job advancement.

Explore with BK availability of childcare, and help her find a job, perhaps as a healthcare aide or in a childcare situation.

Continue to provide help supplementing their rent over the next few months, as they take over their rent and other living expenses.

​

Help EF find a job where she can speak Spanish and help KF find an after-school job, ideally close to Hastings. They are both anxious to start work!

Register the children in school. We are not yet sure what their level of education, but it seems that KF was in the equivalent of 11th grade in Costa Rica.

Provide tutors for the whole family.

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Donate directly online here.