Welcoming Refugees to the US

How to find a sponsor for yourself, your family, or a broader group

Many people in need of refuge don't know an eligible person in the U.S. to sponsor them. If you are one of them, please read on for how to connect with potential sponsors safely and securely. Due to the scale of the displacement crisis, unfortunately there are many more people in need of safety than there are sponsors to assist them. Welcome.US is working to close this gap by educating Americans about sponsorship and encouraging them to support newcomers like you. If you are from Cuba, Haiti, Nicaragua, Ukraine, or Venezuela, you may be able to use the Welcome Connect Platform to connect with an American sponsor.

Welcome Connect is an online platform where potential sponsors in the U.S. and people seeking sponsors can connect and get to know each other. Then they decide together if sponsorship is a good fit and begin the application process with the U.S government. The Welcome Connect registration page for people seeking sponsors opens up on the 3rd Tuesday of each month. Click Here for more information on the registration process or to learn more about becoming a sponsor.

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* Important Notice *

Earlier this year, Samaritas was under investigation by the state for allegations of abuse in our emergency shelter in Grand Rapids. We opened this shelter 26 months earlier for children from Central America crossing the border fleeing from horrible condition; we were asked to take in Afghan youth when there was no other place for them to go after the crisis in Afghanistan occurred. We accepted 19 youth in response to this request and our long-term commitment to help youth to the greatest extent possible at the time of their greatest need. Samaritas was one of several similar emergency shelters across the country asked to take in these refugee youth.

Due to the severe level of trauma they had endured, many of them required intensive therapy and counseling. As a result of the growing concern we had for the depth and breadth of those needs of the youth and the safety of our team, we made the decision to work with our referring partners to move the youth to other programs where they could access the higher level of trauma-informed care, supervision, and medical attention that they required. Due to state and federal oversight of our programs, we are unable to share specific details of the investigation but we were cleared of any abuse allegations by the state and all youth were transferred to appropriate residential placements where they could receive the care they needed. Samaritas continues to be a state and federal leader in refugee resettlement, including refugee foster care.

MEDIA INQUIRIES

Please Contact:
Joe DiBenedetto
Lambert & Co.
(516) 637-0597

Matt Friedman
Tanner Friedman Strategic Communications
(248) 762-1430