Our History Serving Refugees
Catholic Charities Fort Worth has been operating a robust refugee services program since the 1970s, when we began serving refugees from Vietnam during the Vietnam war. Since then, we have helped thousands of refugees, asylees, migrants, immigrants, and more as they have escaped unthinkable horrors and found new hope and life here in America.
How We Help
Our agency provides support to refugees at several stages in their journey — from initial arrival to finding employment and achieving long-term goals. Read more about the impact of our refugee-centered programs here.
What’s Happening
As a result of recent events in Afghanistan, we have been seeing and continue to see Afghan clients coming through our doors. There has been an increase over the last couple of weeks. Most of the Afghans that are coming now are arriving as Special Immigrant Visa holders who are eligible for the same benefits as refugees.
Last week, many commercial flights out of Kabul were for Afghan allies that helped our military men and women at a rate of about one flight a day. After arriving at Fort Lee, these men and women are processed to their final destinations. Many of the refugee agencies we work with have been given very little lead time. In some cases, a resettlement agency might receive a call that a flight with Afghan allies and their families is landing that same day.
We do not know yet how many Afghan clients we will serve. What we can share is that from October of 2020 through the end of July 2021, Texas as a whole resettled 18% of all Afghani SIV’s who arrived in the United States. For reference, Texas as a whole serves upwards of 26 different nationalities in any given year.
Since August, we have received 25 individuals at CCFW. These SIV clients were part of large families and are part of the airlifted families that arrived in Fort Lee, Virginia. We have also verified an additional 20 individuals but do not have travel dates just yet as so many of the flights have been canceled.
How You Can Help:
One of the biggest ways to help is through donations, financial or in-kind, which can be utilized in a quick turnaround for placements we might receive. Specifically, we need:
- Donations: Support our work financially here.
- Gift Cards: Walmart gift cards enable us to buy furniture and complete apartment setups as needed (and don’t require storage space!) Gift cards can be sent to:
Catholic Charities Fort Worth
C/O Refugee Services
P.O. Box 15610
Fort Worth, TX 76119 - Volunteers: We will need a limited group of stand-by volunteers for same-day apartment setups and preparation. To volunteer, please click here.
- Connections: Help connect us with apartment owners who might be willing to partner on housing should our placements increase. We will also need help securing a box truck for easier move-ins. If you’re able to help with these needs, please contact Alice Kigera at akigera@ccdofw.org.