first apartment visit

This Friday marked our first group visit to one of the apartments, V.P. Without really knowing what to expect, this trip offered a range of insights into the issues facing the Bhutanese. We began by meeting the apartment coordinator. The coordinator serves as the link between SEWA and the refugees. Generally, he or she is also the refugee that has the most English proficiency and has been in Houston the longest. After meeting his family and talking in his apartment, our group followed him on a family by family tour.

What struck me immediately about this afternoon was the sense of hospitality that filled each room. We were offered juice, greeted with heart-warming namaste and introduced to family members. I particularly noticed, as we tried to gather a family census, that there were just as many neighbors in a given room as blood relations. Our apartment coordinator explained that since the children were so used to living among thousands in the camps, they were not used to the boundary of doors and family divisions.

Another striking element of our visit was the number of health problems. Kidney stones were quite common, and their prevalence made me wonder if there might be a nutritional cause/deficit (most of them are on food-stamps and adjusting to a different cuisine). Thus, transportation appeared an issue not only for finding and keeping jobs but also for frequent trips to the ER.

Two other interests that we noticed were a love of soccer among the young boys and a fondness for crocheting among some of the women. Women’s Issues Group is going to try and incorporate these interests into our art and entertainment projects, and maybe even use the crocheting as a means to generate extra income. But when a 68 year old grandmother spoke urgently through the coordinator of her desire to learn English, there was no denying that ESL classes must be goal number one. Most individuals want to work but there are definitely still obstacles of language, access to and knowledge of resources, and attempts to join/retain community. Education, English, and employment remain our priorities as we strategize how to provide resources and empower these families.