Program helps refugees bridge cultural divides

~ Volunteers forced to contend with language, customs barriers.

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Halfway around the world from the homeland they fled as refugees, the eight members of the Tu family are finding help and hospitality thanks to a church-based program taking hold in the Kansas City area.

The program, called Haven, is run by Catholic Charities and links church groups with refugee families from all religious faiths. Participating churches make a one-year commitment to guiding the newcomers through what is often the most difficult part of their journey -- adjusting to life in the United States.

Members of Myanmar's ethnic Karen minority, the Tu family -- Dena, Bleh and their six children -- lived in a bamboo hut in a camp in Thailand before settling into a new dwelling in Kansas City, Kan.

Their Haven volunteers are members of Revolution Church, a Methodist church in the Westport section of Kansas City, Mo. The church is the first in the area to volunteer for Haven.

Before their first meeting with the Tus on a recent icy day, four of the volunteers tried to shake off their nerves about possible cultural blunders.

"Gosh, do we shake their hands? Is that OK?" murmured Dustin Adair, 28.

"Should we take off our shoes?" asked Donna Constantineau, 50.

"Let's leave their welcome baskets in the car until we've met them," said Katie Brennan Homiak, 26. "We don't want to overwhelm them."

Helped by interpreter

First, however, the volunteers gave the family some time with an interpreter. Aung Gyi, 31, of Liberty is thought to be the only person in the area who speaks English and Karen. Gyi arrived in the United States as a Burmese-Karen refugee 10 years ago.

Finally, after about 20 minutes of waiting, the group was invited up to the Tus' place.

Dena Tu smiled as the strangers filed into the family's small apartment. She, her husband, Bleh, and four of their six children squatted on the floor, nodding and looking down, a show of respect.

Both groups were shy, yet curious. Both seemed to be looking for ways they were alike. It was the baby, 18-month-old Pa Mu Tu, whose gurgling cries broke awkward silences.

Everyone tried, despite language barriers, various ways to coax him into a giggle.

Soon a version of charades popped up as the Americans tried to communicate with the refugees, first with gestures, then with words.

"Hello. Welcome," said Brennan Homiak.

The ice was broken further as the volunteers handed out some gifts they had brought along -- barrettes for the girls, toy cars for the boys.

In the previous week, church members had stocked up on goods to welcome the family. There were diapers, tissues and toilet paper, bags of rice and potatoes, grocery sacks full of instant noodles, shrimp paste, mangoes and limes.

Undertaking new journey

Sarah Pierce, a program coordinator for Haven, said that while the Tus are lucky to be here, their most difficult journey has just begun.

New language. New home. New foods. New climate. A dizzying array of newness. The Haven program is a way to ease a little of the newness with hospitality from strangers.

As part of the Haven program, the church members will meet with the Tus once a month and show them where they can buy groceries, how to use public transportation, how to use the public library.

Sarah Pierce, Haven program coordinator, hopes that as people hear about the program, more will step forward to volunteer. Business groups and organizations also are welcome.

In the coming months, Somalian, Sudanese and Burmese refugees are scheduled to arrive in Kansas City.

Although Pierce initially sent out 15 e-mails to churches in the area, only Revolution responded. Her invitation came as church members were discussing ways to reach out to the world.

"This was something we could actually engage with people instead of just sending a check," said Brennan Homiak, a member of the refugee team.

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Information from: The Kansas City Star, http://www.kcstar.com