Oh, hello

Alright.  So, bear with me as this may be an extremely long post since I have been negligent in my writing lately.  Work has continued to teach and mold me.  Since my last post I have been able to interact with the refugees on a more regular basis.  One thing I have done with them was going to a food distribution put on by the Food Bank.  Almost all of the refugees are on Food Stamps, and the offices all across Texas are about two months behind on processing applications.  This causes a delay in our clients getting food which makes things difficult for us and more importantly them.  Most of them barely make enough money to pay their rent and utilities, and buying food without Food Stamps can be a real stretch, or impossible, for some of them.  About a month or so ago, the Food Bank organized a food giveaway for the refugees.  I was able to go with my boss and take my camera.  It was the first time I had seen so many of our clients at once and all the different nationalities together.  I enjoyed photographing them and talking to some of the ones I knew.  Even though I didn’t contribute in getting them the food, it was still rewarding to see them receive it.  You could see how thankful, and desperate, some were for the food.

I have been able to attend several of the Job Readiness classes that our program offers.  These are some of my favorite times.   These classes cover everything from personal hygiene to job and interview skills to saving money in the grocery store.  The latter of these was taught in one of the local grocery stores close to the refugees apartments.  We took the class one week and broke them up into smaller groups at the store.  There were volunteers and interpreters with each group to take them around the store and teach them things such as comparing prices of different brands, price per pound vs. price per item, how to use the pharmacy, how to check your blood pressure, and what different items were for.  Apparently some of them get paper towels mixed up with toilet paper, and as you can imagine causes problems in the bathroom.

Two weeks ago, one of the caseworkers had a family of ten coming in from Iraq.  I was able to go with him to the airport to pick up the family and take them to their new apartment.  Since I only work with refugees that have been here six months or longer I was excited about getting to see a newly arriving family.  Their plane arrived early and they were waiting with all their luggage by the time we arrived.  I stayed with them in the passenger pickup area while the caseworker went to get the van in the parking lot.  One of the girls knew how to ask me what my name was and we were able to figure out, after some discussion with her sisters, how old she was.  I think I was about as intrigued by them as they were me.  They were very quiet the whole way to their apartment.  Once we arrived, they spread through the three bedroom apartment and investigated every inch of it.  Even though I couldn’t communicate with them, it was good to be able to watch their reactions to their new home and life.

As much as I love being with the clients, there is a constant battle in my heart between aching and rejoicing for them.  There are some days where I have to hold back tears as I hear about struggling families and see the hardship on their faces. Then there are other days where we hear about one of them getting a job.  Those are the days that keep all of us going and make this job worthwhile.

Even though I have been able to do some fun things outside the office with the clients, the majority of my time is spent inside working in a cubicle from 8-5.  This is something that has been really hard for me to get used to.  I’m still not used to it.  I don’t think I have ever been inside for so long in the same place every day.   So far I have already learned that whatever profession I choose will need to be something that will allow me to be in and out of the office.  Probably more out than in.  I do feel like I am learning some good job skills though and am learning how to work in a professional office atmosphere.  This was something I was unfamiliar with since most of my jobs have involved children and swimming lessons or camp.

I still love my church here and am starting to form stronger relationships with the members.   When my Dad, aunt, and grandmother came a few weeks ago, I saw again how friendly and welcoming the congregation is.  As the months have passed I have grown to love the small, intimate environment.  I feel so connected to the church and many of the members who are now like family.  They have taken such great care of us.  I can already tell that it will be extremely difficult to leave them at the end of the year.

If anyone has extra blankets that are in good shape lying around your house and wants a good home for them, you can send them to me!!  The weather is starting to get cold here and the refugees really need blankets.  E-mail me if you feel so inclined: graceguyton@gmail.com.  I hope that everyone is well and had a wonderful Thanksgiving.  I am really looking forward to being home for Christmas and hope that I can get to spend time with many of you.

Much love, Grace

Burmese Refugees at the Mall

trying different perfumes

 

ice cream tasting

 

trying some orange chicken

 

putting on lip gloss

the whole gang

Divine Redeemer Presbyterian Church!

This is my home church here in San Anton.  It is a small church made up of about 120 members and is primarily Hispanic.  It is a commuter church with people coming from every side of the city.  There are a lot of families in the church which adds an interesting element.  They warned us when we fist got here that we had to be careful which pew we sat in on Sundays.  Many of the families have “designated” pews and can get a little touchy if someone else sits there.  So far I think we’ve stayed off everyone’s row.

The people from the church have been so great to get to know.  Several couples have taken us out and done little things for us.  One couple took very good care of us when we got here and took us on a tour of the city, out for breakfast and lunch, and made sure that we had everything we needed.  Our pastor, Rob, and his wife, Lodie, are so amazing.  We have been able to hang out with them quite a bit since our arrival.  They are both so full of life and have a such a heart for our community and church.  Lodie is going through chemotherapy for breast cancer, and both of them have the best attitude about it.  They are so positive and determined not to let it interfere with their lives.  I admire them a lot.  

Kaley, Lauren and I are all singing in the choir at church and have almost doubled the size of it.  Rob and Lodie both sing and there are about 3-4 other members.  We manage a pretty strong sound for such few people.  This coming Sunday will be our second time to sing during the service.  It has been really nice to be back in choir.  It was something I was very involved with in high school and have missed the past few years. Ramido, our choir director, is very passionate and entertaining during practices.  He is a great pianist and tends to improvise while we sing.

Once a month there is a bible study for women called Lectio Divina.  We went a few weeks ago for the September meeting and really liked it.  There were about 15 women from the church and almost all of them are related to at least one other person there.  Lectio Divina consists of reading a bible verse or passage several times and each time listening for something different.  There is a break between each reading where we go around and share what we heard, pictured, or what struck us about it.  It’s really interesting to hear all the varied responses and how something can be interpreted in so many ways.  The women take turns having at their houses, and we are already looking forward to next months.   

My life has been more diverse here than at any other time in my life.  I am a United Methodist, volunteering through a Presbyterian program, working at Catholic Charities where most of my clients and co-workers are Muslim and Buddhist.  My neighborhood is 98% Hispanic, and my church isn’t far behind that.  It is the only time in my life where I have been the minority everywhere I go, and I wouldn’t want it any other way.  I am learning so much from my experiences and the people I am surrounded by.  My eyes have been opened to many social justice issues that really intrigue and infuriate me.  This year will be a great time for me to learn and expose myself to things I would have never encountered had I chosen another path.  I am so grateful for all the people here and the love and support I am surrounded by.  Many thanks to everyone that has helped to make this year possible.  Much love.

Settling In

I have finally gotten into a routine here in San Antonio.  I wake up at 6:30 to get ready for work and take the 7:39 bus to the office.  I’m starting to have more interactions with clients which I enjoy.  There are mass amounts of paperwork that go along with everything we do for the refugees.  I now know how to fill out a Medicaid, Carelink, and Food Stamp application and know which documents need to be sent with each application.  The majority of our refugees come from Burma, Bhutan, Iraq, Iran, Burundi, Congo, and Somalia.  They are re-located here since there is already an established community of these ethnic groups.  

This past week I went with one of the women from work to Northstar Mall to show a group of Burmese refugees around.  It was their first time being in a mall and was fun to watch them explore.  We took them around the food court where they tried samples of ice cream, cookie cake, and orange chicken.  We took the women into a department store where they tried on different perfumes, none of which they liked.  One of the women at a makeup counter let them try on lip gloss, which looked very pretty on their modest faces.  None of them spoke english, but you could tell they were impressed and a bit hesitant of the many marvels of the mall.

Besides work we have been exploring the town a lot.  People from the church take us out to do something at least once a week.  So far we have been swing dancing, tejano dancing, and introduced to Chachos.  Chachos is ridiculous.  It is a restaurant/bar/playground/dance floor.  I think it’s the only place where you can order mexican food, ice cream, pizza and a drink while you watch children play and get their faces painted.  There are a group of Mennonite and Catholic volunteers that we have gotten to know and hang out with on a regular basis.  They are all a lot of fun and it’s nice to get out of the house and be with people our own age.  We are going to set up a bi-monthly dinner schedule with them and rotate houses.

We live on the West side of town which is 98% Hispanic.  We have become so custom to seeing only Hispanic people that we do a double take when we see a white person in our neighborhood.  We have met some of our neighbors and while they tend to keep to themselves are friendly when we see them.  We made them muffins one day, and I think they appreciated that.  

While I miss the south, and Birmingham in particular, I really like it out here.  I have been so lucky with everything thus far.  Kaley, Lauren and I have a lot of fun together and are becoming close friends.  My work has inspired me to learn Arabic, which is one of the hardest languages to learn.  We’ll see how that goes…   
I am very happy with the work I am doing and the people I am meeting.  Much love to everyone back home (Florida and Alabama).  Miss you all.

P.S.  let me know if there are specific things you would like to know about my work or community.  i like answering questions.

Little Blue

 

home sweet home

New York to Texas!

I am now into my third week of my big adventure to the great state of Texas! My first week I spent in Stony Point, NY doing orientation for the program. The week there was wonderful in so many ways. It was great to be surrounded by people who were there to serve and had similar thoughts and values. Everyday was comprised of worship, small groups, vocational discernment, self care (where I learned to roar like a lion to relieve my inner feelings), and different meetings that helped prepare us for our transitions. I made some good friends there that I intend to keep up with over the year.

I arrived in San Antonio August 31st and spent the week exploring the city. The people at the church have been extremely hospitably and generous. Several people took us on tours around the city, took us out to eat, brought us to their homes to eat, brought food to our house to eat. Obvioulsy we have done a lot of eating, and it has all been really good. We went to church this past Sunday and enjoyed the service. It is a pretty small church with about 120 members. It’s a very personal community though and I think it will be a great change. My roommates and I are going to sing in the choir and maybe get involved in a few other activities at church.

I started my work today at Catholic Charities helping out with Refugee Resettlement. I work in the part of the program that helps refugees who have been here between 6 mo. and 5 years. After 6 months their free aid is cut off and they have to apply for food stamps, medicaid, and housing. We help them get the funds they need and fill out the mass amounts of paperwork. I am one of the few native Americans in the office and I really like that. There are several people in the office that speak Arabic and others that speak Farsi, German, and Spanish. I am already starting to learn more about other cultures and am looking forward to this all year.

My experience has been great so far and I love my roommates. Lauren is from Charlotte, North Carolina and Kaley is from Tupelo, Mississippi. Lauren is working at our church, Divine Redeemer Presbyterian, with the youth group and is also starting an afterschool youth program at a local Methodist church. Kaley is working at RAICES doing immigration law. Our house has three bedrooms and is bright yellow with lime green trim. We blend in quite well. Thanks for all the support and love and I will keep you all updated regularly!