Reuters Photo
Welcoming and giving support to refugees, asylum seekers, and migrant workers from all countries.
Established in 2015, the Central Vermont Refugee Action Network (CVRAN) is a registered 501(c)3 nonprofit organization based in Montpelier and dedicated to making our communities welcoming, safe places for refugees, as well as asylum seekers, and migrant workers from any nation. Our mission is to help these new Vermonters to settle, work, and thrive in Central Vermont. In welcoming them, we see how they greatly enrich our own cultural and economic lives.
RESETTLEMENT OF AFGHAN REFUGEES
Many Afghans and their families who helped the U.S. in Afghanistan during the war were evacuated by U.S. forces in August when the Taliban came to power. CVRAN is working with the Vermont branch of the U.S. Committee on Refugees and Immigrants – USCRI - resettling a number of Afghan families in the Montpelier area.
CVRAN, in partnership with USCRI, is assisting with locating and facilitating both short-term and more permanent housing, primarily in rental apartments and houses. Direct hands-on support includes moving and house set-up, obtaining material goods such as clothing and furniture, and orientation to the Montpelier community. CVRAN volunteers support the Afghan families located here with transportation, for example to medical appointments, shopping and religious services. Volunteers have helped register children in the local schools, adults in basic English language classes, opened bank accounts and will help in the future with obtaining drivers’ licenses, and employment. A goal is self-sufficiency. CVRAN will continue to support our guests until they are able to support themselves.
We need your help!
Volunteer! Donate!CVRAN March Arts Marathon 2022
Thanks to all 50 artist participants and the 1000 donations from sponsors for the great success of the 2022 March Arts Marathon which raised the amazing amount of $68,000, bringing in almost twenty thousand more dollars than this same event last year. This sizable sum will greatly help with the support of refugees and asylum seekers throughout the coming year, for living expenses; legal, medical, and educational expenses, and transportation costs. It is the main source of income for CVRAN.
Scroll through sample work from two years of marathon art submissions by hitting "Gallery" in the menu bar. Writers, painters, poets, quilters, musicians, and more sent out a piece of work each day, usually via email, and often with commentary. What a lovely connection that makes with others at the end of the day.
Would you like to get involved next year? Watch for a chance to sign up as either an artist or as a sponsor for an artist starting next January. This marathon is not only an avenue for contributions to CVRAN, it is also a chance to be part of an artistic community. You can join in!
Click Here to View a List of our Participants and DONATE! Click Here to View the March Arts Marathon 2022 Final GalleryA BIG thank you to our underwriters who have made the March Arts Marathon possible:
Arne and Deborah AbramowitzSam and Michele Clark
Darryl Bloom
Anonymous
Anonymous
News
- Ugandan Asylum Seeker’s Deportation Delayed
November 16, 2022 - Letter From the CVRAN President: Tiny Footholds in the Walls
October 31, 2022 - Mexican Consulate Visit to Middlebury
October 20, 2022
From Facebook
Tradition, craft, and caring: creating welcome blankets for refugees.
Community quilters create welcome quilts for refugees
www.valleyreporter.com
Moretown resident Jeb Bouchard and Fayston resident Tisa Rennau organized a quilting event to benefit refugees.
Vermont's Tibetan community gathers and celebrates
www.wcax.com
The Tibetan Community Organization of Vermont was founded in 1993.
Ugandan asylee's deportation delayed for a year - VTDigger
vtdigger.org
In a letter Steven Tendo received Tuesday, a top U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement official wrote that Tendo cannot be deported until at least Nov. 12, 2023.
The Waterbury team is working with three Spanish-speaking asylum-seeking families. The team needs volunteers (who have passed a recent background check) to help these guests with rides, shopping, English classes, and a weekly hour of child care mid-week while the mom goes to her English lesson. Please give it some thought, and IM us here if you'd like to know more.
If you are interested in the refugees and asylum-seekers that CVRAN is currently working with, please join us for the November CVRAN general meeting on Tuesday, November 15, from 5 to 6:30 at Christ Church, 64 State St., Montpelier. You will also hear of opportunities to provide direct and indirect services to our international guests.