Refugees find support from Catholic Charities

November 20, 2023

Imagine waiting up to 17 years in a refugee camp before finally coming to the United States to begin a new life. That is what many people do to escape life-threatening circumstances in their home countries.
Shalom Lule is the refugee services coordinator for Catholic Charities in the Diocese of Des Moines. Like many refugee services today, there’s been an increase in resettlement activities and requests. 

“As of October 1, 2023, we have increased the number of new arrivals to 250 for fiscal year 2024,” Lule said.

That’s an increase from 210 clients from fiscal year 2023. Catholic Charities refugee services helped almost 70 clients in September alone.

New City, New Culture
Refugees arrive in Des Moines from a variety of countries and cultures. Upon landing at the Des Moines International Airport, refugees are greeted by a case manager from Catholic Charities. That begins the process of acclimating to Iowa, our culture customs, and our weather.

For the first 90 days, the Catholic Charities refugee services staff works with clients to help them settle in their new home. This includes helping refugees find housing, make trips to the grocery store, enroll children in school, and look for employment.

Work is a top priority for refugees.

“One of the first questions many refugees ask when they arrive is ‘When can I start working?’” Lule said. “They want to transform their lives. They want to provide for their families. They’re geared toward working.”

Transportation to their new jobs can also be a challenge for refugee clients. Lule helps families learn the Des Moines Area Regional Transit, also known as DART, the bus system in the Des Moines metro area which is vital to the success of refugees. 

Connecting With Families
In an effort to continue aiding refugees in Central Iowa, Catholic Charities started a new program called Catholic Charities Connect. The program pairs a refugee family with a family in the Des Moines area. The Kurth family of West Des Moines was one of the first families to sign up for the program.

Jason Kurth is the chancellor for the Diocese of Des Moines. Kurth, his wife and their children are members of St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church in West Des Moines. When the opportunity presented itself, the Kurths stepped forward to help a refugee family of eight who had been living in a refugee camp for 10 years before being resettled in Iowa.

The Kurths helped the family for more than four months, including assisting the family in becoming familiar to living and working in Des Moines, as well as helping them make connections to the community. The two families gathered throughout the summer for a variety of social activities. In July, they celebrated an American tradition – a barbecue on the Fourth of July and watching fireworks. The next month, when both families had birthdays, they met at Gray’s Lake for a picnic and birthday cake.

Catholic Charities also helps with any material needs refugee families may have. This includes clothing, additional bedding, toys, games and personal hygiene items. In celebration of Catholic Charities’ centennial year, the organization announced its 100 Challenge, which encourages others to collect 100 personal care items to help relieve some of the immediate needs clients face. Items collected through this challenge will support all who are being served through Catholic Charities’ programs including new and current refugee families.

“Catholic Charities does the lion’s share of the material needs,” Kurth said. 

Even with an outpouring of support from Catholic Charities and local families, refugees settling in Iowa still face challenges.

“It’s eye-opening seeing how difficult it is, even with the services we have,” Kurth said. “When you don’t know the language, when you don’t have transportation, when you don’t have the relationships, it’s challenging to get settled.”