Church World Service Greensboro

Blinh Ramah is a Montagnard man from Vietnam.  The Montagnards are an ethnic group from Vietnam and were recruited by the U.S. Special Forces during the Vietnam War.  After the United States withrew from Vietnam, many Montagnards were forced to flee. Greensboro has the highest Montagnard population outside of Vietnam.

Blinh is happy to be a U.S. citizen now, as he describes differences between his life in Vietnam and his life in Greensboro. “I am happy to be a citizen because I like America and want to be free. In Vietnam, I had no food, medicine, car, or clothes. I am Montagnard and lived in the country and was a farmer. The Vietnamese people lived in the city.”

When Blinh fled Vietnam, he lived in the jungle for two months without access to  food  or water, then in Cambodia for one month.  The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) helped him live in the camps in Cambodia for three months, in Cambodia’s capital for two months, and in Bangkok for one week. He finally moved to Greensboro, and has lived here for nine years.

Blinh is excited to enjoy the privileges and responsibilities that come with American citizenship,  “Next year, I want to vote for President and contribute to society.” When asked about the citizenship class and test, he said it was helpful to have a class with people from other countries.  “The Church World Service class helped me pass the test because it told me everything I needed to know. And I liked the different accents in the class. It helped me learn English better.”

Mahawa Smith moved to the United States from Senegal because she married an American citizen.  Her daughter was born in the United States, for which Mahawa is grateful.  “I like living in the U.S. because I can work and help my daughter. She was born here and has freedoms in America that she does not have in Senegal. In America, she can go to school. In Africa, many girls cannot go to school.”

Mahawa had already applied for citizenship and enrolled in the CWS citizenship classes to make sure her application was successful.  She says she loved everything about the citizenship classes, and when asked if she has advice for other students, her recommendation is for students to make sure they do their homework and study at home.  Mahawa says she will definitely recommend this class to others.  “I will tell all my friends to take this class. It helped me a lot.”

Now that she is a U.S. Citizen, Mahawa is looking forward to many of the privileges that come with citizenship status.  She hopes to help her father and brother come to the United States as they are both still in Senegal.  Additionally, she says, “I am happy to be a citizen because I have the right to vote and many other opportunities.”

Giving Thanks –  Saturday, November 5th at 2pm at the Greensboro Historical Museum. 

Clients, Volunteers, Interns, Employers and all friends of CWS welcome to attend our annual potluck celebration to recognize the contributions and achievements of our community.

Over a delicious multi-cultural potluck supper, we will share our gratitude for all of those that make our work possible recognizing outstanding contributions from across sectors in our community. Thank you all for continuing to inspire us each and every day. We hope to see you there. RSVP to ssin@churchworldservice.org

Refugee 101: An Introduction to Refugee Resettlement at the Global, National, and Local Level –  Tuesday November 15th at 10am hosted by the Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro at 330 S. Greene St. 

This popular workshop provides participants with an overview of the US Refugee Resettlement Program starting with a global perspective and working down to the local level here in Greensboro, including who is coming now, what services are available to them, and how local residents can become involved. The workshop is open to the public but seats are limited – RSVPs accepted on a first come basis.

The workshop will be presented by Sarah Ivory, Director of the CWS Greensboro Refugee and Immigration Services Program with special thanks to our hosts at the Community Foundation. Though the event is open to all, guests are encouraged to consider making an in-kind contribution to the program (e.g. bring a warm blanket, hat/gloves, or jacket to donate to refugees this winter). Cash or checks (made out to Church World Service) also graciously appreciated.

RSVP to sivory@churchworldservice.org. Seats are limited.

Thuong Vu, an immigrant from Vietnam who has been in the United States for six years, stated, “I took the citizenship test two times and didn’t pass. Then, I took the citizenship class with Church World Service, and passed the test after three times.” Thuong, and his wife Vy, have four children, ages 11-18. The oldest daughter attends school at UNCG and is studying biology. The other three children, under the age of 18, will automatically become citizens, since their parents naturalized.

Thuong explained that he is very busy, working at Royal Nail Salon, and it was hard to find time to study.  But because it was a priority, he attended class twice a week at Church World Service to help him pass the test. The most helpful part of the class for Thuong was learning about the questions and vocabulary words on the N-400 form. That was the portion of the citizenship that he did not pass. The N-400 form is the application submitted in order to naturalize. It has many difficult vocabulary words and grammar for non-native English speakers to understand. Even if an immigrant speaks and understands English, the N-400 form is still a difficult application to understand. In CWS’ citizenship class, the students’ learn the vocabulary used on this application, and also practice interview etiquette needed to pass the test.

Thuong explained the he plans to vote as soon as he attends the Oath of Allegiance Ceremony. After immigrants pass the citizenship test, they must attend an oath ceremony before they officially become a citizen. At this ceremony, they promise to be loyal to the United States Constitution. After, Thuong attends the oath ceremony, he plans to vote and make sure he is educated about various ways he can be involved in his community. Thuong said he is grateful for CWS’ citizenship class that helped him to pass the test, and he stated that he will “tell friends to take the class.”

Jorge, a citizenship class student at Church World Service, came to the United States in 1995 on a tourist visa. He married an American citizen in 2005, and became eligible for naturalization in 2011. When asked why he wanted to become a citizen, Jorge explained that when “you are a US citizen you have many freedoms”. He passed the citizenship test two weeks ago and attended the oath ceremony last week, in which he became a citizen. He explained that he friends couldn’t believe that he passed, because he was so nervous, but he explained to them that CWS’ classes really helped him. He stated, CWS citizenship classes “helped me understand the application (N-400 form). Before the class, I didn’t know the questions on the application were important. The class taught me to understand the form.” He also explained that it was helpful for him to listen to the accents of others in the class, including the teacher, to help him understand English better.

Originally from Mexico, Jorge explains that it will be much easier to visit his family in Mexico, once he has a US passport. In addition, he said that he always used to be scared of police officers, even when he had his Green Card, because he could still be deported. Now, he has a sense of security with his citizenship, that he really belongs here, and he no longer fears that someone will force him leave. Jorge said that he recommends CWS citizenship classes to his friends and will “tell them to come to class”.

This summer, CWS is excited to be launching its Naturalization and Citizenship Program, providing legal services and civics education to help local immigrants become American citizens.  We hope that you’ll join us in welcoming to our team attorney Ms. Kelly White, who is working full time in our immigration services program. She is joined by CWS veteran Kelly Dent who is launching the Civics Education component of our program. The program is being supported by a capacity building grant awarded by U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) and is aimed to build the capacity of our local community to successfully integrate our newest residents.

Volunteers Administer Civics Placement Exam

Citizenship in the United States is an important final step for our immigrant neighbors to be able to fully participate in American life. From voting in local and national elections to applying for government jobs or running for office, for many, citizenship is a symbol of true acceptance in their new country.  Unfortunately, the process of becoming a citizen, known as “naturalization” can be extremely daunting to many immigrants who may not even know if they are eligible, much less how to go about doing so. Fees for citizenship services at private law firms can run in the thousands and though many immigrants dream of eventually being granted the full range of rights in this country, the cost and complexity of the process can create a seemingly insurmountable barrier.

In addition to the complexity legal application for citizenship, applicants must pass a multi-part test which includes civics (US history and laws), reading, writing, and speaking in English. This is where the education component of the program come into play. In addition to low cost eligibility screening and legal assistance, the Naturalization and Citizenship Program will be hosting a full range of civics classes (both day time and evening classes available) to help interested applicants at all levels prepare to pass the citizenship exam. The fall semester of classes is set to begin in September with more than forty registrants already on board. Those interested in registering for class, should contact Kelly Dent, Civics Education Coordinator, at 336-676-4223.

Church World Service is recognized and accredited by the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA). All classes are free of charge and legal services are provided on reduced fee basis and are offered in both English and Spanish; some applicants may also be eligible for federal fee waivers of the USCIS filing fees.

For more information about services or to volunteer with this program, please contact Naturalization Specialist, Kelly White, Esq. (kwhite@churchworldservice.org) or Civics Education Coordinator, Kelly Dent (kdent@churchworldservice.org) who can both be reached at 336-676-4223. Additional legal services also available. More information is available at: www.cwsgreesboro.org/immigration.