Let’s do some Welcoming!

As soon as we got wind that there was a national Welcoming Week happening, we got a little excited! During this annual series of events, communities bring together immigrants, refugees, and native-born residents to raise awareness of the benefits of welcoming everyone. One thing lead to the next, and now we are so thrilled to bring you not one or two things, but NINE events that you can take part in from Sept 15 – 24, AND a full host of things you can do right from home! The International Rescue Committee (IRC) and many other organizations have partnered with us to host these events. We are so grateful.  

All of the info is available on our website or download the calendar below. Pick a few things, or join us for all, but some things are NOT to be missed (Coffee! Food! Theater! Games! Movies!)! There are also many ways that you can participate statewide if you can’t make any of these events: take a photo like the great ones above, make some important calls to Washington, record your family’s immigration story for StoryCorps!

We are so excited and can’t wait to see you guys out there! It really is going to be an incredible week!

In love and gratitude,
Mary Poole

P.S. Make sure to check out our Volunteer Spotlight this week! Charlie has been so incredible that our donated car to license ratio is now in the negative for the first time! We especially are looking for a van or larger vehicle for a family of 7. Please let me know if you would like more info on how to donate an older but well running vehicle (this is tax-deductible!), email me at info@softlandingmissoula.org.

August Newsletter

Soft Landing Missoula has been busy getting our families ready for school, helping with a few more moves, and planning for the next several months. We are so excited to share these updates with you!

Please mark your calendar for Missoula’s first annual “Welcoming Week” from September 15-24. SLM will join thousands of other organizations in this national event to celebrate welcoming people in our cities. Join SLM and our partners IRC, JRPC, SALAM, Montana World Affairs Council, and more, for a week of cultural activities. More information about the exciting events taking place will be shared soon.

We were thrilled with the number of donations we received for our Personal and Home Care Drive. Your generosity helped meet the needs of our families – we can’t thank you enough! Just like in your home, our families will eventually need more personal care items. Your continued donations of these items will always be appreciated! 

As we get closer to our one-year anniversary, we are still amazed by supporters like you. You continue to call, volunteer, donate, and share our story. Saying “Thank you” doesn’t begin to cover our gratitude for you. Please keep an eye on our website for new donation and volunteer needs.

Gratefully,
Mary, Molly and Carlyn

LIFELONG LEARNING CENTER: A SPECIAL PARTNERSHIP

The Lifelong Learning Center has been one of SLM’s most valuable partners from the beginning. Now, they are offering a tutoring training course that could help our volunteers who are interested in practicing English skills with individuals. They have a paid positionopen, as well!

REFUGEES BRING JOYS OF FOOD ACROSS U.S.

As you know, some of our families have been selling their amazing food at the Missoula Farmer’s Market. Read more about a food delivery service in NYC and the work they do with refugees.

IRC PROVIDES INFORMATION ABOUT TRAVEL BAN, IMPACT FOR REFUGEES

Soft Landing Missoula has received many questions about the travel ban and the impact it will have on our families. If you have questions about these recent news topics, the International Rescue Committee has provided information to guide you.

Happy Summer!

We have some good news to share, as our beloved Mary Poole welcomed a little girl on June 23rd. Mary and her family are taking some much deserved time off to be with little Grace – we are so happy for her!

Molly, Carlyn and our amazing volunteers are keeping things running smoothly in the office. We continue to help our new families settle in their new homes, learn English, earn their driver’s license and hit Splash Montana! Thank you all for your extra help and hands! 🙂 

We are thrilled that our Farmer’s Market booth continues to be such a success. Come see us every Saturday morning at the market near the XX’s! We still need volunteers to help run the booth on Saturdays. For more information or to sign up, email volunteer@softlandingmissoula.org.

For the next two weeks, we are running a Home and Personal Care Drive. We are in great need of these items for our families! Bring a donation by our office and help stock our shelves with laundry soap, cleaning supplies, shampoo, diapers and more.

 

Enjoy the sunshine!
Molly Cottrell

P.S.: Check out the Family Friendly Celebration of Hmong American Culture at the MAM, opening on July 26th!

 

 

Success! 

Saturday’s celebration of World Refugee Day with our First Annual Soccer Tournament and Community Celebration was a smashing success! We are so so thankful for all who showed up to play and party with us and of course, the sponsors of the event! 

I couldn’t even begin to count the number of ear to ear smiles all day, from soccer players, to dancers, to people enjoying delicious food together, and of course our lovely volunteers who once again made the day happen. We knew this event would help build community between old and new Missoulians, but it has also been so neat to see some of the refugee families that didn’t know each other come into the office this week and hug and laugh about how sore everyone still is!  

Another HUGE thanks to our own Molly Cottrell, not just for this idea, but also designing the tournament and successfully arranging the teams so well that every team won at least one game and the final match had to be decided by a shootout!  Same time and place next year, so mark it on your calendars. You are not gonna want to miss it! 

We have one more SUPER exciting announcement to make: We have officially hired Carlyn Runnels as a third member of our team! Carlyn brings years of experience and much needed skills to SLM, but perhaps even more importantly, a sunny disposition and a roll-your-sleeves-up scrappiness that fits right in at our office. She has jumped right in and will be filling the role of Volunteer Coordinator (and more!) so I am sure many of you will get the privilege of meeting her soon. We are so happy you are with us Carlyn!

I will leave you with a couple memories of the fun we had at Saturday’s soccer tournament: My favorite is a short video the Missoulian shot starring Gilbert Hategeka from Congo. Here is also a link to the Missoulian article and picturesthat are fabulous! Thanks again everyone for coming out and enjoying yourselves!

In love and gratitude,

Mary Poole

Airbnb + IRC

There is a wonderful new way Airbnb owners can support refugee families. Check it out!

Volunteers Needed for Drivers Ed

We run a fabulous little program for folks interested in working toward getting their driver’s license and have already helped a handful of folks all the way through this process! Our summer volunteer staffing for this program is a bit slim but it is one of our most popular classes and it’s fun! Please consider volunteering with this class. Learn more and contact us!

Upcoming Event

We are partnering with SALAM (Standing Alongside America’s Muslims) to screen 5 short films about refugees at home and abroad including 4.1 Miles next Wednesday, June 28, at the Missoula County Public Library at 6 p.m. Get more details.

Play Soccer. Celebrate Our Community!

As we get closer and closer to World Refugee Day on June 20th, we’re gearing up for our first annual celebration of this day on Saturday, June 17th, with a soccer tournament and community party. All of us at the office are working very hard to make sure this event does justice to the honor and privilege it has been to welcome refugee families to our community. We hope this day-long event shows our intention to stand in solidarity with refugees world wide.  

Please don’t shy away if soccer isn’t your thing!  After the tournament, starting around 4 p.m., you can join us at the community celebration, which is free and open to all!  There will be food, dancing, music, and I am sure, a few surprises!  This is a family friendly event with a welcome by Missoula Mayor John Engen and the super rad Whizpops headlining the event!

Here’s how to get involved with the event:

1) Register to play in the soccer tournament by June 11th, and please spread the word!! Registration has had a slow start–help us out!  Here is a Facebook event if that is easiest for you to share: https://www.facebook.com/events/605977089744890/.

2) We have MANY volunteer opportunities, from help on the day of, to signing up to bring a potluck dessert. Please email volunteer@softlandingmissoula.org to find out more about volunteering for the event and to sign up!

3) Come AND invite friends to celebrate with us!  The “Final Match” will begin around 4 p.m. with festivities to follow. Share this info on this event with a couple folks you know: https://www.facebook.com/events/605977089744890/.

OK!  We couldn’t be more excited to celebrate the courage, strength, and resilience of refugees with you all, and have a little fun in the process. See you there!

In love and gratitude,

Mary Poole

P.S. We have had quite a few new arrivals over the past few weeks, with additional families coming this week!  We have a HUGE need of twin and double sheet sets and comforters/blankets as well as toiletries such as shampoo/conditioner, lotion, toothpaste, deodorant, feminine pads and liners, etc… These things can be dropped off at the SLM office at 939 Stephens. Thanks!

Beyond Us and Them: What is Possible? 

The Jeannette Rankin Peace Center presents “Beyond Us And Them: What is Possible?” a day-long “un-conference”. At the un-conference, four lightning speakers (Dustin Monroe, Quentin Robinson, Tricia Parks and Robert Rivers) will ignite the participants with their individual passions for peacemaking. JRPC members, friends, and community members will be invited to nominate and host any topic related to the theme. These will become simultaneous, fluid breakout sessions in which participants share ideas, inspire each other, and engage on the most powerful topics of interest. At the close, participants are invited to an evening reception in the UCC Courtyard with snacks and music. The event is free for JRPC members and $20 for non-members; lunch, snacks, and evening reception included. More information and online registration is at jrpc.org/beyond-us-and-them.

Special thank you to our sponsors for World Refugee Day!

OK, you have heard us talking about it for a couple months now, but registration is now open for our First Annual World Refugee Day Cup Soccer Tournament! World Refugee Day is celebrated every year on June 20th. Our soccer tournament on June 17th, will honor the courage, strength and determination of women, men and children who are forced to flee their homeland under threat of persecution, conflict and violence.

The Missoula community has stepped up to welcome more than 20 families in the last year and make Missoula a welcoming place that refugees can call home. Soft Landing Missoula is excited to celebrate the addition of these families to our community with a soccer tournament and community party. As we have said, if we have noticed anything about universal ways to bring people together, it is food, music, and soccer–and this event will have all 3! You don’t have to be part of the soccer tourney to come out and enjoy the community celebration following the event–it will be a blast!  Get the details and register now.

If you can’t wait that long to see us, we will be participating in the June 2nd, First Friday to showcase the amazing project that so many of you are loving, With Open Arms: Stories about Helping Refugees in Missoula, that shows the impact that working with refugees has had on some of our volunteers’ lives.

See you there!

Mary Poole

Register Now! First Annual Missoula World Refugee Day Cup

Held at the new fields and pavilion at Fort Missoula Regional Park, this will be a 7v7 round-robin tourney with at least 2 games guaranteed. There will also be a kids game and kids activities. Tourney kicks off at 9 a.m. with the final match at 4 p.m. followed by dinner and music by the WhizPops! More details and registration.

Join Us at First Friday in June

For the June First Friday event on June 2nd, we will be exhibiting the photos and stories from our digital story project, With Open Arms: Stories About Helping Refugees in Missoula. The project sought to bring attention to those in our community working to help refugees find a comfortable life in Missoula. Some volunteers will be present to discuss with visitors more in-depth their experiences working with refugees from around the world. The show will be presented next to Radius Gallery in their annex hallways from 5 p.m. – 8 p.m. Radius Gallery is located at 114 E Main St. in downtown Missoula. It is a half block east of Higgins on Main.

Support the New Neighbors Project

This is an amazing project! Here’s their description from their Kickstarter campaign, “In 2016, Montana opened its doors to refugees for the first time this century. The New Neighbors Project explores the relationship between new refugee arrivals and long-time Montanans through a tapestry of self-directed first person stories.” Having raised more than $21,000 so far, this team needs to raise a little over $8,000 by this Thursday, May 25th, for the project to be funded. Learn more and donate now!

Volunteer Spotlight: John Gage and Anna Tucker

We are so thankful for John Gage and Anna Tucker (and their trucks) for all their help recently with collecting furniture and home set ups.  It’s not the glamorous work, but so important in supporting our incoming families. Thank you for your flexibility, strength and humor. If you want to be like John and Anna and join our brand new Home Set Up Team, please email volunteer@softlandingmissoula.org.

Summer Pack Supplies Needed

We are putting together Summer Packs to send home with each school-aged refugee child at the end of the school year. We will provide them with age appropriate books (thanks to the Mansfield Library) for summer reading and information on where to find free activities and meals around town. We also love to include pens, pencils, markers, notebooks, coloring books, puzzle books and practice math and writing books for all ages. Please consider donating some of those items!

Items needed by June 2. To donate, bring the items to our office: 939 Stephens Avenue, Suite C, in Missoula. Thank you!

Tonight at 6 p.,m a city-wide “day of giving” through Missoula Gives begins. This year their goal is to raise $300,000 for local non-profit organizations. This astonishing number showcases how incredible and giving the Missoula community is and I am positive it will be reached! Soft Landing Missoula is excited to be a part of this for the second year in a row and I mainly mention this to once again voice my extreme gratitude for this little city we call home.

I got to see this same compassion, openness, and support for two incredible events that happened over the last week: The opening dinner for SALAM’s Celebrate Islam week for which refugee and immigrant women and men cooked up a HUGE and delicious feast, and the play (through a UM GLI group) “When one Becomes Many” that was written and performed by Congolese refugee families. Hundreds, and I mean HUNDREDS, of people showed up for both of these events, where much, if not all, of the proceeds went directly to the families that participated. I was in awe of the talent and effort that went into both of these events, and once again in awe of you, Missoula. I keep saying “Missoula” but I would also like to recognize those I saw from around the state at these events and the donations that continue to come in from the Bitterroot, Flathead, Bozeman, Great Falls, Billings and other spots in Montana! Thank you so much for continuing to welcome our new neighbors with huge smiles, open arms, and even at times, your pocket books!

We very much appreciate your donations through Missoula Gives, but I want to also highlight three other ways you can help as we gear up for a very busy summer:

1) Donate swimsuits! A wonderful and hardworking volunteer has successfully gotten a grant to work with the YMCA to offer free swim lessons to refugee families. We are now trying to make sure everyone gets a nice new (or like new) swim suit. We will be accepting all sizes of new suits at our office, as well as gift cards for Walmart, Target, and Bob Wards so the families can pick out their own suits. Stop by and visit or email info@softlandingmissoula.org for other arrangements.

2) and 3)  Please check out our Volunteer page. We have agreed to manage all new home set-ups for incoming families (and yes! they are still coming!) and help take the bulk of this work off the International Rescue Committee’s (IRC) plate. We are also sponsoring a booth at the Missoula Farmers’ Market for our families to sell yummy homemade treats and need a ton of help with all aspects of this!  Check out the Volunteer page for more details or email volunteer@softlandingmissoula.org.

That is all for now my lovely community of Missoula and Montana 😉  Enjoy the sun today!

In love and gratitude,
Mary

Donate Today: Missoula Gives

Soft Landing Missoula is participating in Missoula Gives, which kicks off today, May 4, at 6 p.m. and runs through tomorrow, May 5, at 6 p.m. It’s easy to participate! Visit our Missoula Gives page to donate or visit one of the Donor Lounges happening around town (drop in, socialize, donate!). Donor Lounges can also accept cash and check donations. Donate now!

The New Neighbors Project

Self-directed refugee stories from the new American West

We are so excited to be a small part of this amazing project that is giving some of Missoula’s new refugee families the chance to tell their own stories from behind the cameras!  Please consider contributing to this Kick Starter Campaign to help them get this project off the ground and equip the filmmakers with appropriate equipment. Donations accepted through Thursday, May 25! Get more info and donate.

Dialogue Across the Divide

Just a few spots left!

Have you ever been too nervous to engage in conversation with neighbors, friends, and family around refugees or other potentially divisive topics? Or maybe you have no trouble diving in, but you find it rarely goes well? Do you want to learn more about ways that we can use dialogue to create a welcoming community for all?  Then join Soft Landing Missoula as we explore “Dialogue Across the Divide” and gain new skills to more comfortably exist in this challenging space. Learn more and sign up.

Supporter Stories: Kristin Freeman

“As politics were getting so heavy last fall, I was feeling depressed for the first time ever in my life. I was telling my physical therapist, ‘Boy, I’m going to start seeing a counselor to try and find a way to deal with this depression.’  I’ve never felt so bad before and there’s all this news that’s so negative. She said, ‘Have you ever thought about calling Soft Landing and maybe seeing if you might find some work with the refugees?’ Read more.

Three cheers for springtime in Montana!  This may mean sun, or it may even mean a little snow, but it definitely means getting out and about!  It has been so fun this spring to run into many of our families down town at First Friday, on the bike trails, and at the park as the weather has gotten nicer. If you too are looking to get out, we have just the thing to cure your spring adventure needs as our calendar is filling up fast with really exciting events!

Spring also means getting out on bikes! Thank you to everyone who has come through with bike donations and wanting to help folks learn the trails and safe biking routes. We are still actively looking for bikes, u-locks, and helmets for adults and kiddos. Let us know if you would like to pass any of these things on to us. 😉

Thank you as always to our wonderful volunteers. I want to highlight one opportunity that we are really needing help with currently.  We have always helped with, but recently completely taken on new Home Set-up. We do have families scheduled for Missoula soon and are wanting to get our committee and process set. Let us know if you want to lead or join a team of 15-20 people and commit to helping with at least one home set up a month. The team will help solicit and organize donations, find needed items at garage sales and second hand stores, move furniture, and set up new homes for incoming families. We are looking for people with trucks, people with muscle, people who are organized, people who are great bargain hunters and people who can decorate and make a place feel homey.  We are also, of course, always looking for all of the larger items needed to set up homes- couches, dressers, tables, chairs etc..  For this and other possibilities on how to get involved with us please visit the NEW! Volunteer page on our website and/or request to join our Facebook volunteer group. 

– In love and gratitude, Mary Poole

P.S. Our car donation drive is also still alive and well!  We have another graduate who is now fully licensed in the state of Montana and we are searching for a vehicle for this family of four. We also may have found a way to make this tax-deductible for folks, so let me know if you would like to chat! Email Info@softlandingmissoula.org.

APRIL 24-30: Celebrate Islam in Missoula

This is the second annual event put on by SALAM Missoula. Of special note: On Tuesday, April 25, Soft Landing Missoula is co-sponsoring a screening of the Oscar-winning film “The White Helmets,” which follows a group of relief workers as they try to save civilian lives amid the chaos in Syria. Get all the details on the full schedule or visit the event on Facebook! We are also especially excited for the opening dinner on Monday, April 24, featuring a meal cooked by members of our Arab refugee community and other Missoulians. More details about the dinner on Facebook. You can reserve a spot through Eventbrite.  

Full schedule for the week.

APRIL 30: When One Becomes Many

Six recently arrived Congolese refugee families have created a play to share their experiences and lives with Missoula. This is going to be incredible and we got even more excited when we read the latest Montana Kaimin article and saw the great video teaser. This is not to miss! The performance is Sunday, April 30, at 7 p.m. in the University Center at the University of Montana. More information & RSVP on Facebook.

MAY 4 & 5: Missoula Gives

Soft Landing Missoula is participating in Missoula Gives. On May 4th and 5th from 6 p.m. – 6 p.m., the community will come together to contribute to the nonprofits that help make Missoula a wonderful place to live. Mark your calendar!

MAY 10 & 18: Dialogue Across the Divide

Join us as we explore how to more comfortably engage in thoughtful and compassionate dialogue around refugees and other controversial subjects. Save the date for this training! Forms to sign up will be available soon! May 10th and 18th, 6 p.m. – 9 p.m., UCC. 

JUNE 17: First Annual Missoula World Refugee Day Cup

This is also a “save the date” with registration and more details available soon but this all-day event will be amazing! More details (well, as much as we know right now).

SUPPORTER STORY: Liz Colantuono

Our supporter stories series, “With Open Arms: Stories about Supporting Refugee Resettlement in Missoula” has been so inspiring. Please read the latest!

Volunteers!

I am continually inspired and struck by the dedication and time our volunteers have committed to make Soft Landing Missoula’s vision of a safe, welcoming, and informed community possible. 

As Molly, our Volunteer Coordinator (and more) was working hard this week to pull additonal resources and information together for folks to make it easier to volunteer (see below), she came across a quote that I can’t stop thinking about, “Volunteers are not paid; not because they are worthless, but because they are invaluable.”  We couldn’t agree more! We could not be doing any of our work without such incredible volunteers in our lives. You bless this community. 

For the next twelve weeks, we are highlighting a handful of volunteers in a portrait campaign–again, thanks to another amazing volunteer! We are so excited to share our first supporter story today. Read on for more! 

Thanks for being amazing!

In gratitude,

Mary Poole

Supporter Story: Mike Stark

“(Working with the family), it made some of the difficulties and hardships that these families are going through, whether they are here or in Europe or Africa, wherever they are, very real and very tangible.” Read more.

Here’s how you get involved!

We are trying to do a better job of letting people know about volunteer opportunities through Soft Landing Missoula, as needs can change daily. So, you now have two ways to find volunteer opportunities with us:

1. Request to join our closed Facebook group – Soft Landing Missoula Volunteers.
2. Check our new Volunteer page on our website for a list of current opportunities.

Thank you Missoula!

Help Needed: April 9th Storage Unit Cleanout

On April 9, from 2 – 6 p.m., please join us for an hour or more to help sort through old donations, clean out our storage unit and reorganize what we need to keep. We will need lots of hands, several trucks to make Goodwill runs and people with an eye for organization. Contact: volunteer@softlandingmissoula.org to sign up.

Last Chance: Encourage Bullock to Veto SB97

This is URGENT. We only have a couple days to accomplish this goal! Please call and/or email Governor Bullock and encourage him to veto SB 97.  

By Phone: 406-444-3111 or Toll Free: 855-318-1330
By Email (please fill out the form)
https://governor.mt.gov/Home/Contact/shareopinion

For more details, read this post.

Missoula Gives: May 4th & 5th

Soft Landing Missoula is participating in Missoula Gives on May 4th and 5th from 6 p.m. – 6 p.m. Save the date and read more about how you can support us.

Save the Date! First Annual Missoula World Refugee Day Cup – June 17th

What?!?!  That’s right folks!  If there are 3 things we have found that unite communities across all cultures, it is soccer, food, and music!  So, in honor of World Refugee Day, we decided to bring you all three! While we work out details with our partners, we wanted to be able to at least give you the date, June 17th, and a general idea of times to mark on your calendars. Learn more!

Instagram

You can now follow us on Instagram! Check out @softlandingmissoula.

SB 97 Will Head to Governor

We need you to encourage him to veto this bill!

Yesterday, SB 97 hit the house floor–hard. Even though we lost the vote during the second reading yesterday, our calls and effort have not gone unnoticed! The report from the Legislative Committees shows a 3:4 call ratio in opposition to the bill and dozens of people packed the gallery in a strong show of solidarity with our Muslim friends and neighbors (photo below)! Despite our effort, the bill will more than likely pass in the final vote today. So, we are not quite done yet!

The bill will probably hit Governor Bullock’s desk this afternoon and we need to work hard to help the Governor decide to VETO this bill. This is URGENT. We only have a couple days to accomplish this goal!

Please call and/or email Governor Bullock and encourage him to veto SB 97.  

By phone
406-444-3111
Toll Free: 855-318-1330

By email (please fill out the form)
https://governor.mt.gov/Home/Contact/shareopinion

Huge thank you to all of our partners on the ground in Helena, especially the ACLU, MHRN, and MAC, and of course, the incredible volunteers who spent part of their weekend making calls that resulted in such a great showing yesterday!

– In love and gratitude, Mary Poole

P.S. Please don’t forget to check out the ever changing list of most important needsfor our families! Up now: vacuum cleaners and dressers!

Livestream Recording of Eritrea Lecture

We want to send out a huge thank you to everyone who joined us for our Soft Landing Missoula Presents! Eritrea event on March 8th, 2017! It was a busy night in Missoula and we so appreciate your joining us! Special thanks to our fantastic sponsors UM’s African-American Studies Program, UM’s Political Science Department, and Montana Model UN, and to our two fabulous speakers: Kimberly A. Maynard, Ph.D. and Solomon M. Gofie, Ph.D. Watch the lifestream recording!

Giving Back this Wednesday & Thursday: Helmer Family Chiropractic

Check out the amazing business that came to us with this idea to give back! If you have been thinking about needing to get in some where for an adjustment, this Wednesday (March 22) or Thursday (March 23) might just be the day! Details and contact information.

Finding Common Ground

Watch this inspiring video from WelcomingRefugees.org. “Stay-at-home mom Becca Clary found common ground with Sudanese refugee Fatima Bakhit through a cultural exchange program at Kentucky Refugee Ministries. Not only has Becca helped Fatima feel welcome in her new home and learn English, she also has gained a friend…We may not all share the same history, but we share one future.”