Groups to aid refugee settlement in Wichita

From Kansas-

Two groups that help rescue foreigners from war and oppression say they are arranging what they say will be the most significant refugee resettlement in Wichita since hundreds were resettled here from southeast Asia 30 years ago.
The Episcopal Wichita Area Refugee Ministry and the Wichita office of the International Rescue Committee say that refugees from Myanmar — also called Burma — Somalia, Bhutan, Iraq, Eritrea and other nations will begin arriving in the next few weeks.

The groups say as many as 180 refugees a year could come in for several years; the first few individuals and families will arrive in the next few weeks. The Episcopal group says it will bring in as many as 35 Burmese a year; the International Rescue Committee says it could bring in as many as 150 from other countries.

Officials from the rescue groups point out that the United States — though many of its citizens vigorously debate illegal immigration — has had a long-standing policy of inviting in tens of thousands of legal immigrants every year, including refugees in danger of death.
Bill Gress, a past director of immigration and refugee services for Catholic Charities in Wichita, said the refugees from Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos worked hard from the moment they arrived here, getting jobs, establishing businesses, learning English, doubling up in housing and saving money in other ways. They enriched our community and tax base, he said.

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http://www.kansas.com/2011/10/30/2083120/groups-to-aid-refugee-settlement.html#ixzz1cGNTOmiD