Immigrant & Refugee New Neighbor Program

Open Opportunity

About

We are always looking for volunteers in the D.C. Metro area of Maryland, Virginia, and D.C. to welcome new immigrants and refugees.
We ask all volunteers to commit to at least one day/one session per week and for a minimum of three months for relationship building and continuation.

As Returned Peace Corps Volunteers, we have many skills that are needed today: cross-cultural understanding, language skills, flexibility, and understanding of others. Partnerships like these, allow RPCVs to channel the expertise and passion we bring into the projects and initiatives of organizations that need our experience, cross-cultural fluency, advanced language abilities, and technical competencies that we have gained and they enhance our capacity to create meaningful change here in the US, much as we have done since Sargent Shriver first called us to ‘Serve, Serve, Serve’.

New Neighbor Program
Get connected directly with a newly arrived family so you can help them navigate life in the US and find the resources they need to thrive.
Much like how RPCVs were welcome in many nations around the world, our partnership with NPCA will allow us to welcome immigrants and refugees to their new home.

For more information please contact:

Allison Bostrom
IROC’s Program Manager
allison@irocenter.org

www.irocenter.org

How does the New Neighbor program work?
Once you pass a background check, you will receive from IROC a new family info sheet that will contain the following information:
Name
Address
Phone Number
Ages/Gender of Family Members
Clothing and Shoe Sizes (if we have them)
Immediate Needs of the Family
You will then reach out to the family and introduce yourself as an IROC
volunteer who will be assisting them with clothing and household items, as
needed.

What do the families already have?
It depends....
Some families will be moved into homes by the resettlement agencies that are already
furnished and stocked with basic essentials (beds, sofa, plates, pots and pans, linens)
Some families will be moved into homes by the resettlement agencies that have not been
furnished at all
Some recently arrived Afghan families have opted to 'walk-off' the military bases where
they have been awaiting resettlement, and have found housing on their own - generally
with zero furniture.

IROC will support and work with you during your volunteerism to help fill in the gaps for new families in the DC area and your neighborhood.

How do families come to IROC in the D.C. metro area?

Referred directly by one of the National Resettlement Agencies (IRC, Lutheran Social Services, ECDC, Catholic Charities)
Referred by a friend, family, neighbor or other nonprofit
The families reach out directly (they receive our information from friends/family in the area) and complete an intake form requesting help from IROC
The majority of our families have a formal caseworker assigned through one of the below resettlement agencies.
The resettlement agencies are contracted by the federal government to assist refugees during their initial resettlement in the United States, including enrolling in employment services, registering youth for school, applying for Social Security cards, and connecting them with necessary social or language services.