“We shouldn’t need reminding, but we do,” the paper said. “The reminder is that refugees and immigrants are what make our nation strong.
”If you look closely at those refugees and immigrants, you’ll see some familiar faces. Your grandparents, perhaps. Or your great-grandparents.”
Read MoreIn these times, it’s heartening to read about other organizations helping refugees through food businesses. Makes us wonder: maybe there should be a trade group.
Read MoreProvidence Granola joined the fun Saturday at the pop-up Buy With Heart Marketplace held at Brown University. The marketplace was hosted by the Social Enterprise Greenhouse and coincided with the 2016 SEEED (Social Enterprise Ecosystem for Economic Development) Summit in Providence.
Read MoreIsaaq fled Somalia as a young man to a refugee camp in Ethiopia. He arrived in the United States in September last year, and in October, we welcomed him to the Providence Granola Project. Recently, we asked Isaaq's case manager at the local refugee resettlement agency Dorcas International Institute of RI--which refers refugees to us for job training--to talk to Isaaq about his experiences.
Read MoreI've been meaning to post these lyrics here for a while just because it seems like the right thing to do. And it might put a song in your brain. Maybe someday they'll film a new (and better) video of the song in refugee camps. I included a few of Bono's comments about pain at the end.
Read MoreJob opportunities for people who lack English, literacy, and are strangers to American culture and job market expectations are not plentiful, especially during a recession. Even with wonderful job placement and education services for newly-arrived refugees, few businesses have a vision to employ or accommodate these needs. Recognizing this gap gave Ben and Keith an idea: what if Rhode Island’s great need—job creation—could align with refugees’ needs? Then perhaps the most efficient way to make a positive difference would be to start businesses that hired refugees.
Read MoreWhile we are the tiniest of companies, we are increasingly confident that we’re pioneering an effective and efficient model for improving the lives of some of the most vulnerable people in our country. And if we can figure out how to do this, we could enable other communities serving refugees to adapt or replicate our efforts. Little steps towards big goals. For our fans spread out around the country and the globe, maybe someday you’ll find refugee-made granola at your local farmer’s market.
Read MoreA few facts: Around 8,000 refugees have been settled in Rhode Island since 1983. Up until 2005 these came from (by population size in descending order) USSR, Liberia, Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam, Hungary, Poland, Albania, former Yugoslavia, Somalia, Ethiopia/Eritrea. This is one of the great things about living in Providence. Even if you don’t have the money to travel the world, you still don’t have to live in a cocoon. The world is right here.
Read MoreM: I was on the bridge. I was going to see my cousin. Suddenly I hear a shot. That’s what’s happening—I mean it’s still happening in my country. The terrorist people shooting the new army, because they say the new army, they are lying with the American military, so we have to shoot you. There was a checkpoint in the street to make safety. I was on the bridge. I don’t have any place to run away. The checkpoint started to shoot random. So I get one of the shots.
I think other people they got shot too. But my lung it was safe. If my lung has hole, then I was gonna die. The lung would fill with water and blood and…” (He grabbed his throat.)
Read MoreIt is especially fascinating to be working with Burmese during the very week that our Secretary of State was making the first official US visit to Burma in over a half-century. Seeing Clinton hugging Aung San Suu Kyi on the evening news nearly took my breath away.
Read MoreHi faithful and most patient granola friends. Contrary to any rumors or assumptions based on our hiatus in communication, the Providence Granola Project is very much alive. It was an exceptionally busy summer for me and Geoff—both in our regular jobs and with the Granola Project—and updating our blog was one of the first things to go… but we are still here and kicking.
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