If you've looked at the 2005-2009 American Communities Survey, you will see that approximately 13% of the Utica population is foreign-born. However, if you talk to staff at most nonprofits that work with this population, you will learn that the percentage has increased to 15%. This is due to secondary migrants, those who settled elsewhere first and have now moved to Utica, and the influx of Karen refugees (an ethnic group of Burma and Thailand). Due to this high percentage, Utica has the fourth highest concentration of refugees per capita in the United States.

A student at the Mohawk Valley Resource Center for Refugees learns English.

Herkimer and Oneida counties should be proud of the work that organizations such as the Mohawk Valley Resource Center for Refugees, Multicultural Association of Medical Interpreters and small nonprofits focusing on specific ethnic groups do to settle and help assimilate new people to our culture. Other local institutions, such as the Boilermaker Road Race, Utica Public Library and Munson Williams Proctor Arts Institute, to name just a few, have embraced the old and new ethnic makeup of our community to welcome and generate feelings of acceptance for newcomers. 

While immigrants have a long history of settling Herkimer and Oneida counties (and the entire country), refugees are a newer part of our history. As you know, an immigrant is a person who leaves one country to come to another on their own will, while refugees are people who have been forced to leave their home country to seek refuge elsewhere. 
 

Central New York has seen major influxes of refugees, with the largest population to date being Bosnian when, in the 1990s, the U.S. granted them refugee status. As noted in a Brookings Institution paper titled From There to Here: Refugee Resettlement in Metropolitan America, "this area has recieved so many refugees due to the organizations that are available to assist them with basic needs such as housing, workforce readiness, and English language learning. In smaller metropolitan areas, refugees are often more visible... and can call media attention to their presence." Over the years the origin of refugees has changed, often reflecting global issues. Currently, the major refugee ethnic groups are Burmese and Karen.

As a donor-advisor you can support refugees and immigrants by assisting them as they weave their way into the existing fabric of our community. Imagine the hardships they have already experienced in their homelands and the many ways we can make their new home a more comfortable place, like offering programming for interpreters/translators, assimilation classes and finding homes. We've already seen great support from a few donor-advised funds in this area and encourage you to consider additional opportunities. As always, the Program Department is happy to assist in answering questions and gathering information prior to making grants from your fund.

If you are interested in learning more about the refugee/immigrant population, please consider attending World Refugee Day on June 20, 2011, at the De Sales center.

A sampling of donor-advised grants to refugee and immigrant programs:

Mohawk Valley Resource Center for Refugees

Back to School Supply Program $200

Compass Program $1,200

General support $250

St. Vincent DePaul - Catholic Charities

Central New York Lost Boys of Sudan $250