The Portland Refugee Support Group is an organization that provides refugees currently living in the Portland, OR metropolitan region the social capital they need for a successful transition to life in the US. PRSG believes the power of community, if organized effectively, can help refugees pursue greater opportunities, and achieve greater outcomes. This is accomplished through volunteer run programs:
PRSG trains and pairs one community member with one client family. These one-on-one relationships are used to provide refugee clients a safe place for any questions, assistance acclimating to everyday life, and a trust-driven friendship in the city.
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PRSG hosts monthly group counseling sessions for both adults and children, as well as an annual youth empowerment camp. The goal of this program is to address the social wellbeing of clients in their new environment, as well as help them build the friendships and social capital they will need through their integration journey.
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PRSG pairs a community member who works with a client on a weekly basis on either functional English or class work. These relationships are often the first place clients begin to learn English, and one of the first steps in successful integration.
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As clients increase their social capital and status, they often need assistance in their journey. PRSG provides emergency financial funds to families to assure they stay on a positive path. Additionally, PRSG provides money making opportunities for clients and monthly goods donations bags to any families who need supplies.
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Dr. Omar Reda
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PROJECT UNTANGLED
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UNTANGLED: MONTHLY SESSIONSOur Community Wellness Program for refugee children and adults is a monthly event in a potluck setting. Dr. Reda focuses on the mental health aspect of therapy. He works on helping refugees, who may have suffered trauma in their lives, deal with their past and work on improving their present and future by expressing their feelings through art, fun activities, and discussions.
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Tutoring ProgramPRSG offers tutoring sessions to refugees, for families and individuals, adults and children, once per week. We focus on tutoring English to our client families, but we also help the children with their school work. Our volunteers work with the families in their homes or online. The goal is to help families improve and feel confident in their use of the English language to help them integrate into American society with greater success.
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College Prep ProgramPRSG offers college prep sessions to high school refugee students. The overall goal of this program is to help students prepare for the college application process by improving their ACT testing and essay writing skills. The students work in small groups with a tutor and complete practice ACT exams, learn tips on test taking, and practice writing essays relating to college application writing prompts. Our hope is that every PRSG high school student will have the tools and skills necessary to get accepted to a four-year university upon high school graduation.
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Care Packages ProgramWe collect donation packages every month for our refugee families. These packages are filled with a variety of essential needs that refugee families can't go without, such as food, toiletries and cleaning supplies, plus other specific items. We continue providing these goods until the families are self-sufficient. No one should go without the basic necessities of life!
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Youth CampsOur Community Wellness Program has two different camps for the youth: Camp Silah and Camp Mahara. Camp Silah is a summer camp for the youth, ages 8-18, for the Portland metropolitan area. This camp blends refugee kids with non-refugee kids in a beautiful harmonious way and makes the refugee kids feel like they belong to the Portland community. Camp Mahara, which we have a couple times throughout the year, is a skills camp for the refugee youth, where they learn beneficial life skills.
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Bake SalesPRSG puts on bake sales in the Portland area every two to three months. The baked goods at these events are made by the refugee ladies, and all the proceeds go to the refugee bakers. Our refugee ladies tell us how much they love these bake sales and how empowered they feel, especially that most of them are stay-at-home moms, and they really appreciate the extra income for their household.
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Plus, we have other programs throughout the year, such as food, toy, and school supply drives, holiday gift boxes, potlucks, games, volunteer & refugee events, and more!
