September Project Update

Update to Meskhetian Turks collaborative project, September, 2005

Adjustment of status
NSC lawyers together with two legal interns at the agency are working on preparation of the documentation for the application procedures for eligible Meskhetian Turks. The information about the application requirements has been previously distributed to the families in Russian. There are 4 families currently ready for the application. The process is planned to start the first week of October. Should you have any requests regarding the project, please contact Leyla Dursunova.

September 7 -8, the Project Coordinator attended a workshop organized by the IRC Project for Strengthening Organizations Assisting Refugees (SOAR). The workshop participants represented ethnic CBOs from NYC area. The experienced shared by the participants, presenters and IRC staff was very useful and is planned to be passed to the leadership group of the MT community. The connections with the CBOs were made and their experiences could be used to introduce the building process of the CBO to the MTs. Important issues like conflict resolution within the ethnic community, creating relations with media, organizational structure were discussed.

September 12, a women’s committee meeting was organized. Two NSC employment counselors and a staff person from JEVS were in attendance to discuss concerns around employment brought up by the women. Issues of adjustment of status, the future of the women’s committee, and the community wedding were other topics discussed.

September 17, a community meeting was held in Lancaster. Project activities were introduced and surveys were collected. The event was co-sponsored with PRIME and was held at the Red Rose foundation facility. Those in attendance requested future meetings to discuss educational opportunities, financial literacy, home ownership, legal rights, and career development. Representatives of the PRIME Lancaster, LCFS Lancaster were present at the meeting. Issues of the collaboration with the leadership group in Lancaster were discussed with the community and with representatives of the agencies.

September 26, Meskhetian Turks requested assistance in being reinstated at their places of employment. They were fired because their EADs had expired. NSC staff are assisting the families in this matter and will work with other employers to assure that others are not wrongfully terminated.

Activities Planned

A trip to a local family farm is being planned for the fall. Meskhetian Turk families will go apple or pumpkin picking. Additional updates will be sent out regarding this event to the interested parties.

Next women’s committee meeting will be scheduled for mid October. Issues of employment, green card application and possibilities of creating a women association were proposed as topics of interest for the next meeting. We hope to hold a job and service referral fair in the coming months.

On October 1, Red Rose Foundation together with Ahiska Turkish Association in Lancaster are organizing the festival in Longs park in Lancaster. Many of the families from Philadelphia, Lancaster and even other states are planning to attend the event.

Photo documentary project
NSC is planning to distribute cameras to the children and youth who will be asked to document their lives in the U.S. using photography. The photos will be developed and posted on the web log and presented in an exhibition open to the ethnic community and others interested. Should you have any ideas or comments to the project please contact us.

Web Log (blog)
NSC is currently working on developing a web log with the updates about the project. The draft blog could be viewed at http://www.ahiskaturks.blogspot.com/. Please send us pictures, stories, or any other information or comments you would want to appear in the blog.

The separate trips to Philadelphia City Hall will be planned for the period from October till the end of January. Since many couples are interested in obtaining marriage licenses we will assist them in obtaining marriage licenses. We plan to host a reception tentatively scheduled for February 14. Thanks to all of you who expressed interest in this activity, we’ll keep you updated on the project progresses.

Other planned activities

We are working in organizing a series of workshops that would include the following topics: parenting, financial literacy, and homeownership. Together with the Senior Law Center NSC plans to provide information to the families on advanced planning, wills, and medical directives. Field trips to SEPTA (local transportation authority), 911 call center, and a local police station are being planned. Community gathering will be hosted at NSC allowing the community to come together to celebrate the end of Ramadan. A spring celebration – Navruz – is planned to be hosted and coordinated with the community.

Please help us spread the word and as always, let me know if you are interested in joining us for any of these activities.

Thank you.

Leyla