Hi Everyone,
What an great idea. I like the one on one approach to building relationships and I'd be happy to host a meal. If more comfortable I could partner with someone else to host 2 families together.
Are there NGO groups working with immigrant and refugee organizations looped into this? I imagine there needs to be some sort of vetting process so folks feel safe. I recognize names on this list so I know there will be great dinners but in the current environment if I were new in town I'd be very careful where I go without a lot of assurance.
I also wonder about what the expectations are beyond dinner? If I were a new immigrant I would want more than a dinner (perhaps where I'll be plied with intrusive questions about my past) I'd want it to be the beginning of a supportive relationship as I enter the community.
We live in the North Loop neighborhood. My husband and I would love to host a family for brunch or dinner. Our children are grown but we would be happy to host those with young ones. We have grandchildren so our home offers games, toys, and books for children.
I live in north loop too and Can host/cohost!
Hi Marina, thank you for your welcome. I look forward to hearing back from you later this year on the possibilities.
Hi Melissa, thank you so much for joining the group and volunteering to host! I will add you to our hosting list. Likely we will have a opportunity for May and June, hopefully you will be available to host at that time. Updates coming soon.
I see a lot of people willing to host. How do we get the message out to the immigrant/refugee community?
Hi Mary! Yes, absolutely if you want to co-host and that is allowed I am open to the possibilities.
Hi Mary, thank you for joining the group and opening your home to newcomers. We work with local partners that help connect us with families. Our goal is to build relationships and respect the rights of our newcomer families. We certainly don't want this to be a 'volunteerism' experience. Our partners trust us and therefore we organize only 3-4 dinners a month. We are overjoyed with the positive response from the MPR story, but we will maintain our commitment. We have enough hosts for March and April, but will be signing up hosts for May and June. Hopefully you will be available to host at that time. Thank you so much for supporting this initiative. We truly appreciate your being part of our group.
Hi Becky, thank you for joining the group and supporting this initiative. In fact we do work with local partners to help connect us with newcomer families. I am glad to hear you recognize names in the group and feel they would be great hosts. To be honest we have been a little overwhelmed with new members since the MPR story. But it's all very exciting. We remain committed to our original goal of building positive and long lasting relationships between local families and newcomers. We do not want these efforts to be 'volunteerism', but in fact an opportunity to create a stronger, safer, and more understanding community. So we only host 3-4 dinners a month in partnership with local organizations that support immigrant and refugee families. I appreciate all your comments and concerns, and can certainly say we try our best to address these issues with our hosts. Once families are selected we provide guidelines and tips for hosting; and trust our local partners to prepare newcomer families for the experience. We also stay closely connected with hosts before, during, and after the dinners. In any case, we appreciate you joining us. I will add you to our host list and update you soon. Best.