My school, East Rock Community & Cultural Studies Magnet School, here in New Haven, is fundraising to support the efforts of IRIS. Many of our students - past and present - and community members benefit from IRIS services. We are also participating in the race in honor of the life and legacy of our dear former ESOL teacher, Norine Polio, who passed away earlier this year. She worked tirelessly with our immigrant and refugee students for many years, and is well known in the IRIS community as well.
IRIS helps close to 2,000 refugees and immigrants each year. During the pandemic, IRIS helped more than 120 refugees and immigrants find work, provided $200,000 in rental assistance, taught students English, art, and music, helped adults with immigration legal needs, and fed 300+ families per week with essential groceries from our food pantry.
The mission of IRIS is to enable refugees, immigrants, and other displaced people to establish new lives, regain hope, and contribute to the vitality of Connecticut’s communities. Refugees are men, women and children who fled their countries of origin due to persecution on the basis of their race, nationality, religious belief, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group.
Currently, IRIS’s clients come from Syria, Afghanistan, Congo, Cuba, El Salvador, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Honduras, Mexico, Iran, Iraq, Sudan and other countries. IRIS provides families with housing, food, clothing, and services such as education, English training, job preparation and placement, health care, and immigration legal aid.
