Struggling for better future

Lexington Herald Leader published from Lexington, KY covered a feature relating to the life of refugees resettled here in June 17 issue. As per Kentucky Refugee Ministries some 380 refugees from Congo, Bhutan and Iraq have been resettled in Lexington during the past two years.

In fact, this area is home to 380 refugees during the past two years, including 132 from the Democratic Republic of Congo and 107 from Iraq. They all want a chance at the peace we take for granted.On Saturday, you will have a chance to meet some of them and maybe share a native dish at the World Refugee Day picnic from noon to 3 p.m. at Woodland ParkThe worldwide celebration aims to remind us that there are 14 million refugees around the world, 8 million of whom have languished in camps for a decade.

Kleine said she is expecting at least 100 Bhutanese, Iraqi and Congolese immigrants who have settled in the Bluegrass.

Charmelle Kindeke handed me a neatly folded piece of notebook paper on which her name had been written, last name first as is the custom in the Congo, her homeland. She, her husband and two sons fled to Ghana in March 2003, and there they lived in a camp until finally arriving in Lexington on Jan. 14.
Kindeke said she is getting used to America although she has two requests.
First, she wants her two children to attend school during the summer, learning English and other subjects so they can catch up with Americans in their age group.

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