Refugee Extension Program

Program Director & Office Hours

Hmong girl displays her
native dress [Photo]

Ella Docherty: MW 12-1, R 11-2
Ker Thao (Asst.) T 1-2, R 4-5

Volunteer Weekly Meetings

W 5-6 Upstairs Y.E.S.

Program Mission

REP's mission is to become reconnected with the local refugee community. After a half year of dormancy due to lack of a student director, REP is slowly rebuilding itself. Our purpose is to serve and support the local Hmong community specifically. However, we are open and able to adapt our service to any refugee or immigrant who may need assistance upon entering or maintaining their stay in Humboldt County. REP is steered by the needs of such individuals and communities and respects their culture, beliefs, and values while offering assistance in addressing any cultural barriers they may face.

Service, Goals & Projects

We are currently establishing a relationship with the Newcomer Center in Eureka. This center is a place for people new to our country and new to our county to receive help enrolling their children in school, learning English, finding housing, becoming familiar with the local area, and with anything else they may need to make their transition to our community smoother. Beginning in Spring 2006 we will be volunteering in the ESL classes offered at the center. Through this, and other services as they become identified, we are hoping to make personal connections and relationships with the people we are serving.

Hmong girl trying out
traditional stilts [Photo]

Upcoming Events or Activities

Saturday, December 10th was the Hmong New Year Celebration, held at the Manila Community Center. We offered some traditional Hmong games for the youth to play, including providing materials for them to construct and walk on wooden stilts. We were asked by a key player in the production of this event to provide something for the kids. Rather than do typical American carnival-like activities, we decided to research traditional Hmong games and offer those. Although these games are not typically played at the New Year we are supporting efforts to maintain all aspects of traditional Hmong culture. The celebration was all day Saturday including a dance in the evening and festivities continued on Sunday with all events open to the public. It was a joyous and well-attended event celebrating the Hmong culture. We are happy to show support for the Hmong people who were uprooted from their homes and brought to the U.S. in order to ensure their safety after their involvement in the Vietnam War.

Community Contacts

We have worked with Simona Keats to become involved in the Hmong New Year. She works for Eureka City Schools and has a long time involvement with the Hmong community and this event. Pakuda Ly is a former director of REP and currently an AmeriCorps member. We are interested in working with her to create an after-school program for the youth in the Hmong community. We are in the beginning stages of working with Monica Rivera at the Newcomer Center. We also connected with Liz from the Ink People who provided us with the contact information for the Hmong Coalition of the North Coast. We met with one of their members and look forward to establishing more of a relationship with them. Donna Clark from the Learning Center at HSU has provided us with a workshop in ESL to prepare us for the service we will be doing during the spring semester. Thank you to all of these people and groups for helping us reestablish the Refugee Extension Program.