Welcome Corps Allows Private Americans to Help Resettle Refugees
Joe & Kim Mitchell are part of a private sponsor group in Idaho Falls that welcomed refugees to the city for the first time in decades.
In April 2022, through the Operation Allies Welcome program, their Sponsor Circle welcomed three Afghan Air Force pilots, allies of the U.S. military operation.
The community response was so overwhelmingly positive that the group formed a nonprofit, Idaho Falls Bridge Builders, which in 2023 welcomed another refugee family, from Ukraine.
Joe & Kim were inspired to be involved in a private sponsor group because they know what it’s like to be newcomers in a foreign country. Their family spent a total of seven years living in rural China, and the way they were welcomed into the community with open arms inspired them to provide a similar welcome to others in their home state of Idaho.
Connect with Idaho Falls Bridge Builders: https://sites.google.com/view/idaho-falls-bridge-builders/home
Learn more about Welcome Corps: https://welcomecorps.org/
Reach MOSAICS with questions and story suggestions: [email protected]
Mosaics is recorded and produced by SB Studios
Judith Mwamba is a teaching assistant at the English Language Center in Boise. She loves math, music, and laughter. Judith resettled in Idaho in...
Klaudia Saric is a Business Development Specialist at Jannus Economic Opportunity in Boise, Idaho. She works with aspiring entrepreneurs from many backgrounds, including former...
Halima Hamud is a Boise State University graduate who moved to Minnesota last year to pursue a graduate degree in Development Practices. Halima was...