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Canopy NWA’s Long Welcome: How Refugees Thrive in Northwest Arkansas
Episode 319 • 9th June 2025 • I Am Northwest Arkansas® • Randy Wilburn
00:00:00 01:03:38

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About the Show:

"We work towards integration, not assimilation. Both the newcomer and the existing community come together, braiding the strengths of one another—it makes a stronger community overall."

       – Joanna Krause

On this episode of I Am Northwest Arkansas®, host Randy Wilburn sits down with leaders and team members from Canopy NWA—a powerful local nonprofit that has welcomed over 900+ refugees from 29 countries since 2016. Together, they discuss the heart of refugee resettlement in Northwest Arkansas and how Canopy’s community-driven “long welcome” model is changing lives.

Joanna Krause (Executive Director), Saratiel Mugisha (Case Manager and himself a former Canopy client), and Shabnam Faizy (Youth Services) offer personal insights into the challenges refugees face and the support that Canopy NWA provides, from meeting basic needs and finding community to entrepreneurship, youth services, and navigating the path to citizenship.

With federal refugee resettlement programs on pause, Canopy NWA’s role is more vital than ever. Learn how their “path to thriving” model has helped launch 21 new refugee- and immigrant-owned businesses in the past year and why integration—not just assimilation—creates a thriving region for everyone.

This inspiring episode is full of personal stories, practical support tips, and ways YOU can get involved to help make Northwest Arkansas a place of hope and belonging for newcomers.


Key Takeaways:

  • Canopy NWA’s “long welcome” approach guides refugees well beyond the first 90 days, ensuring needs like housing, health, education, and mental health are met.
  • Integration means working with both refugees and local residents to build new communities together.
  • Entrepreneurship is a key focus—helping newcomers start businesses and use their skills in ways that benefit the whole region.
  • Youth programs support refugee students emotionally, academically, and socially, preparing them for long-term success.
  • Legal services at Canopy NWA help refugees and immigrants navigate the path to permanent residency and citizenship.
  • Community engagement—whether through donations, volunteering, or advocacy—is essential to Canopy’s success, especially during times of political and federal funding uncertainty.

All this and more on this episode of the I Am Northwest Arkansas® podcast.

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Tune in to KUAF 91.3 FM to listen to the I Am Northwest Arkansas® podcast on Ozarks at Large every Tuesday at 12 Noon and 7 PM CST. And, check us out on their podcast as well.

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Mentioned in this episode:

ONBoardNWA.com

Looking for your next career move in Northwest Arkansas? Check out ONBoardNWA.com, the hyper-local job board designed to connect job seekers with leading employers in our community. From entry-level positions to executive roles, ONBoardNWA is your one-stop shop for job opportunities right here in NWA. Take the next step in your career and visit ONBoardNWA.com today.

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Transcripts

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Hello, and welcome to I Am Northwest Arkansas, the podcast where

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we explore the people, places, and ideas shaping

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life in the Ozarks. I'm your host, Randy Wilburn, and today,

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we're honored to sit down with the leaders of Canopy NWA,

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the local nonprofit that's welcomed over 900 refugees from

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29 countries into our communities since 2016

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and helped launch 21 new refugee and immigrant

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owned businesses just last year. From their

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comprehensive path to thriving integration model to youth

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services, entrepreneurship training, and immigration

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legal support, Canopy is rewriting the refugee

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resettlement story here in Northwest Arkansas. Over the next

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hour, we'll dive into their journey, the impact they've made, and

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how each of us can play a role in building a more

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welcoming Northwest Arkansas. So let's get started.

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It's time for another episode of I am Northwest

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Arkansas, the podcast covering the intersection of

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business, culture, entrepreneurship, and life in

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general here in the Ozarks. Whether you are considering a

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move to this area or trying to learn more about the place you call

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home, we've got something special for you. Here's our

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host, Randy Wilburn.

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Before we jump into today's episode, let's ground this

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conversation in the broader refugee resettlement

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landscape. On 01/20/2025, the

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Federal Refugee Resettlement Program was indefinitely

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suspended when the new administration took office, halting a

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program that in fiscal year twenty twenty four resettled

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over 100,000 refugees nationwide,

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including hundreds in Arkansas. This pause leaves

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tens of thousands of refugees in limbo, cuts

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off critical support networks, and heightens the

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urgency of local organizations like Canopy NWA,

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whose community driven long welcome model

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is now more vital than ever. And today we

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ask the folks from Canopy NWA to join us and I'm

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sitting down with Joanna Kraus who is the Executive

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Director of Canopy NWA, Shabnam

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Fazi who works in the Youth Services Department and

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Saratiel Mugisha who is a Case Manager

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with Canopy NWA. So you guys, I I really wanna welcome you to

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the podcast. Thanks for joining us. Thanks for having Canopy, Randy. I

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appreciate it. Yeah. Absolutely. Absolutely. Alright. So,

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Joanne, I'm gonna start with you because this is, I won't

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say it's your baby because you you, along with so many other people, I went

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to Canopy, and I just gotta say they are doing a lot with a

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little. And I I went to their location, which is right there off of

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Weddington, and got a personal tour, and I was

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just amazed at the vibrancy of the office, the

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just the electricity. There was just constant movement and, you

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know, it says something for the work that you guys are doing. But I would

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love for you, can you kind of share the story of how Canopy

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NWA got started in 2015 and

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what gap you saw in the region that inspired the

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founders to act? Thanks, Randy. First of all, I'm so

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glad that you had the chance to visit the office. There are a lot

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of myths and misinformation out there about what The

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United States Refugee Resettlement Program truly is.

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This is a decades old program that

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provides humanitarian assistance and refuge to people who

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have been forced to flee their home. They've been founded

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by the United Nations High Commission for Refugees to have

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a well founded fear of persecution and that they were

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forced to flee their home for persecution due

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to race, religion, participation in a a

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social class, or for some other reasons. So

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there's a huge need. And displacement globally is

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only growing, unfortunately, thanks to

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climate displacement, war, ongoing protracted

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conflicts. We're seeing more and more people who are forced to flee their

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home and don't have the opportunity to return, sadly.

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So it was in 2015, a very grassroots

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effort by Arkansans here in Northwest Arkansas. As

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you know really well, this is one of the most welcoming communities that

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could possibly exist. And a group got

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together in, you know, in churches, in living

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rooms, looking at what is happening during the

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Syrian refugee crisis, during the height of the media attention on the

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Syrian refugee crisis. Right? Because we know that some

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conflicts around the world garner more public awareness and

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more media coverage than others. And

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saw some of our elected officials in that moment

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say that Syrian refugees weren't welcome

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here. And that gave these community members a time to pause and

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say, wait, but why? The people fleeing are the ones

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who are not the ones who are the cause of the conflict. They're the

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ones whose whose lives are put in jeopardy due to this

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conflict. And as humanitarian leaders in the

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globe, we thought, you know, our country does a phenomenal

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job with The US Refugee Resettlement Program and we can do an equally

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phenomenal job here in Northwest Arkansas. So fortunately, the

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program formed based on these hundreds of

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community members coming together, and we welcomed our first

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refugee arrival through The United States refugee resettlement

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program in the fall of twenty sixteen. Wow. And that

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person was from Syria? Actually, interestingly,

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that person was from the Democratic Republic Of Congo Oh, okay.

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The DRC. The DRC. Our first Syrian

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cases were assigned to Canopy then

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in early twenty sixteen. The first family didn't

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arrive until 2021, and Canopy still has some

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Syrian families who are assigned to us back in 2016 who

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still have yet to arrive. And the reason for that

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is because during President Trump's first administration,

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the program was put on pause. And this is a system that

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has layers and layers of intensive vetting,

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security screens, health screenings, some of those

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things expire. And when these systems have a

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pause, you know, you're running out the clock for the health

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checks that have to be redone. And it

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leaves human lives in the balance. People who if

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you're assigned to come to Canopy, that means you've actually completed your process. You've

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been found to be a refugee. You have waited months

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or years or decades, and then suddenly there's a

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pause. And we're living through that again right now. Well, I can only

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imagine. I and, of course, I've I've I watch the news. I listen to

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the news, and you hear stories. And, you know, so many people right at

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the eleventh hour, right before the inauguration, were were planning to come

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here and relocate and and now they can't. And so it's gotta

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be devastating for somebody that has been looking for a

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place to call home, a place that would be

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honestly unfamiliar to them if for no other reason just a

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simple fact that where they live is almost untenable

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and they need new surroundings, right, which is the case for

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just about anybody. If you're in an untenable situation whether it's

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the community that you're in, the country that you're in, that, you know, you

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wanna look for greener pastures and you wanna look for a place

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to raise your family. And so I can only imagine what so many of

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those that are in the I would call it a purgatory of sorts

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waiting to try to get to The United States. And

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and so, I mean, we are and have always been the land of

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opportunity. Right? And so that's the thing. And so when you when you

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espouse that idea, people are like, hey, I I want some

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of that. That's why people wanna come here regardless. I mean, they've all seen

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the stories and and heard the news, but, you know, everybody wants to come

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to America. It is, quote unquote, the land of opportunity. And and,

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you know, I'm I'm hoping that we can get back to that as an opportunity

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for all and not just some. So but I digress. I just I

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just thought I would share that. How has your

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mission and vision changed or evolved

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since welcoming that first family from the DRC

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back in December of twenty sixteen? Our mission,

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we stand very steadfast that our vision is to see refugees,

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newcomers, and the Northwest Arkansas community thriving

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together. And that's what we try to do. We work towards integration,

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not assimilation. So integration both is working with

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the newcomer and with the existing community to provide this bridging

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opportunity to show that together, braiding the

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strengths of one another makes a stronger community

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overall. So the original

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United States Refugee Resettlement Program is a ninety day

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program. Imagine coming somewhere completely

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unfamiliar, perhaps not speaking the language, you know, and

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saying you've got ninety days and you're on your own. We

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know that that is completely unrealistic. Yeah.

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So that is where the long welcome vision was born

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through a strategic planning process, which involved our new

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neighbors, our community partners who are nonprofits, the public

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schools, our healthcare system. Say, what does this look like to see

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our community and Arkansas thriving

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here? So that was where we launched a suite of

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programs that is the long welcome that's going strong. We

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know that some people will need longer term support.

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We wish to see every single student who

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arrived in Northwest Arkansas through the refugee program

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graduate and have a great plan for after graduation, where they're

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going to, you know, move on to what comes next for them. That

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if you're getting a job really quickly, often that job will not

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utilize all of your skills. We know, you know, the job markets can be really

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difficult. So to be able to connect a career ladder, recertify.

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We've resettled people who were physicians, engineers,

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journalists, attorneys, and that first job that you can get without

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having your network without having, you know, much social capital

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might be really limited and not leveraging all your skills, which is good

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for you, but also good for your employer and whoever you're working with.

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So this whole suite of services is designed to

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help people thrive and refugees are eligible

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to apply for US citizenship at five years. So we're looking we

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wanna see everybody overcome that test, which, Randy, I don't know

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if I could pass it today. I I've actually seen the test, and it's

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it is taxing. I actually passed it, but I'm I'm a bit of a

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historian, and I I, you know, I was that kid that did not skip

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civics in high school or in college, so I I understand

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that. Unfortunately, a lot of my peers did not, so I can't

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say the same for the average person that I run into here in in

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Arkansas. So, you know, and that's that's one of the things that we we all

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need to brush up on our civics and understand, you know, get the get a

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copy of I remember I got a copy of the constitution and read it, you

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know, and actually read it like a book and just tried to understand it. And

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I know there are people that are that are new to not just

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Northwest Arkansas but to The US that can walk you back and

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forth through a civics lesson. And so that that speaks

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volumes. And I think we need to be mindful of that. You

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mentioned something earlier as you talked about thriving and the long

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welcome. Can you kinda just quickly walk us through the four

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stages of your path to thriving model, which I I I

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know you you kinda focus on these four things, basic needs met,

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stable and connected, ready to advance, and

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empowered to thrive. And all of these things kinda lead

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folks to a place of integration

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and not just assimilation. Right? Because you you kind of slowly walk

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people through the process and get them acclimated to and

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integrated fully into the community. I'd love for you just to kind of share

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just how you came about with that kind of blueprint

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for this is the way that we are gonna resettle refugees here in Northwest

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Arkansas. Absolutely. So meeting basic

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needs, when someone arrives, this is what a lot of the

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work of Canopy when there's active refugee arrivals

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is, right? We're meeting someone at the airport. We're bringing them to

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a furnished home. We partner with so many members of the

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community to get all of those homes furnished. That's a major

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task. Helping a family find the grocery store, get

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connected with public benefits, enroll their kids in school,

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get that first job. Those are, you know, just

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meeting basic needs, food and shelter. Right? Yeah. And

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then after that is, okay, what does it mean to start your

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new life here? Are your health needs taken care of? What about your

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mental health needs? You know, they're by definition, you've gone through

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trauma. If you were forced to flee your home, this

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is not about, you know, the opportunity or

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the desire to come to America for economic opportunity,

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say. Right? It's It's different. It wasn't yeah. People are fleeing civil

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wars. They're fleeing famine. They're fleeing a number

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of major issues that impact a large

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group of people. That's right. So overcoming

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or grappling with that and figuring out what does what does a new

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life and rebuilding look like here. And then

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we also every refugee comes with so many

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strengths. So we want to do make sure that we can

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ensure that those people can bring those strengths here. So whether

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it was did you know there's now three Congolese

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led churches in Fayetteville? I had no idea. So those are

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folks, those pastors came through Canopy's resettlement program.

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And so that they were able to reestablish their faith

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community here, such a testament, you know, to their strength and their

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dedication. And so many people had

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entrepreneurial backgrounds. Again, often that could be

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dictated because of the situation. If you have to learn how

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to, you know, navigate through in a refugee camp situation where there

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aren't formal employment opportunities, you could

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be very savvy in selling different products,

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gardening, you know, a lot of childcare, a lot of different skills

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Yeah. That you could offer and are needed in the community. So

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offering channels for entrepreneurship was really

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important. You know, partnership, partnership with neighbors, getting to meet

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others. Our community mentorship programs are really important

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as well. And we got a lot of great feedback, both from the

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individuals who have entered as mentees and those as mentors about

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how meaningful these new relationships and meeting

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someone very different and building those relationships can be. Okay. I love that.

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And you've kinda previewed where where my next line of questioning is gonna go,

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but I did have one more in in this area before we go on to

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entrepreneurship and economic empowerment. And that's simply, of these

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four areas or these four stages, what are some of the

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biggest challenges clients face at each

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stage, and how does Canopy tailor support to

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kinda overcome those challenges? Or and it might just be that

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you've seen a majority of the challenges happen in this

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stage. And whatever stage that is, this is where we kind of focus the

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most help with with our our, refugees. I'd love to

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have my colleague, Mugisha, share because he is the person

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I've been waiting to hear from Mugisha. And with those families

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in their first couple of days and can talk about, you know, what are some

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of the big challenges early on and then as time passes.

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Alright. My name is Saratje Yamogisha. I'm a case manager at Canopy

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NWA. So, could just before I answer that,

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first thing, I'm a case manager at Canopy, but

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also I came as a client. I came also as a refugee,

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so I'm a proud product of Canopy. I know Canopy has done

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a good thing and great thing to refugees and we're coming them and,

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helping, thriving the community and becoming self sufficient.

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So some of the challenges,

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refugees undergo whenever they arrive here. First, it's like

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trusting someone. You know, like at the airport, being received by

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someone, maybe who doesn't speak your language, You know, due to

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trauma you have heard from where you came from and now being received with someone

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who doesn't speak your language, so now becomes more you feel

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stressed. But that's what we work on to make sure on the arrival,

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we have someone who speaks the same language, with

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the client we are seeing at, the airport. So also

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in the community, personally, when I came in, like,

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I had, like, past two weeks, I didn't meet a person who

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speaks my language, which I was kind of traumatized being in a

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room, no one to talk to. I don't know anybody, but,

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yeah, those are something also I've been working on a lot, whereby

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after our clients, after putting them the house where they're

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supposed to stay, we connect them with other

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members of the community who speaks the same language to make sure,

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at least they know them, they talk, and, they want to encourage them through the

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journey we are going through. So it's now I'm I'm

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sure now you have a community of people that you connect with that all speak

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your language. Yes. Okay. Alright. And so if anybody were

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to come from maybe your country or or another

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country in Central Africa, you would be able to kinda plug them

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in where they can, you know, they can find some

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familiarity, if you will. Definitely. I speak,

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Kinyarwanda and Swahili. So most of, our grants

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will come from, like, Central Africa, like, Central Africa that

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is maybe also DRC, Uganda. Most

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of them speak Swahili, Kenya Rwanda. So

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I'm able to assist them also, connect them to other members

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in the community who speak the same language. Okay. I love that. I love

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that. So you guys I mean, it seems like you have

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contingencies in place for just about everything, I mean, in the

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sense of what you're dealing with. So I'd I'd love to maybe talk a little

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bit about the entrepreneurship and economic empowerment

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piece because I know that, like you said, a lot of people come here. I

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think sometimes in people's minds when they think of refugees, they think of somebody that's

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they came out of a homeless situation or they didn't have anything, and that's

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not always the case. A lot of times, you have people, like you said, that

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have come here, that have had previous careers and professions, and then they

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come here and they almost have to start at ground zero again.

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And, for some, entrepreneurship is one of the paths

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to quickly kinda rise up, if you will. And so

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I'd love for you to talk about how you build and foster

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your entrepreneurship program and what it looks like.

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Absolutely. So you're completely right, Randy. You've met one person who's a

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refugee. That means you've met one person who's a refugee. Right? That

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immigration pathway certainly doesn't define who anybody is or what

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their future might be. So we're very fortunate that

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actually at the beginning of the COVID era,

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we partnered with the national nonprofit

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NDC, which runs the Building From Within Alliance, which

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focuses on aspiring entrepreneurs who may

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face more barriers. And our focus at Canopy

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is people who have come as newcomers to the community.

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So in that program, we serve clients who have come through Canopy, but

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we've also opened it to other immigrant communities who have been

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facing maybe some of the same barriers with moving forward

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to starting a business. And our program includes

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both a twelve week training course on foundations for

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launching a business and sustaining a business.

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That's essential. As well as we have a new

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initiative that launched this year using many of the

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talents of some refugee women who were

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really struggling to connect with

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some employment opportunities here based on language

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barriers, transportation barriers, childcare barriers.

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And that initiative called Inspired Hands

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is now a group of Afghan and

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Syrian women who are baking and creating

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sewn handicrafts that are available for sale

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through the Inspired Hands website that you can find linked with

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Canopy, and you can order each week and pick up your homemade bread

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and baklava and chutney. And, oh my gosh, it's delicious. It

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is. Yeah. Yeah. And there's some pop ups across Northwest Arkansas.

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So seeing all of these new businesses coming in, whether

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it's food or services for the

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community, I think is really continuing to enrich Northwest

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Arkansas. I see a lot of entrepreneurial initiative in this area.

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What I see, have seen from this group in particular that

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I think is particularly innovative and I resonate with

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is I often see people thinking, oh, what are my community

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members missing? What do they need? What would best serve them?

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Whether it's hairstyling that, you know, is unique and a

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gap here or a food product that is

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missing that would makes people think of home. And we're seeing

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those for neighbors, but then everyone gets the opportunity

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to try these businesses. So I would love if you could share and and I

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know when I went and visited your headquarters, you guys

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gave me a nice gift of some, Schug sauce, that I

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I have, in my it's almost gone now. So no. I'm just kidding.

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Yeah. Come here. But, but, yeah. I'll have to come and get more. Can you

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share maybe one success story that illustrates the impact

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of your, cottage industry initiative for refugee women?

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One of the things that I think is has been really

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powerful women's empowerment is also something that's really important

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to us. We serve a lot of women and mothers in our

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program. And through this program, several

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women in our first cohort, they opened a bank account in their name.

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Okay. And that was the first time they said that they had ever had a

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bank account in their name and that they can now, you know,

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choose where the income that's coming in will go towards. And that

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was very impactful for them. Another

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reason for us to celebrate, I think, is when we first launched,

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there can be a lot of fear in putting yourself out there as a new

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business owner, no matter who you are. And for some of these

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women that people came to buy their products, that they came to

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buy, sug sauce and, naan

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bread to say that, wow, people wanna try this, people like

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it. That was a huge source of pride and a way to

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feel very, like, welcomed here. Yeah. I love hearing stories

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like that. And and, personally, I love Naan and I love Shook's Sauce.

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So there's that. But I mean, I and we will we will link

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to any of the links that you hear on this episode will all be in

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the show notes, and you can get that at at the website,

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IamnorthwestArkansas.com and, you know, with the episode number.

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But you'll also be able to just search Canopy NWA on the I am

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Northwest Arkansas site and get right to the show notes to

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kinda highlight what we talked about and anything that was mentioned

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here. We'll make sure you get access to links to how to connect

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with them and and do business with them or just in general encourage them. And

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we'll talk more about, at the end, we'll talk more about

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how you can make a difference and support Canopy.

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But before we do that, there's still some more things that we wanna talk about,

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and one of those is youth services and integration support.

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How does Canopy support refugee and immigrant youth

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academically, socially, emotionally? I know

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my son plays soccer. He's played soccer with a number of kids that

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have come here from other countries, from Africa, from

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Syria, and other places. So I would be curious to know how

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Canopy supports that aspect of the young people as

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they come in and learn to integrate into society

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here in The United States. Our youth services team is phenomenal.

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And so are all of the English as a second

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language teachers in the districts of Northwest Arkansas. We have the

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privilege to work with them and shout out to every single

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teacher who welcomes a newcomer into their classroom, especially a newcomer who's

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struggling with English. I know that that can be challenging for teachers, and we're

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here to be that bridge to provide resources, support,

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training, to connect the schools, the teachers, the students,

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and the parents to help with this transition and, you

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know, set people up for success. And I am

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delighted to have Shabnam here today Yes. I am too. Who is one

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of my colleagues. As you can see, Randy, I have the absolute

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privilege. The Canopy team is made up of many people who came through

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The United States refugee program, whether through Canopy or

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elsewhere in the country and then found their way here. Who better, you know,

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to serve other newcomers. They have such a wealth and depth of

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insight. So I'd love to have her. She works in our youth services program

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and came and was a senior herself when she first

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came, high school senior. And now she's about to graduate from college.

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Right? So, yeah, that's exciting. So, well, you've been waiting

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patiently. So, Shabnam, why don't you introduce yourself to the audience

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and tell us a little bit about why the, youth services program

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is so important to you. First of all, thank you so much, Wendy, for this

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opportunity that we're here, and we can share our story, our

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experience, and the work we do at Canopy NWA and

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to be able to voice and for other people to hear. My name is

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Shabna Faizi. I'm a refugee from Afghanistan. I moved to United States

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in September 2021, and it's been three years and

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seven months. Yes. You keep track. Three years and seven months. I

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love that. Okay. Cool. Cool. So tell us a little bit about your work

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with the youth services and and how the impact that you've seen

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in the time period that you've had a chance to actually do it because not

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only did you come here and experience some things

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firsthand, but now you are helping to help

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others experience some of the same things you did when you got here as a

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senior in high school. Yes. Like Joanna said, I was, I was

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in my senior year when I moved from Afghanistan to United

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States. Imagine when you're when you have so many dreams

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that you wanna accomplish and you're in a living in a country that there's

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always war, conflict, and, unfortunately, you have to leave

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now. I was couple months, away from graduating

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from high school, and, suddenly, the government changed

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and we had to pack all our stuff in, like, one suitcase and to leave

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the country. So we made it to United States through chaos and

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displacement and confusion. But luckily, we were here in Arkansas,

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and, we were resettled through Canopy. I work with

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my colleague. One of my colleague there, her name is Arzo, and she was our

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case manager at that time. And when I arrived at the airport

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and they were there and to welcome us, and they had placard of,

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welcome to Northwest Arkansas. And, had you heard of Arkansas

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before you came in? No. Not at all. Not at all. I

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never imagined of being in America. Right. Right. And not even

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close to being in Arkansas. And I Sure. Sure. Didn't know really

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about, like, America has 51 states and that Arkansas

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is gonna be one of the place that I'm going to leave there and start

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working and dreaming towards my future. And, as I

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saw, Arzo was coming towards us and welcoming us, I asked her

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that was, like, the first question I asked her. I was like, how can we

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start school? How can I go to school? I was my senior year. I don't

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wanna start again all over. Right. And, she was like, you just have

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to be patient. You will get there. It's okay. We we're all here to support

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you. And Danielle, my supervisor, she's a youth services

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supervisor, and she was there too. And and she was like, she can definitely

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help you. And when that woman, when she said that she's there to help

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you, that really, like, helped me to okay. I can do

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this again. Yeah. Okay. We we got people here to help us in this worry

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as much as you did did before. Yes. Yes. Okay. That just

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only one sentence helped me a lot to be okay. In this community, in

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this new city, I contrive again. Yeah. How do you replay

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that experience back now that you were involved

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in Canopy? Right? Because, I mean, when you first came here, you didn't think, oh,

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I'm gonna eventually work with these guys and do that. So how did that

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happen, and what has helped you to help

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other refugees resettle here in Northwest

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Arkansas? Yes. And, after I graduate from

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high school, I was like, okay. How can I help? How can

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I how can I use my my skill and my experience as,

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like a guide to help me in this community and to be able to help

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other kids? And I'm not the only one that I I mean,

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to that I've been in this community as a refugee and someone new. And I

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knew there are people coming, and they were struggling at the same experience that I

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had. And so I was like, let's let's make a small impact

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on the community. And I started volunteering with Canopy, and I was

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looking at the everyday experience that I had in the in

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the, Canopy. And then I was like, I should make

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this as a goal. And that's where I started as my major. I started

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not going to a not or, can you do college in WACCESS?

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Yeah. And then after that, I was struggling my major because I didn't know

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what to study. And then Canopy really, really helped me at that part

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because I was looking at different major and really helped me

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to find what exactly who I am and what I want to do. And

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then I that's when I started, thinking about, like, international relation

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to be able to help globally, not only one nation or

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one part of the world. And then I kind of find my

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way to youth services and beyond proud to be in

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this, group of people who are helping these kids who are

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coming like me and that have, like, these questions. How can I start

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school? Where to start? How can I start college? And

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that's I'm so glad that I'm using the experience and be able to answer some

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of those questions and actively work. So you probably almost see yourself in

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every Yes. Kid that comes through the canopy doors, which, you

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know, gives you a frame of reference because you have a working knowledge

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of what it takes and what, you know, what it means and just, you

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know, everything that's been shared. It's there's a lot of care and

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effort that goes into helping someone to

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integrate into another community, another

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country. And so you guys are really doing some tremendous work

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behind the scenes. I mean, when I it almost hurts my head to think

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about all of the different things that you have to be thinking about

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to help another human being assimilate and it really well,

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again, your word, integrate into the community and then

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become a full functioning member of that community, which

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you have to feel like you are a full functioning member now. And it's it's

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only been, as you said, three years and seven months. So

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you've done a lot in a short period of time. Would you

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say your experience has been a typical

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example for other young people that have come through Canopy, or it

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just kinda different for different people? Actually, the other day,

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we took, 15 kits of Canopy refugee kids from high school. The other day,

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we took them to NWAC. Okay. And, they were

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all sitting, and they were trying to get their

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NWAC application done. And I was looking at them and I was seeing

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myself. Like you said, I was, seeing myself the first day when I went to

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NWAC, and I was trying to figure out this, educational system of here.

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And I'm not the only one who wants to be a different

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person Yeah. That bring change positive change in the community, in the country.

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And each one of them has dreams that they wanna become. And,

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they're all just here waiting for one chance to be able to

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help themselves, their family, and also to be a positive

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impact on the community. Yeah. I love that. I love that. So, I mean, do

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you like, when you think of home now, do you feel like Northwest Arkansas is

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home for you? It is. Okay. It is. Every

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day, one experience adds to your It just yeah. It keeps building

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one thing up on the other. So, yeah, that's it. I love that. I love

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that. Okay. So thank you for sharing that Of course. Thank you.

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Shabnam. I'd love for you guys to also

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I wanna talk about kind of some of the immigration legal

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services and citizenship challenges that Canopy

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faces. And not so much challenges, but just there is a lot

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that goes into the resettlement process from a

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legal standpoint, from a citizenship standpoint. So what does your

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legal services team handle from family reunification

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to naturalization and how many families have you helped

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achieve citizenship to date? Because that's ultimately the holy

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grail. Right? I mean, when most people come here, they're like, I ultimately wanna become

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a citizen of The United States. What's it gonna take? And it's like, well, yeah,

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just come to this three day conference, and we'll get you all set. There's so

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much work involved, and a lot of it is illegal in

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nature. So I'd love for you to maybe share an outline so people can

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appreciate. And, again, folks, those of you that are listening, especially our

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normal regular listeners, you have to understand that that an

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organization like Canopy has so many moving parts that

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sometimes, I mean, you you your head would be spinning if you were within

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that organization working within it. But to appreciate

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the amount of work and effort that goes into

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helping refugees resettle to Northwest Arkansas or

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wherever they're going and the amount of time and effort that goes into

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making sure that everything is done legally and appropriately so

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that these individuals can have a clear path to citizenship.

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I don't I don't want that to be lost on anyone, but, Joanna, you can

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probably speak better to that and kinda share your insight from

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Canopy's perspective. I'm glad you pointed out that

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distinction, Randy, because I hear a lot in the news, you know, using the

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ter the term refugee. When at Canopy,

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when I'm usually using the term refugee, I'm referring to the

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legal status. The legal status refugee, if someone has

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that with the documentation that refugee demonstrates that

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they've gone through this extensive and exhaustive

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vetting process. So when someone enters the country as

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a refugee, they will apply for

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their green card to become a legal permanent resident at one year.

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So we assist in that process. And then at

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year five, to adjust status to become a naturalized

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citizen. So our very compassionate and skilled

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team at Canopy and our immigration legal services department, our

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Department of Justice accredited representatives, which

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gives them all of the skills needed to guide people through this

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process, which is not just very, very time consuming and

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technical with the paperwork. It's also expensive.

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You have to pay for your citizenship application

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and to adjust your status. There's also

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the US government has a medical portion as well. You

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have to show that you've received a series of vaccinations.

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So it is very Really? Vaccinations? Oh, yeah.

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Okay. Yes. That's interesting. But okay. That's fine. Okay. That's

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a government mandated, portion of the process

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that you have. Every refugee overseas also had a medical

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screen, but then you you gotta do this whole process I get it.

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To become US citizens. But Can I just add one thing to that? I

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can remember so my wife is her family is from

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Trinidad And Tobago, and her mom got her citizenship

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back in the seventies. And I remember her talking about how cheap it

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was back then. It was, like, $25 or something

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now it's, like, when she looked at the numbers, it's, like, it's

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crazy how much it cost. And it's almost, like, for the average

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person to look at that, you're thinking, oh, it's it must be easy to become

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a citizen. I don't think people have a clue all of the costs associated

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with actually becoming a citizen. So anyone that wants to jump

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all of those hurdles to become a citizen of The United States Of America,

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you know, it's I mean, the price of admission is high,

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and it cost a lot. So anybody that you see, and I'm speaking

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to any of our listeners that recently told you they just became a citizen,

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you gotta give them some respect because it's not cheap to do.

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And and again, the hurdles are high like you said. I mean, there's so many

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different boxes that you have to check off in order to be able to do

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that, which I get. I mean, I totally understand that, but, you know,

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one of the things that is special about Canopy is that you

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help to make the whole box checking experience

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a lot smoother? That's our whole goal, and

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to help guide and navigate provide that navigation

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assistance through the process. It's not cheap becoming a citizen. It's

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not easy. I'm really fortunate that Canopy's program specifically,

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knowing that the financial status of the people that we

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serve, that we can provide very, very low cost

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or in some cases, free immigration legal services. If

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someone's come through corporate America and has the opportunity

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to become a citizen, they might need to pay for an

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attorney fees. I'm really grateful that we're able to

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offer these low cost services to people who were

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refugees who are ready to naturalize. And that's the

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joys of this work. And I would hope, you know, I want to open these

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doors and have others see this experience is meeting someone at the

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airport. That is profound. Profound for me

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as just an attendee. I can barely imagine, you

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know, Mogeshir Shabnam could definitely speak to what it's like as the

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person crossing those, you know, out of the airport for the first time.

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So to watch that, to have the privilege to be there at the airport and

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welcome a newcomer, and then kind of the end of that journey

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to be there at a citizenship ceremony. Absolutely. I agree

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with you. If someone ever invites you to their citizenship

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ceremony, go and cheer. Yeah. That

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is the most watching somebody else become a citizen is

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the most patriotic experience I've ever had because

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people are pledging their allegiance to this country. Yeah. And there's

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a tremendous amount of pride and you can see all the work that went into

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getting in up to that day. Yeah. And the secret to all that is that

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there's so many people waiting in line that want to

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pledge their allegiance to this country. I mean,

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understand that. Pledge their allegiance to The United States Of America,

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not looking for a handout or looking for this or that. That's the

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general consensus that a lot of people hear, but the

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reality is is that most people are willing to step up to the

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plate, raise their hand, and say, yes. I want to be a citizen of

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The United States Of America, and I want to do

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everything in my power to do that and be successful and

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a contributing member to the community. So, I mean, I don't

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there's very few people that are like, I'm just looking to get over when I

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get here. That's not the case because, you know, you're you're known by your fruit,

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as I say. And so I think it's important for people to understand that. So

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and that's why the work that you do at Canopy is so

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important. I wanna talk a a little bit about community engagement

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and volunteerism. I know that you get a lot of

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volunteers that work with Canopy. Shout out to some people that

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I've even some of my neighbors are involved with Canopy and, you know, they've

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you know, I've had several people over the years say, oh, you gotta get Canopy

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on the podcast. You gotta tell their story. And I'm sorry it's taken so

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long. But I I obviously, as we've spoken previously

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on a number of occasions, there couldn't be a more

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important time to highlight the work of Canopy

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and why we need to, you know, resuscitate and start

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things back up again, right, in terms of refugee resettlement

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and creating an opportunity. Because, you know, it's not as if there

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aren't it's not as I mean, you Canopy NWA is not the only

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organization in the country that's doing this. And there's so many out there that are

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all doing it to the full breadth of your offerings here in Northwest

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Arkansas that it's not like, oh, well, if we just let a bunch

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if we do, you know, work with a bunch of refugees that need to be

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resettled, we don't have the capability of doing it. We actually

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do, and we're constantly looking. But part of it can't happen

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without community engagement and volunteerism. So I would

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love if you could maybe can you describe, like, a recent Good

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Trouble fundraiser or community event and the impact that it had

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both on newcomers and longtime residents?

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Ugh. Can picking one is too hard. Yeah. I know. I

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know. The canopy and all the

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successes would not exist without the hundreds

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of community members who come out in support every

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single year. And we're seeing now as years go by,

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people who previously, you know, were refugees or were newcomers are

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also people to pay it forward and give back.

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I'm so impressed with the Good Trouble fundraisers, of course,

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that's inspired by the late John Lewis, you know, that

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this is not our, this is not a struggle of one day. This is a

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struggle of a lifetime. Yeah. Caused some good trouble. So

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when the community saw that our funding was

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suddenly cut and the funding that was cut first for us,

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Canopy's last family before the new administration

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arrived the Friday before inauguration. So the evening of

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Friday, January 17, the executive order that

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indefinitely suspended resettlement came through

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on the Monday, leaving 11 families

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who had their plane tickets in hand to come to Northwest

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Arkansas. Those were now null and void. And

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then on January 24, the federal program that

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provides some minimal financial support to

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newcomer families to pay for those, help pay for those first rents, you know,

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household furnishings, food was cut. And

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we, unlike maybe some other programs, you know, that's

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people who are just right in front of us and suddenly we don't have the

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resources to serve them. And that, to me, that's unconscionable.

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Not going to tell a family, well, you're on your own, you know,

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figure out your own housing, figure out your own food. So it is

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thanks to individuals who held these fundraisers

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to bring their friends and, you know, networks together, as well as the

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hundreds of people who have made a donation that made sure that every single

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refugee family in Northwest Arkansas is okay. You know, we've

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made sure that they have their rent paid. We didn't leave any

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landlords hanging. That was remarkable.

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And huge shout out to the people who have been our co sponsor

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or Circle of Welcome volunteers over the year. That's a big

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commitment. Yeah. It's a six month commitment to walk alongside a

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newcomer refugee family from the airport

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till their six month period and, you know, navigate the grocery

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store. Where's the park? Learn how to take the bus. Shabnam and

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Mugeesha, did you have a circle of welcome, or did you meet some volunteers when

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you first came? When I arrived, yeah, I had

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circle of welcome, but then they were on a a trip.

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So I met them, like, after three weeks. But through

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those three weeks, my case manager was Malat. She was

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there with me all the time. She would come and check on me and, you

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know, show me where I would buy any stuff I wanted.

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Yeah. Yeah. So you you you didn't feel like you were left to your own

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devices? Yeah. For sure. Okay. I got you. What about you, Shabnam? Yes.

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We had us at home. We had, like, six family. Okay. Okay.

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Well, I remember a situation not too long ago. It was

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maybe two years ago where I was a member of the downtown Fayetteville

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Rotary and one of the my fellow Rotarians, Claudia Velato,

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was in the process of acquiring a bunch of furniture

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for a family that well, they just found out from Canopy that they were

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relocating here, like, two days later, and we had to have

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enough furniture for I think it might have been a family of four or

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five. And I remember just kinda going into action mode

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to put well, first of all, I think I remember sharing the post out on

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on Instagram and and Facebook. I was able able to get

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something I was able to find and secure some furniture that I

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gave the information to Claudia, and she was able to get it for

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Canopy, which in turn was then put in their apartment so that when

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they got here, they had a furnished apartment. But what people don't

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understand is that all of that can't be done by Canopy alone.

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It requires other people in the community to step up and say, yeah. I'll help

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out. And you would be surprised in the twenty four hour

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span of when she put the call out and we were able to get everything

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together, we literally had a fully furnished apartment in one

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day. One day. Amazing. It doesn't take that much. And the

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resources are there. And what I'm not not everything wasn't brand new, but, I

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mean, it was great, and people had a place to come. And just

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imagine, you're coming to a new country, a new land,

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and, you know, where are you gonna live, and and what are you gonna sleep

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on? I mean, these are all factors that that play into the

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minds of of anyone that would be coming into a new space. And,

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you know, Canopy does a yeoman's effort to make

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that that assimilation as easily as

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possible to help people to come into

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integrate into a new area or place country.

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And so I, you know, I I think people need to hear more stories like

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that because then they realize, oh, I can help out. You know, I may not

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be able to come down to Canopy every day, but call me up whenever you

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have a need and you need some extra furniture or what have you. I've got

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stuff in storage because we all as Americans, we all have a ton of extra

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stuff. And so everybody's got something they could give away, and I'm

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constantly going down to Goodwill or a Potter's House

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and giving stuff away. So, I mean, there's plenty to go around.

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And, I think, you know, that that speaks volumes to the type

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of individuals in our community that are constantly just stepping up and

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giving back. And so community engagement and any type of volunteerism

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as it pertains to Canopy or any other organization for that matter is

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important for us to move this thing along. And I constantly say one of my

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refrains is is it takes a village. Oh, yes. It really does. Right? That's

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my thing. That's how I roll. It takes a village. Anytime I'm doing something where

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I I need help from the collective, I'm like, hey. This is a village

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movement right here. So we we got we all have to step up and do

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something. Undoubtedly. And during that time,

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when The US pulled out of Afghanistan and The US,

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you know, resettled, did a tremendous military effort to

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welcome our Afghan allies and conduct an emergency

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evacuation of over 80,000 people.

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Those of us here on the ground, I can I'm so thankful to every

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member of the community because we would get those travel notices the day

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before. Someone's coming tomorrow. Yeah. We all came

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together in this crisis response. And certainly,

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it was a I'm couldn't be more grateful for everyone

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that we did this effort. It was so, so worth it for

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I'm so deeply, deeply sorry that it happened

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to my colleagues, to our new Afghan neighbors who had

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no plans Yeah. To come here. And we're put in that absolutely

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horrific situation, but I'm so grateful that we were at least we

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were able to respond. And that was a full all

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community community effort. Yeah. Yes. Just to add to that,

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Joanna. And, I remember when we came and we the

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the moment we opened the door to a new new house in Northwest

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Arkansas, and, this house was full furniture with,

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all the basic needs that we need as a new family in United States

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and, all these volunteer. And

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so the people that came with us from, airport, and they brought food and

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because we just suddenly left house, our home in Afghanistan, we didn't

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bring anything with us. Everything. Yes. So they brought all the clothes that we

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needed for this few days. And then we because we

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didn't have a transportation to go to Walmart, to get grocery store,

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they always, helped us to go there and get the grocery store for us

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and help us to function on how to find everything in

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the in the community and find our way. And that's a huge

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step that someone do that for you. I mean, it's life in our I mean,

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in United States already, very busy when someone step out their

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way and Make that happen. For you, it's a very huge help. And I love

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that. I love that. Today, if while we may not need furniture,

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we still need all the community to come together, at least in using their voice.

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Yeah. You know, if we don't need the furniture, but I know that this is

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a, you know, community of welcome, a country of welcome, and

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people can continue to help Canopy by using their voice. Okay. So I

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got one question before I we're gonna do a call to action for our listeners.

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What is and given everything that you've already

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highlighted, the state of affairs currently for the refugee resettlement

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program in The United States and some of the challenges

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and limitations that Canopy is facing right now, what

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is your vision for Canopy over the next five

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years? Where do you hope to be? I mean, obviously, nothing

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ever stays the same and, you know, this may be a season that we're

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in. Right? And so it could be a long season. It could be a short

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season. It just depends. I mean, you know, everything changes. I

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could say some things, but I'm not. I'm just everything changes on a whim.

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Right? Literally, you could blink and all of a sudden something comes up and it's

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like, oh, yeah. We're opening up the doors again. And so then all of a

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sudden, everybody's scrambling. How do we deal with this? But you, as the

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executive director, Joanna, have to have some type of vision.

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And I know the rest of your team does. And so you take feedback from

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everybody, including these two wonderful people here with you. But what is your

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vision for Canopy over the next five years? And

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what do you think are your biggest opportunities and risks that you

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might face? It's an incredibly difficult time. It's been pretty

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devastating, not just at Canopy, but nationwide to see

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my peers and colleagues who've worked in resettlement for decades

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losing their jobs, agencies closing down because of the

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unexpected federal funding cuts. At Canopy, we have three

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goals. First, our long welcome program

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provides this essential suite of services for people who have been

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in the country for up to five years. So we still have

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750 people who have arrived within the last five

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years, who we've said we want to provide these services

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to help you navigate immigration legal services, to make sure if you

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entered high school, you're gonna graduate and you have a plan for after graduation.

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So our long welcome services for 750 people to

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continue those, whether or not the federal funding

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continues. That's our primary goal. A secondary

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is I truly believe we are in the position we are

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today because people do not understand what it means to be a

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refugee or what a refugee is. And we

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want to come and talk to you. We want to be in every

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church, in every classroom, at every, you know, conference room,

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at a business so that we can All of that. All of that.

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Yes. To share our stories, have the chance to

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meet a neighbor who's had this lived experience, share the definition

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of the refugee resettlement program, what it has, how it

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operates, what it's been doing for the last forty plus years.

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There's some really solid data out there about what refugee resettlement

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does for communities economically, socially, you

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know, that human element and connection. There's tremendous

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benefits for Americans and communities to continue the resettlement

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program. So we wanna come and talk to you. And finally

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is to maintain our infrastructure. Refugee resettlement

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is hard. On a good day, it's

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hard. And what keeps me up at night is the

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thought of if resettlement agencies are

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closed, if the infrastructure doesn't exist in communities,

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when the opportunity to resume resettlement presents itself

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for people to just dismiss it and say, well, there's no infrastructure. This is too

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hard. We're not going to bother. And what that means for the

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lives of humans around around the globe who are desperately in need

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of this protection, who don't have another option. So I want us

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to all strive to maintain refugee resettlement infrastructure.

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Okay. Well, so, again, there are

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currently 750 people that continue to need help and

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support. You're open and available to speak to anyone that will

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listen about the benefits of Canopy NWA and why

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you matter. And then, of course, you know, just keeping the

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infrastructure going. I mean, you gotta keep the train running. Right? So, I

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mean, whatever it takes to fuel that train at at so that you

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continue to move forward, that's what you need to focus on. That's

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right. Okay. Alright. I got you. Alright. Now with all that said and

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everything that we've laid out here, people that are listening might be

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chomping at the bit saying, oh, I'd love to get involved. I've heard of Canopy

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NWA, but I wasn't quite sure how I could how what, you know,

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little old me could do. And what concrete ways can our

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listeners support Canopy's work today, whether through

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donations, which is obvious, volunteering,

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or even advocacy? What are some of the ways that we can help you

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guys? All of those things, Randy. Absolutely. Our volunteer

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opportunities are listed on our website. Come check it out. We have

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short term and long term opportunities that will allow you both to connect

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with new neighbors, support them in ways like our

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summer program for kids and our after school program,

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mentoring English language. You'll get to know some really phenomenal

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people. So you can check out those volunteer opportunities and internship

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opportunities. Invite us to come speak. Like I just

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shared, you know, I know many people of faith

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really resonate with refugee resettlement. That's a deep, important,

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powerful message. So we can come and talk about, you know, what that looks like

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here in your community, in your backyard. And

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absolutely donations are what we're going to need. We are have

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already lost several federal grant funds very suddenly.

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And again, we lost them not because we did anything wrong.

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Yeah. No. This is what is happening in the nonprofit,

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you know, community very broadly. Resettlement's been hit hard, but I

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certainly see a lot of other nonprofit agencies in our

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community are going to be struggling coming up with the way that the

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federal government is changing its funding patterns. So those donations,

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if you can sign up to be a monthly donor, dollars 25 a month,

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dollars 10 a month, whatever you can do, all of us together

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is what is going to continue these programs.

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Yeah. And then, I mean, I know when we think of

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individuals, that's one thing. But then, obviously, there are a lot of small

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businesses in the area, civic groups that can

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partner with Canopy to strengthen kind of the long welcome

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for newcomers. What does that look like? Absolutely. There's

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so many different ways to get involved. You can come check out our

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website. We have World Refugee Day in June every year, and we

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look for sponsors, whether that's a business,

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a faith community or church, a civic group can be a sponsor, and then

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you get to come out and taste lots of delicious food from around the

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world. See really cool artwork, listen to music, so you can

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be a sponsor with us. Yeah. Invite us to connect with

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you and you can see the the impact that some funds can

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make here in the community. Alright. So if somebody is like, oh, this

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is all great. I wanna get involved. Just give us the website to

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go to for people to reach out to you guys at Canopy NWA,

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and, we'll make sure that everything that we mentioned is linked in

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the show notes. But if you could share the website and how may people if

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people wanna reach you, the best way for them to do that? Canopy

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n w a, Northwest Arkansas, canopy n w a dot

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org. Check out our website. We are on Facebook,

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Instagram, LinkedIn. We have a contact

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page on our website to get in touch. You can see the

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volunteer opportunities there as well. And we have a

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fantastic team. If you have questions, you want

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to invite us to speak, if you want to get involved in a way that

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you have a creative idea for us, please reach out. Let us know. We'd

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love to hear from you. Okay. I love it. I love it. Well, listen. This

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has been enlightening, and I'm so glad. I'm sorry. I'm personally

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sorry that it took so long for me to get you guys on. But you're

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on now, and I think this is going to this episode is going to

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have a long shelf life because as people hear what you're doing and the

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difference that you're making in the lives, not just of people that

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are coming here to The United States, but I also think that

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by proxy, individuals that give of their time and their

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talent to Canopy NWA that are from here already

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will benefit as well. And so and then we all benefit just in the

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largesse of, you know, improving our community and and just making

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sure that people feel fully involved and connected

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in ways that maybe they didn't before because we all need connection. So I think

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it's important, and and what you're doing is important work.

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So I wanna applaud you guys. I wanna thank you. I know there are a

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lot of long sleepless nights and and a lot of hard work that you guys

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put in to make things happen. So continue to cause good

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trouble, continue to fight the good fight, and we will continue

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to put out there into the ether the

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benefits of Canopy NWA and why anyone within earshot

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should get involved with the good work that you're doing. So thank you

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all very much. Joanna, Shabnam, and Saratiel,

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thank you so much. And I know I butchered your name, brother. I'm so sorry.

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I'm I'm working on I'll get it down, but, I appreciate

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you guys coming on the podcast. Thank you all so much. Thank you. I

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will appreciate it. Absolutely. Absolutely. Well, there you have it, folks. Another episode

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of the I Am Northwest Arkansas podcast. To check out the show notes

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for today's episode, just visit

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IAmNorthwestArkansas.com. You can find all the

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information and links that we spoke about for Canopy NWA. And

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and everything that that Joanna mentioned, we'll make sure is linked there

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in the show notes. So check that out. As always, you can check out

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canopynwa.org is the website to connect with

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them. And, go down and visit their location. They're just right off of

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Weddington, right by the, the highway there on

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49 off of off of I 49. I would encourage you to go by,

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maybe call them up and see if you could take a tour, take a visit.

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And, oh, by the way, if if they can even get you some sug sauce,

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you'll thank me later. So I would encourage you to see all

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that they're doing with what they have. And I would say that they have

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been a tremendous organization here in

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Northwest Arkansas that really represents what we're all about. And I I would

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say that is that we are a a community that is really about

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looking after each other to the best of our abilities, and Canopy NWA

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is no exception to that. So that's all I have for you this week.

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Remember, our episode drops every Monday, rain or shine. You can get

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us on every major podcasting platform and YouTube, and,

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we'll be back here next week with another new episode of

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the I Am Northwest Arkansas podcast. We'll see you

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then. Peace.

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We hope you enjoyed this episode of I am Northwest

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Arkansas. Check us out each and every week available

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anywhere that great podcasts can be found. For show

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notes or more information on becoming a guest, guest,

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visit Iamnorthwestarkansas.com.

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We'll see you next week on I am Northwest

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Arkansas.

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