Refugee Household SetUp

I frequent our storage units often in order to "shop" through donations for an incoming refugee individual/family. Once I figure out what we have in storage, I give caseworkers a list of things we will need to purchase to fill in the holes. During the busy summer months, we have 3 storage units: one for household goods, one for beds, and one for tables and chairs. I have spent a lot of time at storage during this last year. Thanks to my awesome summer donation intern, it is actually looking pretty organized and great!






I inherited about 3 packages of these below. Adult diapers. I have no idea why someone donated them in the first place, or why my predecessor accepted them. I have given away a few, but we really don't receive too many elderly refugees who may very possibly need them. One time, I placed some in an apartment where an elderly person was going to live, but at the last minute the caseworkers switched things around and flipped apartments. An intern helped move some of the household goods between apartments, but confused the adult diapers for baby diapers and gave it to the other family who happened to have a baby. I can only imagine what they must have thought when they opened the 'diapers' only to discover they were big enough to wrap the baby in as if it were a blanket!



Saying early goodbyes to my frequently visited storage unit. I begin training the new me tomorrow.



After gathering all the goods, I then have to transport them to the apartment and set up the household before they arrive! For this apartment setup, I recruited the help of a bunch of single Burmese Chin guys who have arrived last week and live in the same complex. We have welcomed a lot of single Chin guys and they are so incredibly helpful!






Caseworkers then buy a meal for the family so they have food in the home when they arrive from the airport. And that, in a very small nutshell, is the process for setting up an apartment for a new arrival.