Announcement
Happy National Volunteer Week! Without our volunteers and interns, the IRC in Dallas would not be able to do the work we do. This past year we had over 200 volunteers, mentors, and interns who worked a grand total of 23,190 hours!
We truly appreciate every single one of our volunteers and thank them for their service and dedication.
Below we highlight some of our long-term volunteers.
Linne Shields
Meet Linne!
Linne Shields has been volunteering with the IRC in Dallas for three years this May. After reading a newspaper story about the Dallas office, she reached out to see what she could do to help. In those three years, she has accrued nearly 1,000 hours of service between working at Reception, helping with home set-ups, and student tutoring!
While at the front desk, she says she “tries to make everyone feel welcome. People can be nervous when they don’t speak English and are coming to an American office. I want to make sure they are welcome here.”
Sarah Shaikh
Meet Sarah!
Sarah Shaikh has interned with the Resource Development department for more than a year. A graduating Neuroscience student at UTD, Sarah has been instrumental in the Youth Voices program as well as other External Relations projects.
Working with youth has been a highlight of her time and “seeing their growth and how driven they are to achieve their goals” is something she will take with her. She says that the time at the IRC has brought her out of her science major comfort zone and broadened her horizons and was a fun learning experience.
Nick Fletcher
Meet Nick!
Nick Fletcher volunteers with our Reception and Placement department helping to set up apartments and get everything ready for refugees’ first Dallas home. The founder of Deliberate, a non-profit in Dallas that provides quality furniture to refugees, Nick started helping the Dallas office in 2017. For over four years he has worked with refugees in Phoenix and Dallas.
When asked why he keeps coming back all this time, he says “Refugees are great people with brave stories and big hearts. I learn so much from them.”
Elise Hawkes
Meet Elise!
Elise Hawkes started volunteering as a family mentor and is now a Music Therapist Intern with the Mental Health department. As an SMU senior who is graduating with a major in Music Therapy, Elise made it possible to provide music services to refugees with a project looking at the "effects of group music therapy on levels of anxiety, depression, well-being, and distress."
When asked what brought her back she says, “It is so very special to see how I can reach and connect with clients through music.”
Kate Wegener
Meet Kate!
Kate Wegener started volunteering in Reception in February 2017 but has since moved to our Immigration department. From answering calls, to scheduling appointments, to following up on questions from clients, Kate is an integral part of the department.
Of her time she says “Most days I talk with clients who are incredibly thankful, and knowing that I made their daily journey a little easier is extremely rewarding. The best days, however, are when I meet people who have recently arrived because we helped to bring them to the United States. Knowing a family has been reunited because we didn’t give up is an amazing experience.”