04 Mar 2004 -

Christina Kalloon, a single mother from Sierra Leone was resettled by the International Rescue Committee/ Dallas in February 2002. Her story is like that of many other refugee women. Due to civil war in Sierra Leone she was separated from her husband and parents five and a half years ago. Christina and her only child Kargbo Altina Fatmata (Tina) fled to Ghana where they stayed in a refugee camp for four and a half years before being resettled in the US. Despite the squalid conditions of the refugee camp, Christina exhibited resilience and determination, traveling each day from the camp to the market to sell vegetables for income. She did not know then that such resilience and determination would help her face the challenges of resettlement in the US. 

When Christina was approved for resettlement in the US, she hoped to buildi a new life for herself and her daughter.  Filled with this vision for a better future, Christina did not imagine the challenges she would face in the US.   She missed the familiarity of her home and culture and had difficulty adjusting to new food and a new l environment.  Yet her anxiety about providing for her daughter, Tina, and understanding the challenges Tina, a young adolescent faced, felt more urgent than dealing with her own fears and concerns.

It was difficult for Christina to find a job that paid a living wage.  Although trained as an office assistant in Sierra Leone, here her skills were not easily transferable, so she accepted a job working in the laundry room at Parkland Hospital.

Pleased to be able to work and provide for herself and her daughter but yearning for more fulfilling employment, Christina learned about a unique
program at IRC Dallas, the Refuge Women and Youth Learning Center.  This program, funded by IRC’s Community Collaboratives provides women and youth with vocational and leadership training.  Through the Center, Christina enrolled in a Certified Nurse Assistants (C.N.A) program.  Upon completion of the training program, Christina has experienced professional and personal development she could not have imagined. 

In September 2002 Christina passed the Texas State Board examination and started working as a C.N.A in local nursing home. Since becoming a part of the C.N.A. program, Christina says “I am much happier now; I have managed to buy a car and am making more money. I have managed to get the things that I need to live and the things I have dreamed for." In the future Christina hopes to pursue a career in nursing and become a licensed vocational nurse.
          
Undoubtedly, Christina has been able to realize her goals because of her experience with IRC’s Women and Youth Learning Center.  Job training, personal growth and parenting have all become easier. Christina states, “Being a single mother in America is very difficult. As a teenager here my daughter struggles between American and African culture.”

Yet Christina has been able to witness the successful integration of her daughter once again by turning to the IRC Women and Youth Learning Center.  Tina found a safe place for growth at the center’s after school project, the Kids Organization for Acclimation, Leadership and Service (KOALAS) program. Through this program Tina receives help with her homework and volunteers on community projects.  Christina is relieved to know that Tina is doing well in school and that she has made friends through KOALAS.

This year Christina has added another layer to her personal development. She participates in a women’s leadership group at the Women and Youth Learning Center where she attends workshops on leadership development and public speaking.  She is determined to utilize the skills she learns to reach her professional goals, secure a better life for herself and daughter in the US, and help other refugee women feel secure about their place here. 

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