Immigrant Welcome Network looks to be a beacon of resources

When Mazahir Salih immigrated to the U.S. from Sudan in 1997, she had a million questions and nowhere to go for the answers.

After more than 25 years in the U.S., Ms. Salih knows she is not alone in this experience. To rectify the issues she knows all too well, she and seven other Johnson County residents have begun the Immigrant Welcome Network of Johnson County (IWN). 

The nonprofit is focused on empowering and supporting new immigrant and refugee families to eastern Iowa through multiple networks of people, including a housing/landlord network, an employer network, a resource network and more. 

The organization, which began in January 2023, is tuned into the struggles of immigrants like Ms. Salih and Horacio Borgen, another board member who was a political exile in Nicaragua before entering the U.S., which helped them determine what services are lacking in the area.

The need for temporary housing

One of the biggest goals for the organization, IWN Board Member Judy McRoberts said, is to rent a home in Johnson County to provide temporary housing for immigrants.

“Our first priority is to set up a house to be a transitional house,” she said. “We’ll have families there for a short period of time, while we find them permanent housing and employment and get the paperwork done or register their kids for school. We’ll help them get all the things they need to do done to get settled. The plan we have is to, hopefully, rent a four bedroom home to accommodate all families.”

Temporary housing hits home for Ms. Salih, who originally settled in Virginia and stayed with her cousin until she was kicked out and experienced homelessness.

“I was homeless for two days and I didn’t know where I could go,” Ms. Salih said at a IWN kickoff and celebration event. “There was a woman at McDonalds, where I worked, and I asked her if she knew if there was somewhere I could live. She said she didn’t, but she said ‘why don’t you come to my apartment and I can help you.’”

Ms. Salih has been temporarily housing immigrants for years and unofficially helping many resettle in the U.S., she said at the event.

The network plans to create a more official way for Johnson County residents to help immigrants and refugees. 

At the event, Mr. Borgen said housing was one of his main concerns when he moved to the U.S. nearly two years ago.

“There are many stories, but in my case I was blessed to know a lady that lent me her house for a whole year,” he said. “... But there are many cases that people have many difficulties getting a place to stay, especially when you don’t know the language or you don’t know anybody. It’s really hard to start.”

IWN is working to create a network of landlords alongside the temporary housing to ensure immigrant families have somewhere to go following their time in an IWN house.

One of the reasons a home is a top priority for the nonprofit as it begins its work is because of the current housing crisis in Iowa City, Ms. Salih said.

“We have a crisis of housing in this community,” she said. “It’s bigger than we think and it’s beyond just accommodating people. Everything is delayed and there isn’t a lot of this kind of housing out there.”

Ms. McRoberts said supporters are already investing in finding a house for the organization to welcome immigrants. The organization is asking for supporters to donate

$50 per month for a year in order to rent the house. Fund from this campaign would cover its first year of rent.“We currently have pledges for about $14,000 and we need about another $16,000 to be able to guarantee the first year’s rent,” Ms. McRoberts said. 

Finding opportunities

Beyond a landlord network, Ms. McRoberts said the organization is also looking to create an employment network to ensure immigrants have income and opportunities in their new homes.

“The plan is to build a network of supportive people in the community in a variety of ways,” she said. “One is a network of employers who are willing to employ people who many no have the best English skills. It’s difficult for folks who are new to the county to find employment because there are employers who are worried about working with them. So we will work with the employers and help them understand how they can have a positive employment experience with immigrants.”

Ms. McRoberts said something as small as finding the right job can set immigrants and refugees up for success in Johnson County.

IWN Board Member Sally Hartman said at the event that the organization will help immigrants find employment at various steps in their process, from getting a photo ID to helping them with applications.

“We are compiling a list of employers that are interested in supporting immigrants and highlighting immigrants,” she said. “But that takes some support. We will match job seekers to employers and there’s an education component with employment. It’s about filling out those applications, something that we want to provide.”

Mr. Borgen said employers and community members may not know how helpful they can be and what they can offer to immigrants as they resettle. Something as simple as speaking a language, he said, can be the difference between someone understanding a form and them not getting the information they need.

“When I was there (at the Center for Worker Justice) and helping my Latino community just fill out a form, something that for a person who speaks two languages is very easy,” he said. “You don’t understand the value and how you can contribute to the community with just that small thing, that small skill. Then I realized that everybody in the community can make an impact.”

Feeling welcome

Another main focus of the networks, Ms. Salih said, is to ensure people feel welcome and wanted in their new homes.

“It’s really something different that I’ve noticed in Iowa,” she said. “People have the time to tell you exactly where things are at, they want to help. If you know the language, that’s the key for those immigrants. We have nice people in our community who want to help, whether they know how to or not."

She said there aren’t any organizations that are trying to provide temporary housing accommodations and the consolidation of resources like the IWN is. 

Knowing where to go and what resources are available is one of the hindrances in the immigration process, Ms. Salih said, and simplifying that process is one of many steps Johnson County residents can take to help immigrants feel welcome.

“We will take them to the resources they need, depending on the situation,” she said. “We will take them to the food bank or connect them to lunch programs. We have amazing resources in this community and we can build them up by telling them the information they need depending on where they live in the county.”

The process of immigration can be quite difficult, Ms. McRobert said, and the IWN has already received requests from immigrants and refugees looking for assistance or housing. 

As the organization grows and continues to build various networks in Johnson County to assist immigrants, she said it will continue to try to consolidate resources for a quicker, easier transition to Iowa.

“It’s a tricky process,” she said. “I’ve worked with enough families to know that this can consume them for the entire first month that they’re here. If we can provide a lot of that in one location, where they’re living, it will greatly simplify the process and this can become their home faster.”

As immigrants become more acquainted with IWN, Ms. Salih hopes they will see the positivity the community has towards newcomers. 

She said creating a basis of community regardless of where people come to Johnson County from will improve the mental and physical well being of immigrants. 

“The people who arrive new and they see housing and they think this is supported by the whole community, they will feel welcomed immediately,” Ms. Salih said. “Just giving them the sense that they are welcome and wanted here, it is good for their mental health … All the people who are coming to this country, they’re looking for a better life than where they live. As soon as they see this network, they see they are part of this community and they can have that better life.”