International Welcome Center expands role, will help refugees settle in Barberton

Earlier this month, the International Welcome Center in New Franklin announced an agreement with the city of Barberton and other partners to help resettle refugees in the Magic City.

The deal marks a significant advancement in the capabilities of the IWC, which began as an organization helping individuals who had already been resettled in the Akron area for three months or more.

Now, the IWC has become an affiliate of World Relief to help refugees on Day 1 of their journey from some of the most ravaged areas of the world.

The risks of helping the U.S.

Wadsworth resident Essa Adeeb served as a translator for U.S. and allied forces for 13 years in Afghanistan. He started when he was 17 and faced numerous life-threatening situations while working side-by-side with soldiers.

Mark Carpenter, an Ohio National Guard member who served in Afghanistan, said he and Adeeb found themselves at the front of a major battle in 2010, well ahead of other allied forces. They came under fire and had to take cover in a trench.

It was a dangerous situation that Adeeb faced again and again as an interpreter, Carpenter said.

"They are just as much a veteran as [Carpenter] and I," said Matt Hicks, a Marine and Department of Justice-accredited representative with the IWC.

Adeeb said he became so well known in the province in Afghanistan where he lived that he and his family had to flee for their lives from the Taliban. At one point during the flight, the road was blocked and Adeeb and his family had to cross a checkpoint.

They were stopped and questioned, with Adeeb fearing he would be recognized. If he had, he and his family could have lost their lives.

Assistance from 'Grandma' and 'Grandpa'

Adeeb said in a recent interview that he had wanted to come to America since he was a child, something he discussed with Carpenter when they worked together.

Adeeb fled to Germany but didn't immediately get the go-ahead to come to the U.S. When he did, in January, Adeeb and his family arrived in Detroit in a blinding snowstorm.

Since then, the IWC has provided support for Adeeb and his wife and two daughters. The family found a home in Wadsworth, and he started a job last month as a translator for Akron Public Schools.

Two IWC volunteers have become so close to the Adeebs as they acclimate to their new home that they're referred to as "Grandpa" and "Grandma."

That level of commitment is an example of the type of help IWC tries to provide, said IWC Executive Director Christina Hodgkinson. Such help includes practical assistance from cooking classes to transportation — all the things that someone new to the U.S. needs.

From Day 91 to Day 1

Since 2019, the organization has been providing those services, but it was limited to "Day 91" assistance, Hodgkinson said. The announcement of its agreement with Barberton marks a new chapter, with the IWC now able to help from Day 1.

To get to that point, the organization submitted a detailed proposal with World Relief, a leading refugee resettlement organization founded in 1944. The proposal was reviewed and approved by the U.S. State Department, Hodgkinson said.

The program in Barberton is relatively small, with IWC hoping to help resettle 10 to 15 families this year, or about 50 people depending on family size, she said.

The organization hopes to accomplish that goal by September.

Hodgkinson said at a Barberton City Council meeting that the organization expects its first client to arrive in June.

In an email, Barberton Mayor William Judge said the city will provide a supporting role in the IWC agreement and noted that Barberton has helped with refugee resettlement in the past.

"… this happened in Barberton in the mid-late 1990s, with Bosnians," the mayor said.

An Oct. 6, 1997, article in the Akron Beacon Journal reported that about 100 individuals had been resettled in Akron and Barberton from May to October of that year.

Distinguishing between refugees and illegal migration

The IWC announcement received some critical comments on social media, with individuals posting and commenting fears that the agreement would bring immigrants arriving illegally in the U.S. to the Magic City. Some cited a recent influx at the U.S.-Mexico border, which has recently seen a record number of migrants.

In December, for instance, the U.S. Border Patrol at the U.S.-Mexico border reported 250,000 migrant encounters, a record high. The influx has led to other records, according to an April 9 report from the U.S. Census Bureau. In it, the bureau estimated that the U.S. foreign-born population stood at 15%, a modern-day high. In Ohio, the estimate was much lower, at about 4.9%. The estimates includes both legal and illegal immigration, the Census Bureau said.

Hodgkinson said the IWC has had calls from individuals who link the organization's agreement to the recent surge.

When callers are told the IWC works with refugees who've followed the extensive legal path to come to the U.S., the callers' concerns usually dissipate, she said.

"The moment we … describe the difference… most of time, people understand," she said.

She said the IWC agreement covers immigrants with refugee status who, like Adeeb, often spend years on paperwork before they are given the green light to enter the U.S.

"It's not a simple process when somebody comes here from another nation," said Hicks.

Welcoming new residents to Barberton

Barberton City Councilman Thomas Heitic said opposition expressed on social media may arise from confusion about who's coming to Barberton.

On Monday, IWC representatives, including founder Cary Duckett and Hodgkinson, explained the organization's mission at a Barberton City Council meeting.

Heitic stated his strong support for the program and the refugees IWC is helping.

In an interview prior to the council meeting, Heitic said refugees like Adeeb deserve support for the help they've given their new country. Heitic said he's talked with the mayor about the city forming a possible welcoming committee.

"They protected our interests, and it's our duty to protect them in return," he said. "How many lives did they potentially save while risking their own?"

Leave a message for Alan Ashworth at 330-996-3859 or email him at aashworth@gannett.com. Follow him on Twitter at @newsalanbeaconj or Facebook at www.facebook.com/alan.newsman.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: IWC, World Relief team up to help resettle refugees in Barberton