Help Resettle LGBTQIA Refugees

The Rainbow Railroad [https://www.rainbowrailroad.org] is known for helping LGBTQI+ people around the world find their path to safety.

Now the Rainbow Railroad is partnering with the US Welcome Corps [https://www.rainbowrailroad.org/the-latest/announcement-welcome-corps-a-new-program-that-will-allow-lgtbqi-people-to-resettle-in-the-united-states] to help at-risk queer and trans refugees to resettle in the US. Rainbow Railroad is forming local teams of volunteers to meet the needs of each arriving refugee to get help get them off to a great new start.

The Rock Creek Welcome Circle is one such team of volunteers preparing to welcome one refugee or family to a new life in the Washington DC area. Though our refugee is not yet identified we are expecting our new person to be identified and arrive soon. *We are preparing to welcome someone in a few days to weeks.*

Starting up life in a new community is hard! Finding a place to live, a job that can support you, navigating a new city, find new doctors, leaning new customs and finding *your people* can be daunting for anyone. Queer refugees must manage this while also escaping their past troubles in a new country and likely without the support of an expatriate community. That is why we are here. Our core job is to support our person for 90 days and set them up for success from there on.

You can help by providing financial support. All monies raised will be used to cover basic set-up costs (eg. prepaid rent, clothes, food, and durable goods). These items can also be in-kind, so if you have clothing, appliances, household goods that you would be willing to donate, please let us know. We may also need other kinds of contributions or support, to be specified later.

We are hoping to initially raise $10000 to have ready by 1 April 2024 which should be either just before our person arrives or just after.

In the event that any funds collected cannot be spent in direct support of our refugee they will be transferred to the Rainbow Railroad to help others.