Utica to Celebrate World Refugee Day 2017

by Mohawk Valley Resource Center for Refugees

UTICA – The Mohaek Valley Resource Center for Refugees and Fidels Care invite the public to join them in celebrating World Refugee Day on Saturday, June 17th at Hanna Park at Utica City Hall from 12 PM until 4 PM. Utica, a city known as “The Town that Loves Refugees”, is an especially appropriate place to commemorate refugees’ resilience and reflect on their contributions to the local community.

World Refugee Day will begin with a special US Citizenship and Immigration Services Naturalization Ceremoney to naturalize the twenty-two community members as new citizens of the United States. This ceremony will be followed by a wide range of activities for the whole family, including music and dance performances, an International Fashion Show, and a puppet show. The Utica Zoomobile will join the festivities and there will be opportunities to learn new crafts. Activities will also include face painting and henna designs. There will also be food, and traditional handicrafts for sale from One World Artisans, a microenterprise group from the refugee and immigrant communities. Entertainment and educational displays will provide insight to refugee resettlement, the refugee experience and the amazing contributions refugees have made to Utica’s mosaic and history.

The first World Refugee Day, held on June 20th, 2001, marked the 50th anniversary of the 1951 UN Refugee Convention. Observed every years, World Refugee Day provides an opportunity to honor the courage of our community’s neighbors and their resilience in building new lives.

Utica’s Mohawk Valley Resource Center for Refugees is a non-profit organization that provides services to refugees, immigrants, and Limited English Proficient (LEP) individuals. MVRCR’s goal is to help individuals and families achieve independence and self-sufficiency in their new communities. Founded in 1981, MVRCR has settled over 16,000 individuals in the Mohawk Valley.

This event is free and open to the public.

For more information, please contact MVRCR Executive Assistant, Ashley Bustos at 315-738-1083 ext. 113 or via email at ashleyb@mvrcr.org