Forging Opportunities for Refugees in America (FORA) is a 501(c)(3) secular NGO that provides high dosage tutoring  (HDT) to formerly pre-literate refugee students, for ten hours per week (Mondays through Fridays, after school) per student with a 2-1 student-teacher ratio. We are now adding a weekend reflection, writing and storytelling component for 20 selected refugee students, where the students will be guided to write stories about their life experiences, big or small. Because refugees often have suffered trauma in the past, storytelling must be done in a professional way, with safeguards, that empowers instead of retraumatizing students. FORAs educators and child psychologist are teaming up with a top-notch nationally-recognized institute called The Telling Room in this effort. The Telling Room has deep expertise in helping immigrant and refugee students tell their own stories.

Over the course of the next year, FORA will conduct these seminars for our 20 selected students under the guidance of The Telling Room experts. On twelve Saturdays from 10 am to noon  in the fall of 2021, and then twelve more Saturdays again in the spring of 2022, we will conduct  these seminars.

We need EIGHT local facilitators to help lead these seminars — volunteers who can come each of the 24 Saturday mornings (with one or two missed Saturdays allowed, at most) at our FORA learning center at 6421 N California Ave. in the West Ridge area of Chicago (only about 15-20 minutes from Evanston and Skokie). If you are not an expert writer or storyteller, do not worry! There will be a mandatory three day training provided by  The Telling Room via Zoom on June 28, 29 and 3oth, 2021. Learn more here.

This should be a great experience for all involved. If you are interested in pursuing possibilities, please call Mike O’Connor at (312) 375-9689 or email him at michael@refugeefora.org. Reach out as soon as you are inspired to, but no later than June 3rd please.

The Anti-Oppression Task Force Planning Group has assisted the UCE Board with entering into a contract with YWCA Evanston/North Shore’s Equity Institute. As consultants, the YWCA will assist with the formation of our anti-oppression task force. Thank you to everyone who submitted an interest form for this task force. You will be hearing from Rev. Eileen Wiviott or Rev. Susan Frances shortly. 

The Planning Group has officially dissolved after setting the foundation for the newly forming anti-oppression task force to begin its job of dismantling white supremacy culture in our congregation and working with community partners. Thank you to everyone who was involved with the Planning Group over the past year: 

Rev. Eileen Wiviott
Rev. Karen Gustafson
Rev. Susan Frances
Jessica Tomell-Presto, UCE Board Chair
Martha Holman
Shannon Lang
Linda LaPlante
Carolyn Laughlin
Beth McDonald
Sally Parsons
Joe Romeo
Donna Schiller
Steve Serikaku
Gail Smith
Sarah Vanderwicken  

The consultants from the YWCA Evanston/North Shore’s Equity Institute working with UCE will be Tiffany McDowell, Equity Institute Director, and Eileen Heineman, Manager of Equity Institute Community Outreach. Members of their staff will provide supporting roles as needed. 

The task force will be forming over the summer and the next communication about its work, including its formal name, will be from the task force itself. Among its first tasks will be team building, formation of an operating structure or leadership model, and creating a work plan. As efforts get underway, the task force will be calling on congregants to assist in various tasks. Working to dismantle oppressions is a life-long endeavor and you are encouraged to share your reflections, creativity, and vision with the task force.