Refugee Community Day Held at Saint Rose and RISSE

By SERIAH SARGENTON Distribution Manager

Not everyone is on an even playing field when pursuing the “American Dream.” On Friday, Jan. 26. The College of Saint Rose Community Advisory Board and Refugees and Immigrant Support Services at Emmaus (RISSE) held a refugee community day from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. to share personal stories and meet each other.

The event began at the Hubbard Interfaith Sanctuary at 959 Madison Ave, where Francis Sengabo, the director at RISSE spoke about his experience as a refugee in his early years in Albany and how he came to find RISSE.

Sengabo came from Rwanda in 2007 as a refugee because his father, who was a political figure, was killed in 1998 alongside his mother and he couldn't go back home or he would have been perse- cuted. Since coming to Albany, Sengabo has worked hard at RISSE to ensure that adult refugees are transitioning into American life smoothly by helping them utilize the services available to them.

When speaking to the students and staff who attended the event, Senagbo said that at refugee camps many people die because of the lack of food, resources, and sometimes not having a shelter.

“When you’re at a refugee camp, you have to start at zero, and it takes time,” said Sengabo.

After hearing such a heartbreaking story, students expressed much interest in learning more about RISSE with the hopes of making an impact on the refugee community.

Victoria Bryan, a freshman at Saint Rose explained how she personally connects to the mission RISSE has to help refugees in need.

“My grandfather came