As part of the Shelburne Falls Welcome Committee, a group working to bring Syrian refugees (the Rimeh family) to our region, I want to thank the Recorder for your article and interview with our committee’s coordinator, Jackie Walsh. Given the recent ouster of Syria’s President Bashar al-Assad, Jackie contacted the Rimehs in the refugee camp in Jordan where they have lived for years. They affirmed that they still very much want to move to our region, and they expressed thanks for the work that has been done toward that effort.

When the Rimehs fled Syria, they lost everything. Now, they fear being deported from Jordan back to Syria, where they have no home, no means of supporting themselves and their children, and no security. Extended family members, who also fled Syria, have made their way to western Massachusetts.

The Rimehs (two brothers, their wives, and six young children) very much want to settle here as well and begin to have hope and stable lives. To work with the State Department’s Welcome Corps, and facilitate the Rimehs’ resettlement, we must raise funds quickly. To learn more, visit the link below, and if you are able, please make a tax-deductible contribution: https://new.commongood.earth/member/shelburnefallswelcomecommittee/.

Cindy Snow

Shelburne Falls