Somalians in Winooski Vermont

By Brian French
Posted Tuesday, Feb 10, 2009

I just rented one of my apartments to a Somalian family that was just relocated to the U.S. last week. It is a family of six. Two parents, two boys ages 19 and 18 and two daughters who are 12 and 10. The boys speak a little bit of English, but the rest of the family does not. They were assisted by the Refugee Resettlement program to get them here and orient them to our culture. I can't even imagine how difficult it must be for them to come to a new country not being able to speak the language, and not to mention some of the simple things we know how to do to survive. For example, how to work the electric range, how to set the thermostat for the apartment, or how to put batteries in the smoke detectors. They seem to be a loving family that I am excited about helping acclimate to our world. I know that I will be able to make them feel welcomed and I feel really lucky to have them as tenants. Yes, I may be able to teach them some things, but I believe that I will be able to learn a lot more from them. They are in need of many daily necessities as well as furniture. Email me if you have items you could donate.