The Charlotte Jewish News - January 2012 - Page 14
CRRA in the Community
By Karen Brodsky
A key word among Charlotte
nonprofits is eollaboration. Many
funders insist on eollaborative pro
grams in order to see their dollars
go further. CRRA has been fortu
nate to be involved with
Crossroads Charlotte whose mis
sion is “to ehoose and pursue a
future for Charlotte, not just arrive
in one. With an emphasis on ereat-
ing a eommunity that is aeeessible
to all, inelusive and equitable, the
goal of Crossroads Charlotte is to
build a trusting, vibrant and sus
tainable home.”
For the last two years, CRRA
has joined with a Crossroads
Charlotte and other serviee
providers to find ways to make
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new arrivals to Charlotte feel wel-
eome and part of the larger eom
munity. The foeus is IRAl
(Immigrant, Refugee, Asylee, and
International) eommunities. At the
first meeting representatives from
the IRAl eommunity shared stories
about frustrations with the eity and
hopes of being aeeepted in
Charlotte. On its website.
Crossroads Charlotte deseribes the
IRAl eommunity: “They’re
Charlotte’s invisible minority.
They work, send their ehildren to
sehool and keep to themselves.
They’re immigrants, but they
rarely make it on the news.
They are Charlotte-Meeklenburg’s
refugees and asylees, many of
whom fled their eountries for fear
of perseeution. They are interna
tionals and among those who make
up Charlotte’s diverse population.”
Crossroads Charlotte devel
oped a eollaborative eommunity
engagement effort with IRAl eom
munities and a wide range of serv
iee provider ageneies/groups that
support them to inerease aeeess for
all and build trust in the eommuni
ty. During this time, many reeur-
ring “aeeess-related” themes
emerged from the sessions. “Many
Cultures One Community,” was
bom of these on-going meetings
and eonsisted of workshops and
other events to inerease eommuni
ty awareness and tmst. The final
program was a reeent eommunity
event on Deeember 3 to highlight
the most relevant topies and
resourees for the IRAl eommuni
ties. At this event. Crossroads
Charlotte in partnership with
Meeklenburg Area Partnership for
Primary-eare Researeh (MAPPR),
Community Building Initiative
(CBl), and Community Relations
Committee (CRC), unveiled an
online portal for serviees and
organizations serving, in part, the
IRAl eommunities.
‘“Many Cultures, One
Community’ has been an opportu
nity to assess the needs of
Charlotte’s IRAls and help them
beeome more integrated into the
larger Charlotte eommunities,”
said Ana Lueia Divins, projeet
eonsultant. “We have a lot of silos
working and serving the eommuni
ty,” Divins said. “It was important
to eonneet the dots.”
Added Ellen Dubin, exeeutive
direetor of Carolina Refugee
Resettlement Ageney, “We would
like the Charlotte eommunity to
know that there are refugees here
and that there are ways members
of the eommunity ean help
whether they do it individually,
through a ehureh, an organization,
[or] a eompany.”
As a serviee provider for
refugees CRRA embraeed the
proeess and partieipated in a eol
laborative eommunity engagement
effort with the IRAl eommunities
and serviee providers who support
them with the goal of inereasing
aeeess for all and to build trust.
Thus, Crossroads Charlotte
launehed The Meeklenburg Aeeess
Portal (The MAP) at a eommunity-
wide event at the Northwest
Sehool for the Arts. MAP is a web-
based resouree direetory for
healtheare and soeial serviee
providers to aeeess information
and resourees. The portal will link
the IRAl eommunities to mueh
needed serviees and link serviee
providers to underserved popula
tions.
CRRA partieipated in three of
the Crossroads Charlotte’s events.
Dubin partieipated in the press
eonferenee in November that
kieked off the initiative. CRRA
weleomed about 30 eommunity
members from all walks of
Charlotte as they learned about
loeal nonprofits on a speeial bus
tour. Finally, Dubin was a panel
member at the program’s eulmi-
nating event.
“The benefits of this eollabora
tion are many, said Dubin. “CRRA
beeame more visible, more people
know about refugee resettlement,
and the refugee eommunity has
new resourees. After resettling
refugees for almost 16 years, it is
uplifting for me to see the greater
eommunity finally to begin to
respond to IRAl needs in
Charlotte.”
Collaborative efforts are multi
plying. The Levine Jewish
Community Center announeed a
program for eommunity outreaeh
that began in Deeember. The JCC
is responding to the needs in the
greater Charlotte eommunity by
striking partnerships with other
nonprofits. CRRA will also partie-
ipate in that effort.
CRRA needs your help to eon-
tinue to provide invaluable servie
es for refugees. In addition to fur
niture and housewares, the ageney
needs eash eontributions and vol
unteers to perform its vital work.
Please visit our website at
www.earolinarefugee.org to
donate or eall 704-535-8803 for
more information. ^
Award-Winning Films, Speakers
Highlight 8th Annnal Charlotte Jewish
Film Festival
The Charlotte Jewish Film
Festival returns February 25-
Mareh 11 with quality Jewish film
from around the world. Comedies,
doeumentaries, and dramas illu
minating the international Jewish
experienee will onee again graee
Some well known “Jews in Toons.
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the silver sereen right here in the
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eom. An all-festival pass is also
available that entitles the pass
holder to entranee to all the films
at a savings of over $30. Cheek
out the website to read more about
our fantastie lineup of eleven
films/events as well as superb
speakers and performers who will
help to make the 8th Annual
Charlotte Jewish Film Festival the
best ever.
It’s a Global Affair
After months of mueh diseus-
sion and debate, films from Israel,
Russia, Franee, Argentina, the
Czeeh Republie, and the US have
made the eut, a refleetion of the
far-reaehing web of the Jewish
story. Although the movies have a
Judaie bent, the themes are univer
sal and eneompass the eommon
human experienee. Love, eompas-
sion, betrayal, and redemption are
just a few of the motifs running
through these exeellent films.
Speakers and Performers Add
Value
Every year the Charlotte Jewish
Film Festival brings in exeeption-
al speakers and performers to
enhanee the Festival experienee.
This year’s speakers promise to be
both edueational and entertaining
as always. On Mareh 1, make sure
to join us for “A Lens on Israel: A
Soeiety Through Its Cinema”
Mike Reiss, writer/produeer
of “The Simpsons ”
sponsored by Temple Beth El. Dr.
Erie Goldman, PhD Cinema
Studies, will takes us on a journey
(Continued on next page)
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