Iowa Preparing to Resettle 350 Afghan Refugees

(Des Moines, IA) — Refugee resettlement agencies in Iowa are preparing for more refugees who were evacuated from Afghanistan last month. The Des Moines office of the US Committee for Refugees and Immigrants has already resettled one family and it expects the capacity to stretch to about 350 more Afghan evacuees. Director Kerri True-Funk says we’re going to get overwhelmed pretty quickly, just with the number of ongoing arrivals that we have, in addition to Afghan folks. She says agency has received an outpouring of support from many Iowans for the effort, including the governor’s office. After consulting with the Iowa Bureau of Refugee Services, True-Funk says the hundreds of expected Afghans are in addition to the agency’s scheduled arrivals from other countries. She says the best way Iowans can help is by making cash donations.