Refugee Focus

Showing kindness, doing justice, and serving those in need.

Refugee Focus, a division of Lutheran Social Services of the Southwest (LSS-SW), is dedicated to helping refugees establish new lives in Arizona.

Refugees are men, women, and children who are forced to flee their homes, leaving behind all they have known for an uncertain future. They are unable to return to their homelands for fear of persecution due to their race, gender, religion, nationality, or membership in a social or political group. Refugees are among the most vulnerable of all immigrants fleeing countries that have been ravaged by civil strife or war. They come from nations throughout the world including Afghanistan, Bhutan, Burma, Burundi, Congo, Cuba, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Iran, Iraq, Rwanda, Somalia, and Sudan.

Refugee Focus provides core services for refugees as well as employment services, ESL classes, children’s tutoring, and classes through the Adult Skill-building and Women’s Empowerment Programs.

The Women’s Empowerment Program (WEP) focuses on the well-being of refugee women through skill-building and educational services. Often times, refugee women are coming from cultures where they are offered fewer opportunities than men. The WEP gives clients a chance to gain skills and build their confidence, which could lead to job opportunities and self-sufficiency. Some examples of WEP classes are sewing, knitting, computer skills, microenterprise development, health, and nutrition.