Across the United States, communities are stepping up to combat period poverty by assembling CWS Period Packs and providing essential hygiene items to those in need. From disaster relief to youth activism, these efforts are restoring dignity and meeting a critical yet often overlooked need. Everyone has the right to access safe, sanitary hygiene products, but for many people around …
As First Group of Afrikaners Prepares to Travel to the United States, CWS Urges Administration to Comply with Court Order to Resettle All Eligible Refugees
May 9, 2025
As First Group of Afrikaners Prepares to Travel to the United States, CWS Urges Administration to Comply with Court Order to Resettle All Eligible Refugees New York City– CWS today expressed deep concern over news that the Trump Administration will soon admit Afrikaners and other racial minorities from South Africa to the United States as refugees, while simultaneously delaying …
Conversation Guide: How to Talk to Your Family About Refugees
May 8, 2025
Like us, you know that refugees are ordinary people who have been forced to leave their homes behind in search of safety. But with misinformation on the rise, how can you share the facts with your family, friends and loved ones? Here is a conversation guide to answer any questions your community may have about refugees and other newcomers. …
TAKE ACTION: This World Refugee Day, Urge Congress to Defend Refuge
World Refugee Day—held annually on June 20th—is an opportunity to recognize and celebrate the resilience and courage of those fleeing violence and persecution globally. It serves as a call to action for governments and communities to strengthen their efforts in providing safe haven, resources, and opportunities for refugees and other displaced people to rebuild their lives. Despite multiple court orders, …
World Refugee Day: Books and Film Highlighting the Refugee Experience
This World Refugee Day, we honor the courage, resilience and humanity of people forced to flee their homes by uplifting the stories that reflect their lived experiences. From memoirs to films, these powerful works offer intimate, eye-opening perspectives on displacement, identity and the search for safety. Books Highlighting the Refugee Experience: Those We Throw Away Are Diamonds by Mondiant Dogon …
Stories of Change
Above: Yana with a program participant Below: Gabriela delivering homemade cake at the Sărătenii Vechi Nursing Home
Little Acts, Big Hearts: How Refugees and Children Are Shaping Community Life in Telenesti
At the Diamond Day Center in Telenesti, Ukrainian refugees and local Moldovan families are coming together to create a welcoming, supportive community through small acts of kindness—from building a children’s mini-library to delivering homemade treats to elders.
At the Diamond Day Center in Telenesti, Moldova, community isn’t just a word—it’s a way of life. From its beginning, the Center, which is supported by CWS, aimed to create a space where Ukrainian refugees and host Moldovan communities could feel part of something bigger: a family, a safe space and a thriving community where everyone belongs.
A Book House Built with Love
That’s how the “Community of Ukrainians” platform was born—an initiative that quickly grew into an active and compassionate group of Ukrainian refugees eager to give back to the community that welcomed them. One beautiful example of their work is the mini-library project in Telenesti’s central park. Designed especially for children, the “Book House” offers storybooks, coloring books, toys and pencils for little ones to enjoy. Families can take books home, contribute their own and share in the joy of reading together.
Yana, a 30-year-old Ukrainian refugee and staff member at the Diamond Day Center, played a leading role in the initiative. She shared, “We do this with great love for each child who will come to read a book from here. It’s our way of showing gratitude for everything we have received here from the community. The pride we feel knowing we’re creating something meaningful is one of the most beautiful experiences. Together, we can create a better and more beautiful world around us!”
Spreading Compassion Across Generations
The spirit of kindness and community isn’t just for grown-ups. At the Diamond Day Center, children are learning that small acts of kindness can make a big difference. In October 2024, the children prepared handmade desserts and personalized boxes—each decorated with drawings and kind messages—for the elderly residents of the Sărătenii Vechi Nursing Home.
Gabriela, an 11-year-old participant, shared her experience: “I was so happy to visit the nursing home. I’ll never forget Grandma Maria’s grateful look when I gave her the cake we made. She smiled and thanked me, and it made me feel really good. I want to go back, and next time, I’ll learn a beautiful poem to make them even happier.”
These simple but powerful moments—a book shared, a homemade treat gifted, a poem learned—reflect what community is truly about. In Telenesti, refugees, children and elders are discovering together that even in times of hardship, kindness, creativity and connection can transform lives.
You can learn more about the work we are doing in Moldova to support Ukrainian refugees here.
A Mother’s Strength: How One Family Rebuilt Hope After Separation
May 7, 2025
After fleeing danger in their home country and enduring a painful separation, Roseline and her son Emmanuel reunited in the U.S. with support from CWS. As Emmanuel faced challenges adapting to his new community, Roseline was there to offer support and advocate for social, emotional and academic interventions with his school—helping him rediscover joy and belonging. From Separation to Safety …
Stories of Change
Top and Bottom: Violetta
Finding Her Way Back to Joy: Violetta’s Journey Through War, Healing and Dance
After war stole her sense of safety and silenced her joy, Violetta found healing and hope through group sessions offered by the “Support for Women and Children During the War in Ukraine” project. With support from CWS and Positive Women Odesa, she’s rediscovered her voice, her confidence and her passion for dance.
A Bright Future Interrupted
With natural curiosity and an unquenchable thirst for life, Violetta’s days were once filled with school, friends and time to devote to her true passion: dance. Her future was bright and wide open with possibilities.
Then, on February 24, 2022, Violetta’s world changed overnight when Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Many of her friends’ families were forced to leave the country in search of safety, and the activities she loved were all put on pause.
Violetta’s mother recalled how she tried to comfort her daughter in those initial days of the war, trying to create a sense of safety and peace. “I felt powerless,” she shared. “It was unbearable to see my child suffer.”
In August 2024, she heard about the “Support for Women and Children during the War in Ukraine” project from a friend, who also had a child that was already participating in one of the project’s free children’s group sessions. Implemented by CWS’s local partner in Ukraine, Positive Women Odesa, the project provides psychosocial support, among other essential services, to women and children in Odesa City.
Healing in Community
Violetta initially kept to herself, feeling shy and confused since she had never met any of the other children. She spoke little and quietly, unsure how to participate in group activities. Then, with the support of a psychologist, social worker and the other children, Violetta began to open up and feel more comfortable and confident in her new environment.
By the third children’s group session, Violetta was no longer just attending—she was thriving. Surrounded by new friends and fueled by renewed confidence, she fully embraced each activity with joy and boldness. In reclaiming her voice, she also reclaimed her passion, finally finding dance once more.
Violetta’s mother can once again see the bright, curious little girl she was before the war began. “I don’t know what we would have done without you,” she shared. “You are real magicians.”
The group sessions have become a source of stability and brightness in her life. Together, these girls are finding a community of friends to lean on, feeling empowered to use their voices and find their passions once more, forging a bright future filled with hope.
With support from CWS, the “Support for Women and Children During the War in Ukraine” project, implemented by our local partner in Ukraine, Positive Women Odesa, provides critical services for acutely vulnerable women and children in Odesa City, including psychosocial support and legal assistance, along with basic needs assistance like food, medications and other essential supplies. The project focuses on women, including those living with HIV, older women and women in the LGBTQ+ community. To learn more about our Ukraine response, click here.
Finding Hope After Loss: One Ukrainian Woman’s Journey to Safety and Healing in Moldova
*Trigger Warning: This story contains descriptions of war, loss, trauma and death that may be distressing for some readers. The Rehabilitation Center for Torture Victims, known as Memoria, is a CWS local partner in Moldova which serves Ukrainian refugees and Moldovan gender-based violence survivors to access life-saving medical and psychosocial support. The following is written by a program participant whose …
U.S. Government Ordered to Comply with Court Orders in Refugee Ban Lawsuit or Face Sanctions
May 6, 2025
U.S. Government Ordered to Comply with Court Orders in Refugee Ban Lawsuit or Face Sanctions Government Must Process Around 12,000 Refugees Stranded by Trump Administration (Seattle, WA) – CWS, HIAS, LCSNW, and IRAP welcomed the compliance order issued yesterday in Pacito v. Trump, reaffirming that the government must process and provide resettlement support to refugees who were conditionally approved …