As the U.S is working on getting refugees out of Afghanistan, Dallas-based Helping Hands Ministry Health is set to welcome them and help them settle when they arrive. The nonprofit community center plans to assist them with their physical and emotional needs.
Translator for Helping Hands Ministry Health, Myo Chit Aye, who fled his home country of Burma in 2003, says that he knows what the refugees are going through to an extent. He stated, “When I came here, it was very difficult for me. It’s the same thing when they come as the newcomer. It’s very difficult.”
After Aye fled Burma, he went to Malaysia, where the UN Refugee Agency assisted him before he eventually arrived in the U.S. in 2010. Since his arrival in the U.S, he has been able to learn five new languages with which he now makes a living.
His ability to relate to their ordeals spurs Aye to prepare to welcome the refugees who will be arriving in Dallas’ Vickery Meadows neighborhood.
HHM is set to provide the Afghan refugees with all types of healthcare, including family medicine, dental health, and women’s health. They will also have access to behavioral healthcare where they can meet with counselors.
HHM Health Chief Medical Officer Dr. Michael Lyons stated that the initiative is to help the refugees who are going to be faced with lots of trauma. “It’s going to be a lot of post-stress disorder,” he said. “Being able to have someone who can translate and really make them feel at home is so imperative. Being able to come here, we can truly take care of them; we can talk the language; really care for their needs.
According to Aye, adjusting to a new society is always difficult, but he will try to make the transition easier. He hopes to be able to take care of them and teach them what he learned from experience.