June 28, 2019

World Refugee Day 2019

Joshua Hlawnmual holds his daughter Irene during the celebration of World Refugee Day on June 20 at the Archbishop Edward T. O’Meara Catholic Center. Hlawnmual, a refugee who fled Burma (now Myanmar) in 2010, now helps other refugees as a case manager for the archdiocese’s Refugee and Immigration Services. (Photo by John Shaughnessy)

Joshua Hlawnmual holds his daughter Irene during the celebration of World Refugee Day on June 20 at the Archbishop Edward T. O’Meara Catholic Center. Hlawnmual, a refugee who fled Burma (now Myanmar) in 2010, now helps other refugees as a case manager for the archdiocese’s Refugee and Immigration Services. (Photo by John Shaughnessy)

World Refugee Day on June 20 was marked by a festive combination of music, food and dance during a celebration at the Archbishop Edward T. O’Meara Catholic Center in Indianapolis.

At the same time, the event celebrated the spirit of refugees from around the world who have found new homes in the archdiocese and who have enriched the communities where they have settled.

“We wanted to bring the whole community together to celebrate the courage and the resilience of refugees—and what they bring to our community,” noted Heidi Smith, director of the archdiocese’s Refugee and Immigration Services of Catholic Charities Indianapolis. †

 

 

 

 

 

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