'We've accomplished the impossible': Tulsa's final Afghan refugees to arrive Thursday, as next chapter begins
With the last of its 850-plus Afghan refugees due to arrive on Thursday, Tulsa’s part in a massive nationwide resettlement effort will officially wrap up its first phase.
“It’s a great, great joy for us, because it means we’ve accomplished the impossible, in our minds, as a community — by receiving them and having them all sheltered and fed and safe,” said Deacon Kevin Sartorius, executive director of Catholic Charities of Eastern Oklahoma, which is heading up the project. “We also recognize we’re just at the end of the first chapter. A new one is beginning.”
The refugees, who were approved for resettlement in eastern Oklahoma, began arriving at Tulsa International Airport on Sept. 24 — among the tens of thousands who were evacuated from Afghanistan with the U.S. withdrawal.
The final Tulsa arrivals also will complete the full allotment for the state, which is receiving a total of more than 1,800 refugees.
Originally approved for 800, Tulsa’s number grew when Congregation B’nai Emunah was later approved as a resettlement agency. The synagogue was granted an additional 59 refugees.
Catholic Charities has headed the overall effort, with numerous other groups and organizations pitching in.
“I could sit here and list dozens of organizations who’ve said, ‘Tell us what you need; we want to play a role,’ and they’ve just continually stepped up and delivered on a daily basis,” Sartorius said.
He cautioned, however, that while the first phase is over, the process has just begun for the refugees. They will still face many challenges ahead.
“The focus shifts now, starting with housing,” Sartorius said. “Certainly by six weeks from now, everyone will be in permanent housing.”
More than half of the arrivals are already in apartments, where they’ll be for at least their first year, he said.
“The remaining 350 will go through cultural orientation, and then we’ll slot them out for housing, as well.”
Every refugee also faces the hurdle of applying for asylum.
“We received a $520,000 grant to help with that, and 130 pro bono attorneys have been trained for asylum work,” Sartorius said.
He added that YWCA Tulsa will take on more of the lead role going forward.
“They do refugee social services,” he said. “With the basic needs of life covered, the Y starts to work with them on the longer-term aspirations.”
Overall, the state of Oklahoma’s 1,800 was the third highest number of Afghan refugees approved for any state. Tulsa’s total alone was more than most states’.
The number was an estimate proposed by agency officials from Tulsa and Oklahoma City when they filled out a State Department capacity survey.
“No doubt we asked for too many,” Sartorius said. “But the people in our state said, ‘No, we’ve got this; we can handle this.’ If there’s been anything that I’ve come away from the project with, it’s that we can do anything if we put our minds to it in eastern Oklahoma.”
Rabbi Daniel Kaiman of Congregation B’nai Emunah said the synagogue, now an official resettlement agency and partner of the Hebrew Immigrant Aid Society, has collaborated closely with Catholic Charities and looks forward to participating in future refugee resettlements.
“It’s been incredible to be part of an interfaith effort responding to a critical moment over the past several months,” he said. “Tulsa is better because of the work we’ve done together.”
Sartorius said he can envision what the results of that work will look like.
“If you look three years ahead, we’re going to have a great Afghan community who will be contributing to Tulsa,” he said.
“We’re also going to have a group of people who worked on this project who are ready for the next flood or tornado that’s going to come. We will be able to work together better because we have these incredible relationships.”