Rocky Mountain Welcome Center

THE ROCKY MOUNTAIN WELCOME CENTER (RMWC) IS AN IMMIGRANT-LED MULTI-TENANT, SHARED SPACE NOT-FOR-PROFIT ORGANIZATION WITH THE MISSION OF FOSTERING INTERCULTURAL LEARNING, UNDERSTANDING AND INTEGRATION AMONG IMMIGRANTS, REFUGEES AND THE COLORADO RESIDENTS.

ROCKY MOUNTAIN WELCOME CENTER (THE ORGANIZATION) IS AN IMMIGRANT-LED, COMMUNITY-BASED NONPROFIT WITH THE MISSION OF FOSTERING INTERCULTURAL LEARNING, UNDERSTANDING, AND INTEGRATION AMONG IMMIGRANTS, REFUGEES, AND COLORADO RESIDENTS. SINCE 2017, THE ORGANIZATION HAS ACTIVELY WORKED TO BUILD WELCOMING COMMUNITIES IN COLORADO. THE ORGANIZATION PROVIDES EDUCATIONAL AND NAVIGATION PROGRAMS ACROSS THE METRO AREA TO INCREASE SOCIAL NETWORKS, CONTRIBUTE TO ECONOMIC MOBILITY, OR CREATE EDUCATIONAL OPPORTUNITIES FOR NEWCOMERS WITH ALL IMMIGRATION STATUSES TO IMPROVE THE SOCIAL DETERMINANTS OF HEALTH. WORKING WITH OUR PARTNER ORGANIZATIONS, THE ORGANIZATION HAS OFFERED EDUCATIONAL AND LITERACY RELATED PROGRAMMING FOR CHILDREN, FEMALE-EMPOWERMENT YOUTH PROGRAMMING, AND ACCESS TO ESL CLASSES AND OTHER COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT ACTIVITIES FOR NEWCOMER ADULTS TO IMPROVE ECONOMIC SECURITY. LITERACY PROGRAMMING INCLUDES, FOR EXAMPLE, A KINDERGARTEN READINESS PROGRAM FOR IMMIGRANT AND REFUGEE CHILDREN IN AURORA, AND A LITERACY PROGRAM FOR IMMIGRANT AND REFUGEE CHILDREN IN DENVER. THE ORGANIZATION HAS BEEN OFFERING PROGRAMMING SINCE 2017. THROUGHOUT 2021, THE ORGANIZATION KEPT RESPONDING TO BASIC NEEDS IN THE COMMUNITIES SERVED BY PROVIDING CULTURALLY APPROPRIATE SERVICES INCLUDING HALAL FOOD ACCESS, AND CULTURALLY APPROPRIATE GROCERY DISTRIBUTION. COVID-19 TESTING AND VACCINES, VOLUNTEER MANAGEMENT, AND DIRECT CASE MANAGEMENT SERVICES. OTHER INITIATIVES INCLUDE DEVELOPING TRANSLATED VIDEOS, SOCIAL MEDIA, AND PRINT RESOURCES IN MULTIPLE LANGUAGES TO KEEP EDUCATING OUR POPULATIONS ABOUT COVID-19. CURRENT PROGRAMS INCLUDE: PROGRAMS FOR EDUCATION AND ECONOMIC INTEGRATION: - KINDERGARTEN PREP: THIS PARENT/CHILD PROGRAM IS DESIGNED FOR IMMIGRANT AND REFUGEE YOUTH AGES 3-5 TO BE PREPARED FOR KINDERGARTEN. - ROCKY MOUNTAIN READERS: THIS IS A LITERACY PROGRAM FOR ELEMENTARY CHILDREN READING ONE OR MORE YEARS BELOW GRADE LEVEL. - GIRLS RULE THE WORLD: THIS IS A FEMALE-SPECIFIC EMPOWERMENT PROGRAM THAT PROVIDES A 10-WEEK, CULTURALLY SPECIFIC CURRICULUM FOCUSING ON BICULTURALISM, VALUES, IDENTITY, HEALTH, AND WELLNESS TO IMMIGRANT AND FIRST-GENERATION YOUNG WOMEN. PROGRAMS FOR BASIC NEEDS: - RENT ASSISTANCE: RMWC ASSISTS WITH ONE MONTH OF RENT, UP TO 1,000 (WHEN FUNDING IS AVAILABLE) TO IMMIGRANT AND REFUGEE FAMILIES THAT ARE MORE THAN ONE MONTH BEHIND IN RENT. - ETHNIC FOOD ASSISTANCE: RMWC PARTNERS WITH ETHNIC RESTAURANTS AND GROCERY STORES TO PROVIDE CULTURALLY APPROPRIATE FOOD ASSISTANCE, INCLUDING HALAL FOODS TO OUR LOW-INCOME IMMIGRANT AND REFUGEE FAMILIES. - CARE TEAM: THE COMMUNITY, ADVOCACY, RESOURCES AND EDUCATION TEAM IS THERE TO HELP ANY IMMIGRANT AND REFUGEE TO CONNECT WITH ORGANIZATIONS AND SERVICES. CULTURALLY APPROPRIATE INFORMATION FOR SOCIAL CHANGE: - WEEKLY SPANISH RADIO SEGMENT,"PERSPECTIVAS" WITHIN THE RADIO SHOW "HABLEMOS HOY CON RODOLFO CARDENAS" ON 1150 AM (THURSDAYS AT 8 AM). - COVID 19 INFORMATION: RMWC KEEPS DEVELOPING ONE TO TWO-MINUTE VIDEOS WITH UPDATED INFORMATION ABOUT COVID-19 IN DIFFERENT LANGUAGES (AMHARIC, DARI, PASHTO, SOMALI, SPANISH, TIGRIGNA, NEPALI, AMONG OTHERS) AND POSTERS. PROGRAMS FOR HOLISTIC HEALTH: - HEALING THROUGH ARTS AND NATURE: PROVIDE YOUNG WOMEN, AGES 15-20, A SPACE TO FIND PEACE & HEALING THROUGH COMMUNITY-BUILDING AND SPENDING TIME IN NATURE. WELCOMING COMMUNITIES AND INTERCULTURAL UNDERSTANDING: - AFGHAN WELCOME BASKETS: RECENTLY ARRIVED AFGHAN FAMILIES CAN GET "WELCOME BASKETS" WITH BASIC ITEMS NOT AVAILABLE TO PURCHASE WITH FOOD STAMPS. - UNDERSTANDING HOW TO WORK WITH IMMIGRANTS AND REFUGEES: DESIGN FOR ANY ORGANIZATION THAT IS NEW TO WORKING WITH IMMIGRANTS AND REFUGEES. MUCH LIKE 2020, 2021 WAS A CHALLENGING YEAR FOR COUNTLESS REASONS AND ROCKY MOUNTAIN WELCOME CENTER (RMWC) AND OUR PARTNERS CONTINUED TO PROVIDE IMPORTANT RESOURCES FOR THE HARD-HIT COMMUNITIES WE SERVE DURING THIS DIFFICULT TIME. AT THE END OF 2021, RMWC MOVED INTO A NEW OFFICE, AND WE ARE EXCITED TO UTILIZE THE SPACE IN INNOVATIVE WAYS TO PROVIDE CONTINUED SUPPORT AND RESOURCES FOR OUR COMMUNITY. WE ALSO COLLECTED OVER 10,000 IN CASH AND IN-KIND GOODS FOR NEWLY ARRIVING AFGHAN FAMILIES. IN FEBRUARY 2021, ROCKY MOUNTAIN WELCOME CENTER RECEIVED FUNDING FROM THE CITY OF AURORA COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT BLOCK GRANT COVID-19 FUNDING (CDBG) TO CONTINUE THE WORK STARTED IN 2020 WITH OUR CULTURALLY APPROPRIATE FOOD DELIVERY PROJECT. THIS PROJECT WORKS IN PARTNERSHIP WITH COMMUNITY GROUPS TO DELIVER MEALS TO FAMILIES IN NEED THAT ARE CONSISTENT WITH CULTURAL AND RELIGIOUS GUIDELINES. RMWC PARTNERED WITH EIGHT DIFFERENT RESTAURANTS AND FOUR MARKETS TO PROVIDE MIDDLE EASTERN, PERSIAN, NEPALI, ETHIOPIAN, AND SOMALIAN FOOD TO OUR COMMUNITY. WITH THE HELP OF OUR PARTNERS AND VOLUNTEERS WE WERE ABLE TO DISTRIBUTE 425 MEALS A WEEK FOR A TOTAL OF 5,100 MEALS DELIVERED. SOCIAL MEDIA CAMPAIGNS, RADIO SHOW "PERSPECTIVAS", AND COVID-19 OUTREACH EFFORTS HAVE ENABLED THE ORGANIZATION TO SPREAD INFORMATION ABOUT TESTING, VACCINES, AND OTHER AVAILABLE RESOURCES TO HARD-TO-REACH COMMUNITIES.