Kwende (Jimmy Jackson) (on website)
Kwende and his family experienced first hand the oppression, robbery, and bloodshed that were constant threats to Liberians during the 1990s. In 1990, they fled for their lives from vicious rebels to the country of Sierra Leone. Kwende’s mother had been a prominent figure in the Supreme Court of Liberia, making her a prime target to be murdered.
When the family made it to a refugee camp in Sierra Leone, they hoped that they would find safety. Unfortunately, danger still surrounded them. Kwende and his sister were separated from the rest of the family and were forced to return to Liberia. They remained apart from their family for 10 years, occasionally in touch by phone. In 2000, the lives of Kwende and his sister were threatened.They were forced to leave Liberia once again. This time they fled to Ghana.
The two remained in the Budu Burean refugee camp in Ghana for a long time, their stay extendingfrom months to years. Kwende attempted to make money running currency exchanges, but he and his sister still struggled to eat. After five years, they had given up all hope of seeing their mother again. The family had been apart for 15 years.
In 2005, Kwende and his sister received word that their mother was calling the campdesperately trying to reach them. Their mother and other sister were in America, and they had no idea! Their mother and sister had left Sierra Leone via the United Nations High Commission for Refugees and filed for Kwende and his sister to join them from the refugee camp in Ghana. A year later, they were approved to come to Minnesota. They would see each other for the first time in 16 years!
Kwende arrived on November 24, 2006. MCC Refugee Services immediately enrolled himin the Refugee Cash Assistance program, and assigned him a case manager. He attended Extended Cultural Orientation and Employment Orientation, and started computer classes. Kwende’s case manager helped him with health care, social security, his Employment Authorization Document, and appointments at the county. Kwende was busy adjusting to American life and moved in with his mother and sister in St. Paul.
Kwende now has a steady job with a manufacturing agency and is looking forward to college in the future. He wants to start a business career after his studies, but is content with saving money for now. The biggest blessing is to be safe and with his family again after 16 long years. His fondness for Minnesota is growing, too. “I like Minnesota; I really like the environment around where I live,” he says.