|
Finding loved ones when you least expect it
American Red Cross delivers family news to a refugee from Sudan
By Katherine Boury, Media Relations, American Red Cross
Thursday, June 19, 2008 — Anthony Yak knew the symbol of the Red Cross meant safety when he was separated from his family during a civil war in his home country of Sudan, but he never had direct contact with the American Red Cross until this past year.
Anthony Yak, a Sudanese refugee, receives assistance from and Jessica Sowa, an international services specialist with the American Red Cross in Seattle. (Credit: American Red Cross)
|
Last summer, Anthony went to the language bank of the American Red Cross Serving King & Kitsap Counties in Seattle to have his transcript documents translated from French to English. He asked for this service so he could apply to Seattle University to study public affairs and international studies. Little did Anthony know he was going to receive another Red Cross service that day.
When he came to the chapter, he was surprised to find that there was a message from Felicite, the mother of his son, John. They were trying to find him.
“We looked for Anthony for almost seven months,” said Jessica Sowa, international services program specialist for the American Red Cross. “And then one day Anthony came into the chapter. It was an incredible coincidence and so exciting.”
Felicite, who lives in Belgium, had placed a tracing request at the Belgium Red Cross, one of the 186 Red Cross and Red Crescent national societies that work with the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to locate loved ones who are missing due to war, civil unrest or natural disaster.
The American Red Cross received Felicite’s request at national headquarters in Washington, D.C. and forwarded it to the American Red Cross Serving King & Kitsap Counties chapter in Seattle where it found Anthony.
Anthony had interacted with the local Red Cross in Sudan and knew it was “the best place to find missing family members,” but he was still surprised to receive a message from Felicite, whom he had not seen for almost seven years. “I knew they were okay, but I did not know where they were,” he said.
“I contacted them right away,” Anthony remembers. “I was so happy to talk to them. I saw my son when he was one month old, and now he is in the second grade.”
Anthony is now working on obtaining his U.S. citizenship and hopes to visit his son in the near future.
“This was a very unusual case,” Jessica added. “But is it a perfect example of how the Red Cross reunites families, wherever they are.”
To find out more about Restoring Family Links in your community contact your local American Red Cross chapter.
As part of the world's largest humanitarian network, the American Red Cross alleviates the suffering of victims of war, disaster and other international crises, and works with other Red Cross and Red Crescent societies to improve chronic, life-threatening conditions in developing nations. We reconnect families separated by emergencies and educate the American public about international humanitarian law. This assistance is made possible through the generosity of the American public.
Related Links:
Related Content:
|
