LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- As the crisis in Afghanistan continues, a Louisville organization is stepping in to offer any help it can for those displaced.
Catholic Charities of Louisville is ready to welcome Afghans who have fled the country — especially the capital city of Kabul.
“I think there is a lot of fear and a lot of unknown,” said Resettlement Director Colin Triplett, who works with several Afghan families.
Currently there are roughly 80 Afghan families in Metro Louisville and the organization is expecting several more in the next few weeks.
“The refugees will go through this 11-step process where they are checked, a medical check-up, security screening …” said Triplett. “The process is really to help them be self-sufficient here so we help them find employment and people find jobs pretty quickly once they arrive.”
Catholic Charities of Louisville is ready to welcome Afghans who have fled the country — especially the capital city of Kabul. (WDRB photo)
Catholic Charities gets a few days notice before taking in people who usually arrive at Fort Hood. The families will then be placed in apartments as they begin to acclimate to western society.
Once settled in, the children will be placed in Jefferson County Public Schools and the adults will start ESL classes if needed.
Many of those Catholic Charities take in have been in refugee camps for years and some still have families who haven’t left. Speaking out against their home country could compromise the safety of the loved ones still there.
“Usually the traumatic event that had caused them to seek refuge that they can't go back home happened pretty far in the past,” Triplett said. “With something like what is going on in Kabul right now, it is really raw and recent.”
It’s still not known how many people Catholic Charities will be working with in the next few weeks.
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