SEP 28 2020
By Lauren Husband, Communications Team
Monga has been an important member of the Canopy family since his arrival in 2017. Monga’s family fled the Democratic Republic of Congo due to civil war and insurgent violence when he was 10 years old and found refuge at a camp in Burundi for 16 years. After almost two decades in transition, Monga was finally resettled in Northwest Arkansas in February 2017 with his mother and two brothers. He was one of Canopy’s first clients— the fifth case to be resettled by our fledgling organization.
Being one of the first refugees to be resettled in a community is tough. Fayetteville, a majority white town, had a small refugee community, and an equally small African community. In 2017, most African immigrants in the area were University students, faculty, and their families. Monga’s family carried the arduous but incredibly important responsibility of paving the way for hundreds of future refugees, asylees, and African immigrants to come. And let me tell you— they became a more essential cornerstone of those communities than we ever could have expected.
Canopy’s cosponsor teams are a critical part of helping new clients acclimate to their new home and lifestyle. They are like training wheels for life in America, here to help clients before they go off on their own. Monga’s cosponsor team, which was comprised completely of volunteers (as all are), were the first people his family met in the U.S. outside of Canopy NWA staff. They were the originators of his current day “pay it forward” philosophy. They showed him the importance of helping others just because you can, not because you expect anything in return.
When Monga struggled with English, multilingual members of his cosponsor team would communicate to him in Swahili and French. When he needed help with transportation or navigating his new home, available cosponsors would help in whatever ways they were able. Monga pays those gifts forward today— when Canopy is in need of French or Swahili translation, Monga is one of the first people to offer to help; when members of his African or refugee community are in need of transportation or advice, they know exactly who to go to. Monga has become an essential part of the resettlement and integration experience for Canopy clients. We honestly don’t know what we would do without him.
Monga especially enjoys giving driving lessons. After passing the written driver’s test on his own only a few months after arriving to America, Canopy volunteer Brad Smith offered to give Monga driving lessons in his UTV on his farm. Again, Monga took note and paid it forward.
Housekeeping at the Chancellor hotel was Monga’s first job in America. The job was good because he could ride the bus to and from work; however, he aspired to earn higher wages. After earning his driver’s license, he got a job at George’s Chicken in Springdale. He started out in chicken processing— an admittedly unglamorous job, but one that many immigrants take to pay bills while they improve their skills outside of work. Over time, Monga proved himself to be an essential part of the African community at George’s; providing transportation, translation, and guidance as the NWA refugee community grew. Eventually, he started working in HR at George’s, acting as a liaison for the Swahili and French-speaking employees at the company— again proving the crucial role he plays in refugee integration.
Fast forward to September 2020— Monga is pursuing another dream. With the help of Khalid, Canopy’s Director of Employment and Integration, Monga has just received his HVAC (heating, ventilation, and air conditioning) certification in the midst of a pandemic while working full time. He continues to impress; however, he never forgets those who have helped him along the way.
Khalid is on the Employment team at Canopy and leads our integration and career advancement efforts. Without Khalid, Monga never would have known that technical school was a viable option. After approaching Monga about the possibility of CNA certification, which several Canopy clients had pursued, Khalid and Monga decided that HVAC certification would be more Monga’s speed.
In the future, Monga sees himself being his own boss. He doesn’t plan to work in HVAC forever, but it’s his first foot in the door of living the life he sees for himself. And even if he does remain in the HVAC or maintenance field, he finds motivation in knowing that he can one day run his own company— probably providing practice and experience to others, and probably paying it forward.
So, when you hear us mention our Integration Support Services…that is what we are talking about.
“Khalid helped me get into Northwest Technical Institute. I’m done with my class, and now I need more experience and practice. I am looking for jobs now to start getting experience. Right now it is hard. I will call my HVAC teacher to help with that.”Monga (left) with his HVAC certification and Khalid (right).
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