By Mel Rubenstein
Contributing Writer
On Feb. 2, I attended the seventh Annual World InterFaith Harmony Assembly at the University United Methodist Church with members of my congregation from Beth Sholom – Chevra Shas. It was amazing to see people of all faiths come together, to pray together, to talk together and to support each other. The theme of the event was, “Love is the Answer.”
That experience motivated me to find a volunteer of InterFaith Works of CNY to be featured in this column. After contacting Daryl Files, the volunteer coordinator, it didn’t take long before I received the recommendation of Judith Fazio as being that volunteer.
Judith, a retired psychiatric social worker, was born in Brooklyn. She earned an associate’s degree in advertising at SUNY Farmingdale and worked for an advertising agency in New York City for four years before moving to Syracuse in 1969. After completing her bachelor’s degree at Empire State College in Syracuse in 1979, she earned her MSW from Syracuse University in 1981.
Over the years in Upstate New York, Judith never forgot her Brooklyn elementary school friends. When she attended her 45th high school reunion in New York City, she and a friend thought it would be wonderful to have a 50th reunion for their P.S. 167 elementary school. Being retired, Judith organized and planned it from her home in Fayetteville. It was held at the Brooklyn Marriot in 2007.
“If it weren’t for computers I couldn’t have done it. It was amazing how I was able to track down people who attended the school such a long time ago and were now spread all over the country,” Judith said.
During her time living in New York City, Judith volunteered and held several positions in the La Leche League — an organization that provides support for breastfeeding mothers. When her two daughters attended a cooperative nursery school in the village of Liverpool, Judith took an active part and held several volunteer positions there as well. Other past volunteer work in Syracuse has been with the National Organization for Women, The Peace Council and Women’s Information Center. In addition, Judith trained and worked as a CONTACT phone counselor.
Judith was introduced to the ESL (English as a second language) class at InterFaith Works and Center for New Americans by her friend and neighbor Lynda, who was a founding member of the group and had been volunteering for several months. She explained that the program helps refugees settle in a place to live, and then teaches them English so they would be more successful in getting a job. In January, Judith began volunteering on Tuesdays and Thursdays to teach them English.
“The refugees come from many countries and range in age from their late teens to their sixties. They are all very sweet and grateful people, and most already know some English,” Judith said. “I am currently teaching two young men, one from Ethiopia, and the other from the Congo. I miss them when they leave to get jobs.”
Since the election, Judith has been very disturbed about the administration in Washington D.C., and their stance on refugees and immigration, and a slew of other things, and said, “I can’t even watch the news!” So, when she heard about a planned women’s march in Seneca Falls to protest these policies, she knew right away that she wanted to participate in it and said it was a wonderful experience. This was her second CNY protest having participated in the 1978 Syracuse march for the E.R.A. (Equal Rights Amendment).
“InterFaith Works’ Center for New Americans provides resettlement and crucial post-resettlement services to help refugee, entrant and asylee families re-establish their lives and overcome the barriers necessary to successful integration in the United States,” Files said. “Since its establishment in 1981, the center has resettled between 400 and 700 refugees annually. It also serves more than 1,500 individuals who have been in the country less than five years. In addition to initial resettlement, post-settlement focuses on employment, literacy, housing and health services to improve the health and well-being of refugees.”
Files added, “Our volunteers are essential to our public/private collaboration with every aspect of our new neighbors and friends becoming part of our community. From setting up apartments, welcoming them at the airport, preparing a hot meal upon arrival, helping with ESL, job readiness classes, cultural orientation, skills and so much more. We all become family.”
Judith said it didn’t take long for President Trump’s policies to affect InterFaith Works of CNY. “We have already lost seven staff members and our funding is in jeopardy,” she said. “The organization is trying to overcome this by lobbying in Albany, and it got a little financial boost from a group of SU students who ran a fundraiser for InterFaith Works at Manley Field House.”
No sooner did I finish the interview with Judith when she told me that Abdul Saboor would be speaking at the United Nations the very next day. Several years ago, Saboor was a refugee from Afghanistan who was resettled by InterFaith Works, before he became their match grant coordinator in its Center for New Americans.
Here is what I found out:
LDS Charities organized an event at the United Nations that brought together Islamic Relief USA, Episcopal Migration Ministries, UNICEF, the State Department and a resettled Afghani refugee as part of the U.N.’s Focus on Faith series. The discussion centered on the role of religious organizations in refugee assistance and resettlement. About 700 people attended.
Saboor said that people stopped by his house to offer help when he first landed confused and marginalized in upstate New York. “I did not know what congregation they belonged to or identified themselves with. I didn’t know which faith they were coming from, and at that point that was not the No. 1 concern on my list,” he said. “But what I did learn by meeting this passionate group of people was that the community is willing to help people in need, and now I take pride in calling them my friends.”
Saboor, a Syracuse University student, said that drove him to volunteer at Interfaith Works to help refugees resettle. “If you begin to see yourself in them and you learn that we’re all refugees in this world, then you’re whole world will change,” he said.
Judith Fazio lives in Fayetteville with her husband. When not teaching refugees English, she enjoys visiting her two granddaughters, photography, hiking, kayaking, birding and writing.
For additional information contact Daryl Files, volunteer and donor relations coordinator, 315-449-3552 ext. 208 or; [email protected]
To recommend someone with a stellar record of volunteering to be featured in this column contact Mel Rubenstein: [email protected] or 682-7162.
