Fulton-El Camino Recreation and Park District Continues to
Welcome Resettled Refugees from Around the World
(scroll down for video)
With 100,000 Ukrainian refugees coming to the United States, and the Sacramento Bee reporting that many of these refugees are on their way to Sacramento, the Fulton-El Camino Recreation & Parks District (FEC) is ready to leverage its experience with Afghan resettled refugees to help these new refugees fleeing an invasion in their homeland.
For the past year FEC has been working with partners to assist Afghan refugees fleeing Taliban-ruled Afghanistan by guiding them to local service providers and creating a place of safety, comfort and community as they rebuild their lives.
“These refugees have had to leave everything behind. They now have to adjust to new circumstances and find their own sense of belonging in a vastly different cultural landscape.” said Emily Ballus, FEC General Manager. “Since parks support wellbeing and social connection generally, our parks are one of the few places refugee communities can find respite. As a natural gathering hub, we have actively partnered with the International Rescue Committee, the State Legislature, social service providers, and other special districts to intentionally reach immigrant arrivals and help them connect to their new home.
“Ram Khatiwoda knows the refugee experience first-hand. He immigrated to the U.S. after living 17 years in a Bhutanese refugee camp in Nepal as he was forced out of his native country of Bhutan. He now works with the International Rescue Committee in partnership with FEC to help Afghans create a new life here. Together they’ve created a community garden, helping Afghans learn to farm, and operate a farmers’ market in a district park.
“One of the most beautiful things I see is when I come to the park in the evening and the families are gathered here, children are playing – so happy and so blossoming,” Khatiwoda says. “Together we’re growing this community and we have a vision for the future.”
Assemblyman Ken Cooley (D-Rancho Cordova) has been a key partner in helping FEC move forward on a broader vision to the area’s highly diverse population. He secured state funding for the park district to build a new community center to assist new Afghan arrivals and other resettled refugees and recently led a bipartisan effort in the Assembly to contact President Biden, urging him to adopt policies to welcome displaced Ukrainians.
“The Arden Arcade area has a long history of being a very welcoming community to people from around the globe, who’ve had to have a new start in life,” Assemblyman Cooley said. “That was true 20 years ago, and remains very true today.”
FEC is one of more than 2,000 special districts across the state that serve the needs of all 40 million Californians at some level. Collectively they provide water, sanitation, fire protection healthcare, electricity, port and harbor, resource conservation, library, cemetery, and other specialized community services throughout California. Nearly 60 percent of these local agencies provide specialized services to disadvantaged communities. More information is available at the California Special Districts Association Website.
# # #
#FeatureNews
#AdvocacyNews
See the video here: