27 Sep Amazing Athletes Helping the Refugee Enrichment and Development Association

Saturday, September 16th, 2017 Amazing Athletes of Northern Sacramento volunteered to share their time in assisting refugee families at a new organization called REDA. REDA, also known as, Refugee Enrichment and Development Association is a community center that helps Syrian, Iraqi, and Afghani refugees with everyday life from translating documents to the translation of speech, and advocating for them at medical and service appointments, and applying for jobs. REDA was started as a group of people who have been doing all these things on their own for the past 2 years and decided to come together and create the organization. It is solely built on donations and volunteers donating their own time.

Ala and Nihayeh Tayeh, owners of Amazing Athletes of Northern Sacramento, said that they were contacted by one of the organizers who also happened to be their nephew to join in this event.  At the grand opening over 150 different families came to the center to have medical evaluations along with dental services. At the opening Coach Nihayeh stated that most if not all families at this event spoke Arabic and was happy to help translate between the families and the medical staff. Amazing Athlete’s of Northern Sacramento volunteered their time to entertain the children, while their parents had the chance to get the medical attention they needed due to the language barrier and transportation issues. It definitely impacted the refugee community to see so many people dedicated to helping them adjust to a new safe life here in Sacramento.

As for the children, they were all very respectful, and thankful to see people who were willing to welcome to them. They were very familiar with Soccer, or as they called it Futball, and lacrosse.  The other sports, on the other hand, were all new to them. “It was great to see others perspective of life, that was so different than ours here, definitely a humbling moment!” said Coach Nihayeh. The children even taught us new ways to use the lacrosse stick!”

Click to find out more about Amazing Athletes of Northern Sacramento.