Local Nonprofit Helps New Americans Succeed

The International Institute of Southwest Missouri has spent more than a decade helping refugees and documented immigrants build new lives across the Ozarks, and Executive Director Jake Gaugert says the work is about much more than meeting people at the airport.

"Our goal is to help people move from being strangers to becoming neighbors," Gaugert said.

The organization, often called IISMO, helps refugees and documented immigrants settle into communities throughout southwest Missouri. Its service area stretches well beyond Springfield, reaching communities such as Bolivar, Buffalo, Lebanon, West Plains, Branson, Monett, and many others.

Founded in 2013 as part of the International Institute of St. Louis, the Springfield office was created after a growing number of refugee families relocated to the area through secondary migration. Since then, the organization has welcomed more than 1,400 new arrivals from 42 countries.

Gaugert said the nonprofit helps families during their first months in the United States by meeting them at the airport, finding housing, arranging medical appointments, and connecting them with jobs, schools, and English language resources. Support can continue for up to five years, although many families become independent much sooner.

"We want to work ourselves out of a job," he said. "The goal is to help people get established so they no longer need us."

Volunteers are a big part of that effort. Community members help furnish homes, tutor English, provide transportation, assist with job networking, and simply become friendly faces for families adjusting to a new country.

Furniture and household donations are also important. Gaugert said every donated item helps stretch the limited funds available to families as they begin their new lives.

Many newcomers eventually purchase homes, start businesses, or work in agriculture and manufacturing throughout southwest Missouri, contributing to the communities they now call home.

More information about volunteering or donating is available through the International Institute of Southwest Missouri's website at www.iismo.org.