Page 1 Page 2 Page 3 Page 4 Page 5 Page 6 Page 7 Page 8 Page 9 Page 10 Page 11 Page 12 Page 13 Page 14 Page 15 Page 16 Page 17 Page 18 Page 19 Page 20 Page 21 Page 22 Page 23 Page 24 Page 25 Page 26 Page 27 Page 28 Page 29 Page 30 Page 31 Page 32 Page 33 Page 34 Page 35 Page 36 Page 37 Page 38 Page 39 Page 40 Page 41 Page 42 Page 43 Page 44 Page 45 Page 46 Page 47 Page 48 Page 49 Page 50 Page 51 Page 52 Page 53 Page 54 Page 55 Page 56 Page 57 Page 58 Page 59 Page 60 Page 61 Page 62 Page 63 Page 64 Page 65 Page 66 Page 67 Page 68 Page 69 Page 70 Page 71 Page 72 Page 73 Page 74 Page 75 Page 76 Page 77 Page 78 Page 79 Page 80 Page 81 Page 82 Page 83 Page 84 Page 85 Page 86 Page 87 Page 88 Page 89 Page 90 Page 91 Page 92 Page 93 Page 94 Page 95 Page 96 Page 97 Page 98 Page 99 Page 100 Page 101 Page 102 Page 103 Page 104 Page 105 Page 106 Page 107 Page 108 Page 109 Page 110 Page 111 Page 112 Page 113 Page 114 Page 115 Page 116 Page 117 Page 118 Page 119 Page 12043 connect 2016 | “Because of the war in Somalia I had to flee in 2003. My daughter and I were separated and she made her way to a refugee camp in Kenya with her grandmother. I was finally able to find a phone number and reach them to confirm they had made it! But then her grandmother died and my daughter was alone in the refugee camp. She was 16. I came here to Nasc and asked for help. I told them everything about my story and they welcomed me. Coming here to Nasc, I have met other women going through what I am going through. We come out, we talk, and we feel free. Starting a new life is very hard. You don’t know what will happen tomorrow. You don’t know what letter may come for you. Nasc worked very hard to help me. They helped me with the legal forms to bring my daughter here. I don’t know how to thank them enough. After all these years? She arrives tomorrow! I will see my daughter tomorrow.” In April of 2016, Raja was reunited with her daughter Khadija after 12 years apart due to the war in Somalia. “I came to Cork from Ghana when I was 17. I didn’t know anything about Ireland. It was like living in darkness. I could not workorcontribute.Itwasscary.WhereamIgoing?What’sgoingto happen next? For me, at that time, I was kind of broken. I felt like giving up. I heard about Nasc. What surprised me was everyone herewassmiling!Theyactuallytalkedtomeaboutmyoptions.They explained my rights and how I could attend school. In a million years I could not have dreamed I could go to school. Education had seemed so far away. Claire and Fiona here at Nasc really helped and encouraged me. Later, when the school said ‘please bring your parent’ I would bring Fiona or Claire! I had stopped going to school in Ghana so there had been a break in my education. But Nasc made sure I had extra classes after school to keep me going. It is difficult to express how much I have benefitted. Emotionally it has also changed me. My position about life has changed. I once felt like everybody was bad. That the world was not a place you could enjoy. The kindness of Nasc has shown me the kindness of people. Now I can give something back.” Bibli completed his degree with honors at the Cork Institute of Technology in structural engineering. A FAMILY REUNITED Raja’s story A CHANCE TO GIVE BACK Bibli’s story l l