Tahirih’s Social Services Program Expands to Holistically Help Clients
Imagine you fled the country you were born and raised in. Imagine you sold all your possessions so that your children could escape persecution. You just arrived in a new country to seek protection. It is winter. You have three young children. You barely speak the language. You know no one. You find shelter in a half-constructed building with no heat, no furniture, and no appliances. Your children have no warm coats. You cannot see a doctor. You have no means of transportation. You carry your suitcase on your head, and for hours you and your children walk on foot alongside a highway to get anywhere.
Unfortunately, Grace* does not have to imagine this scenario. Grace and her three children lived it. They fled Nigeria following months of persecution from her husband’s family, who sought to forcibly circumcise her two young daughters. When Grace came to the Tahirih Justice Center she was not only in need of legal protection—she was in desperate need of social services. Prompted by the dire needs of Grace and countless others like her, Tahirih, with support from The William Randolph Hearst Foundation, proudly launched its first ever in-house social services program in July 2005.
Tahirih’s Managing Social Worker, Allison S. Medina, is an enthusiastic advocate and a critical resource to ensuring that the women and girls we serve succeed across all aspects of their lives. Allison addresses basic needs that our clients face on a daily basis, such as access to safe housing, food, medical care and counseling, and language services, among others. She also provides individualized safety planning and crisis intervention, supportive counseling, and referrals for social and medical service needs. In addition, she coordinates client benefits such as job searches and trainings, family law services, and language classes. Allison has opened 158 case management files since taking the helm of Tahirih’s social services program and keeps regular contact with clients to ensure they continue to receive necessary support and encouragement.
Once Tahirih accepts a client, Allison meets with her individually to help assess housing, medical, counseling and other needs and establish that the client has access to basic resources like shelter, food, and clothing. A second aspect of Allison’s job is to build networks and stay connected with the social service landscape to maintain a strong knowledge of available resources. This kind of outreach has helped bring five new doctors into Tahirih’s Pro Bono Medical Network in the past year. Finally, Allison coordinates volunteer service—which included 65 new volunteers over the past year—and supervises social service interns. Her efforts in coordinating volunteer translators and interpreters, among other volunteers, have made it possible to accommodate the nearly 30 languages spoken by Tahirih clients.
Today, through Tahirih’s advocacy, Grace and her children live together in a transitional housing program. Her three young children are going to school. They have a primary care doctor. Grace often volunteers at Tahirih’s offices and has participated in job-training programs. She has a full-time job and drives her own car.
A Baltimore native, Allison joined the Tahirih staff in July 2005. She has a master’s degree in social work from Boston University and has a working knowledge of French. Allison brings an ideal insight to her clients from her experience at the International Institute of Boston, where she held both case management and trauma counseling responsibilities for refugees, asylum seekers, asylees, and undocumented immigrants. Allison also served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Madagascar and worked in a refugee camp in Guinea.
*Name has been changed
