The IAFR Blog

“I don't like you," Dio declared in her broken English. Dio and her siblings were refugee kids in an afterschool program at which Sharon volunteered in Atlanta.

You don't have to like me.

New to refugee work and frustrated by her inability to communicate well enough to understand where her students were coming from, Sharon tried to bring order to her classroom.

"You don't have to like me." she told Dio firmly, "Just sit down, and we'll do your homework."

Taking time to listen and understand

Later that day, Sharon asked Dio if she could visit her family in their home. If she could understand their story, perhaps she could help these children adjust better.

"Come on a Sunday. Our parents don't work that day." Dio invited.

The first Sunday Sharon visited, the family shared their story. Nestorine, Dio's mother, welcomed her guest warmly but spoke no English. She answered questions in Kaba. Pierrette, Nestorine's oldest daughter, translated with her limited English.

Everything is hard, but we are grateful to God for being safe.

"We come from the Central African Republic. We fled to Cameroon. We were later resettled here.

We found work in a chicken factory because we do not need to speak English there.

Everything is hard because we need to speak English and don't know how yet.

But we are grateful to God for being safe."

This visit planted the seed of a long and beautiful friendship.

Reciprocity - Mutual Blessing

Sharon visited Nestorine frequently, helping her sort mail and navigate legal forms. In return, Nestorine checked in on Sharon when she was sick, fed her nourishing food, and welcomed her wholeheartedly into the happy, busy life of the family.

Sharon, who had arrived in the States from the Philippines in 2011, found community with Nestorine's family even as she supported them in adjusting to their new world in Atlanta.

Helping the family navigate their new world

As the kids learned to speak English more fluently, they adjusted and flourished.

Intelligent, responsible, and fun-loving, they now share a special bond with their teacher, who has become their mother's best friend.

When she struggles to help her children navigate a cultural challenge or needs an outside voice to reason with her kids, Nestorine calls Sharon. "Talk to your children," she says. "They need you to help them."

In 2019 the Barge family purchased a home. Sharon helped with the legal paperwork and contracts.

Last year, while waiting for her green card, the family welcomed Sharon to stay with them until it arrived.

They are now helping others.

Sharon taught Pierrette and her family how to help other new arrivals navigate the challenges of resettlement. The family is known for their generosity as they give back to their community.

God intersected our lives.

"I'm grateful that God intersected our lives," Sharon says. "They are so generous as a family. And it's a joy to be like a second mother to the kids. I don't have kids, and I'm not married. To be trusted that much is such an enormous honor."

She pauses, laughing. "And we will always look back to where it started with Dio complaining that she doesn't like me. Now here we are with more than seven years of friendship."

CLICK HERE to learn more about the ministry in Atlanta

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*Sharon Tonzo serves as IAFR Ministry Leader in Atlanta.