What Guides Us
To empower refugees and immigrants in Memphis, TN by offering high-quality, tailored programming that encourages, educates, and equips individuals, families, and the community. We walk alongside our new neighbors as they integrate into American culture and work to achieve their personal and professional goals.
Vision
A united, prosperous, and well-acclimated newcomer community who have achieved self-actualization in creating new homes away from home in Memphis, TN.
Values
Community, Collaboration, Diversity, Inclusion, Self-representation, and Self-sufficiency
Every Dollar Helps!
Gifts and contributions are important in funding our mission.
We could not do what we do without donors like YOU!
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Who We Are
Our Staff
REP is a small but diverse team of native Memphians, refugees, and immigrants from different racial, cultural, generational, and socio-economic backgrounds. We bring a variety of perspectives, professional skills, and life experiences to our work.
Our Participants
REP serves any and all interested refugees and immigrants living in and around Memphis, TN. Our participants span from infants to elders and come from over 20 different cultures. Currently, REP serves approximately 500 individuals comprising 230 families.
Our Community
REP thrives in the Binghampton neighborhood of Memphis, TN. Binghampton is a diverse, dynamic, and collaborative community of neighbors that recently celebrated its 100th anniversary.
What We Do
For Youth
REP is committed to helping young newcomers achieve their dreams. We support youth through after-school and summer enrichment programming, mentorship, recreation, cultural engagement and integration, college and career readiness, and more.
For Adults
Starting over in a new country, new culture, and new language is a formidable process. REP supports adult newcomers on this journey with ESOL classes, digital literacy training, and citizenship preparedness support.
For The Community
We promote cultural integration through a variety of programs and services, including: advocacy; support navigating medical, legal, employment, and social service networks; translation and interpretation; targeted workshops; community forums; nursery and pre-K programs; and more.
Who We Serve
Resettled Refugees:
have fled their homelands and gained legal residency in the US because of well-founded fears of persecution and/or death, typically based on their race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group.
Immigrants:
come to live permanently in the US from another country. REP primarily serves immigrants who relocated for humanitarian reasons, rather than family- or employment-based reasons.
Asylees:
also live under threat of persecution or death as refugees, but are already present in the United States or seek admission at a port of entry rather than a host country.
How We Started
Grassroots Momentum
REP began in 2002 as a small refugee and volunteer-led effort serving 12 children. In 2007, we joined Memphis Leadership Foundation as an operational ministry. In 2019, REP became an independent nonprofit organization with a staff of 10 serving over 500 refugees and immigrants of all ages and backgrounds.
Ruth Lomo
Ruth’s journey to Memphis began in 1993 when she and her young children fled war in Sudan. After years in Kukuma refugee camp, she was allowed to resettle in Memphis, where she worked hard to learn English and provide for her family. In 2002, she and a group of volunteers started the small after-school program that grew into REP. Ruth continues to offer guidance and support to both REP and local newcomer community.
Camela Echols Blackmon
Cam is a proud Memphian with a heart for the city. Cam met Ruth in 2002 when she provided the space for the after-school program at United Methodist Neighborhood Centers where she served as Social Services Director. Cam quickly became a regular volunteer and was so moved by the refugee community’s determination that she left her job in 2007 to help create REP.
