Robert

“As a father, when you can’t provide for your family and your children go to beg on the street, it’s a tough and painful place to be as a parent. The thing that gets to you the most is the worry. You worry constantly, and you search for them on the street, hoping that you find them. I was always hoping that no harm would come to them, and often wondered if I would ever find them. The most important thing that RefugePoint did for my family and I was providing us with food assistance. The next major thing was providing schooling for my children. Now my kids don’t have to beg on the streets for food like they used to. They are in school now, so they are in a safe environment, and their minds are engaged positively.”

When we went to visit Robert at his home, we found him busy preparing breakfast for his family. “Preparing meals for my family is my responsibility too. When I come home and find my wife busy in the house or taking care of the children, I help her whenever I can. We have always worked as a team. Now that we have food to eat, we must prepare at least three meals a day for the family. If we use it well, the food we get from RefugePoint can last us the whole month.”

Robert, a refugee from Congo, arrived in Nairobi in November 2017 with his wife and eight children. Upon arriving in Nairobi, the family lived on the street and survived by begging for food and money. Eventually, the family moved into a tiny single room in an area of Nairobi known as Kangemi. The room served as a cooking area, living room, and sleeping area. At the time that the family began to receive assistance from RefugePoint, they were very close to being evicted, and they still relied on begging to survive. They could barely afford a single meal a day.

At RefugePoint, we assign a social worker to serve as the case manager for each household actively receiving services from RefugePoint. The role of the case manager is a critical component of the support that RefugePoint clients receive and the case managers guide the direction of all services that our clients receive. RefugePoint case managers serve the critical role of building relationships with the family members in each household, understanding their needs, providing information about services, and problem-solving. Each case manager guides the households that they serve towards self-reliance, initially assisted step-by-step with RefugePoint’s core services. Core services include food assistance, rent assistance, counseling, non-food items like mattresses and sheets, and education assistance. RefugePoint social workers treat clients with respect and dignity, allowing for self-determination and offering hope.

“My caseworker Carol walked closely with me. I cannot find the words to thank her. She helped me to think of how I can assist myself with the skills I have, and with the resources I have available. This helped me to improve our family’s living conditions. Carol referred me for counseling, and that really helped me to change my perceptions about my life and my situation,” Robert explained to us.

“There was a time when we had no chair to offer our guests, but now we have a couch for guests to sit on. We used to all live in one small room, but with my daughters getting into their teens, it was becoming a complicated situation for all of us to share that one tiny space. Now we have two rooms, and they can sleep in their own room. Man, we were in a challenging place. We have come a long way as a family from where we were to where we are now.”

In the case of Robert and his family, social work interventions were particularly crucial in restoring household stability and a sense of dignity for the family members.

Having both the client and the social worker spell out the activities each will undertake reinforces the mutual commitment by both the social worker and the client. It also allows for accountability from both sides. In the case of Robert’s household, he and his family have shown high levels of commitment. “I know that I am very skilled, and with the right assistance and opportunities, I can fend for my family. With the burden of covering rent and food lifted, I was able to save enough money from my casual jobs to buy two shaving machines. I am now able to shave clients, which helps me to support my family.”