Only Connect, or How to Help a Refugee
John Duberg
At the end of March 2016, a friend, Betty Symington, sent me a notice for a welcome dinner for several families of Syrian refugees at a church in East Baltimore. Having read countless wrenching stories about the Syrian war and the minimal effort this country has made to help refugees, I decided to attend if only to demonstrate that some Americans care. On April 2, I was one of a hundred or more in the basement hall of Breath of God Lutheran Church near Patterson Park.
After the meal, several of the Syrian men spoke with the help of an interpreter from the Syrian-American Council. One of them, Yahya, explained that he had been a butcher for seventeen years before leaving Homs, a town that has been particularly devastated by the war. As the event closed, I mentioned to the interpreter that I knew a family that owned a meat processing plant. The interpreter, Omar Hossino, gave me his card.
Within a few weeks, Yahya was employed at Old Line Custom Meat Company, one of the largest meat processing companies in Maryland with roots that go back a century and a half. A couple of weeks after Yahya started work, Bill Ruppersberger, Jr., the president of the company, sent me a note that Yahya has proven to be a hard working employee. As a Muslim, he is familiar with halal methods of meat processing, a bonus to the company that has Islamic customers. Needless to say, language is a problem. Nevertheless, Mr. Ruppersberger felt Yahya “could end up being one of our more valuable employees given time….All in all, I couldn't be more pleased and hope we have a long relationship together.”
I have spent a fair amount of time trying to unbundle this remarkable and wonderful chain of events. Clearly, sheer luck or circumstance played a part. At least as important, however, is a long, serendipitous set of relationships that remind me of E. M. Forster’s imperative: “only connect the passion and the prose, and both will be exalted.”
The fact that I knew about the meal for the Syrians at all, I owe to my son and many hours spent on the sidelines of soccer and lacrosse games at Park School where one of his teammates and classmates was Betty Symington’s son. Among the inevitable outcomes of spending hours and hours with Betty and other team parents are friendships and some understanding of what others do. Betty works with refugees and asylum seekers as director of ERICA - Episcopal Refugee and Immigrant Center Alliance.
Knowing the Ruppersberger family I can attribute to my wife, a lifelong Lutheran who was instrumental in our family becoming members of Ascension Lutheran Church in Towson where Bill Ruppersberger, Sr., father of the current president of Old Line Custom Meat Company, has been a longtime member. While I was vaguely familiar with the knowledge that the Ruppersberger family owned a meat processing plant, this became a more salient piece of information several years ago.
For the past fifteen years or so, I have helped out at Tuerk House, a drug treatment facility in West Baltimore. My original link to Tuerk House was through my daughter who from kindergarten through high school had a classmate whose father was the director of Tuerk House for many years. One day, during my commute to Tuerk House, I turned south on Pennsylvania Avenue from Fulton Avenue and soon passed an old building on the left with a sign “Geo. G. Ruppersberger & Sons, Inc.” When next I saw Bill, Sr. at church I asked him if this was connected to the family business. He assured me it was and explained that, as a young man, he lived in the neighborhood and walked to work and that later he and his brother ran the company for many years as the fourth generation of Ruppersberger owners. This experience helped to imprint the meat processing business in my memory.
When I heard that Yahya was an experienced butcher, the possibility that the Ruppersbergers might be able to help came immediately to mind. The Sunday after the meal with the Syrians, I saw Bill, Sr. at church and asked if there was any possibility that Yahya might find work at the family business. Bill’s immediate response was to say that the company was often looking for skilled workers and that, because he still goes to the plant on Fridays, he would speak with his son.
For some days there was a flurry of communication and activity, involving Yahya, Omar - the interpreter, Sue Hartman - the church secretary at Ascension, and both father and son Ruppersberger, about how to assemble a resume for Yahya and deliver it to Bill, Jr. Eventually, Omar was able to speak directly with Bill, Jr., and they decided it made the most sense for the three to just meet in person. This meeting took place on April 15, not quite two weeks after the meal with the Syrian families.
On the evening of the 15th, Omar sent an email to me, Betty, and Sue Hartman letting us know that Yahya would start work on Monday, April 18. It was one of the most pleasing messages I have ever read. More remarkable still was Bill, Jr.’s message, a month later, with his praise for Yahya’s work and hopes for a long term relationship. Recently, he sent another email with the news that a friend of Yayha will soon be interviewing at the company, noting that “this whole experience has been good for the company and hopefully for Yahya as well.”
From hearing the stories of the Syrians to Yahya showing up for his first day of work – this all took place in two weeks and two days. Bill Ruppersberger, Jr. and Old Line Custom Meat Company deserve enormous credit for their willingness to offer Yahya a job.
The linkages described above continue to circle around and deepen relationships. My experience with Tuerk House also led to more connections with Betty whose work with immigrants and refugees is based at the Episcopal Cathedral of the Incarnation, where Tuerk House board meetings used to be held. As both organizations work with marginalized people, Betty and I meet occasionally to discuss common issues. More recently I was part of a group working with Betty on organizational development for ERICA, which was how the invitation to the dinner first came about.
As I reflect on what was a very quick series of events, I am repeatedly struck by the interplay of relationships and luck that made much of this possible, that helped give a man, halfway around the world from his home, a chance to work at his trade as he rebuilds a life ravaged by war.
The lesson for how to help a refugee seems to be — stay connected.
After the meal, several of the Syrian men spoke with the help of an interpreter from the Syrian-American Council. One of them, Yahya, explained that he had been a butcher for seventeen years before leaving Homs, a town that has been particularly devastated by the war. As the event closed, I mentioned to the interpreter that I knew a family that owned a meat processing plant. The interpreter, Omar Hossino, gave me his card.
Within a few weeks, Yahya was employed at Old Line Custom Meat Company, one of the largest meat processing companies in Maryland with roots that go back a century and a half. A couple of weeks after Yahya started work, Bill Ruppersberger, Jr., the president of the company, sent me a note that Yahya has proven to be a hard working employee. As a Muslim, he is familiar with halal methods of meat processing, a bonus to the company that has Islamic customers. Needless to say, language is a problem. Nevertheless, Mr. Ruppersberger felt Yahya “could end up being one of our more valuable employees given time….All in all, I couldn't be more pleased and hope we have a long relationship together.”
I have spent a fair amount of time trying to unbundle this remarkable and wonderful chain of events. Clearly, sheer luck or circumstance played a part. At least as important, however, is a long, serendipitous set of relationships that remind me of E. M. Forster’s imperative: “only connect the passion and the prose, and both will be exalted.”
The fact that I knew about the meal for the Syrians at all, I owe to my son and many hours spent on the sidelines of soccer and lacrosse games at Park School where one of his teammates and classmates was Betty Symington’s son. Among the inevitable outcomes of spending hours and hours with Betty and other team parents are friendships and some understanding of what others do. Betty works with refugees and asylum seekers as director of ERICA - Episcopal Refugee and Immigrant Center Alliance.
Knowing the Ruppersberger family I can attribute to my wife, a lifelong Lutheran who was instrumental in our family becoming members of Ascension Lutheran Church in Towson where Bill Ruppersberger, Sr., father of the current president of Old Line Custom Meat Company, has been a longtime member. While I was vaguely familiar with the knowledge that the Ruppersberger family owned a meat processing plant, this became a more salient piece of information several years ago.
For the past fifteen years or so, I have helped out at Tuerk House, a drug treatment facility in West Baltimore. My original link to Tuerk House was through my daughter who from kindergarten through high school had a classmate whose father was the director of Tuerk House for many years. One day, during my commute to Tuerk House, I turned south on Pennsylvania Avenue from Fulton Avenue and soon passed an old building on the left with a sign “Geo. G. Ruppersberger & Sons, Inc.” When next I saw Bill, Sr. at church I asked him if this was connected to the family business. He assured me it was and explained that, as a young man, he lived in the neighborhood and walked to work and that later he and his brother ran the company for many years as the fourth generation of Ruppersberger owners. This experience helped to imprint the meat processing business in my memory.
When I heard that Yahya was an experienced butcher, the possibility that the Ruppersbergers might be able to help came immediately to mind. The Sunday after the meal with the Syrians, I saw Bill, Sr. at church and asked if there was any possibility that Yahya might find work at the family business. Bill’s immediate response was to say that the company was often looking for skilled workers and that, because he still goes to the plant on Fridays, he would speak with his son.
For some days there was a flurry of communication and activity, involving Yahya, Omar - the interpreter, Sue Hartman - the church secretary at Ascension, and both father and son Ruppersberger, about how to assemble a resume for Yahya and deliver it to Bill, Jr. Eventually, Omar was able to speak directly with Bill, Jr., and they decided it made the most sense for the three to just meet in person. This meeting took place on April 15, not quite two weeks after the meal with the Syrian families.
On the evening of the 15th, Omar sent an email to me, Betty, and Sue Hartman letting us know that Yahya would start work on Monday, April 18. It was one of the most pleasing messages I have ever read. More remarkable still was Bill, Jr.’s message, a month later, with his praise for Yahya’s work and hopes for a long term relationship. Recently, he sent another email with the news that a friend of Yayha will soon be interviewing at the company, noting that “this whole experience has been good for the company and hopefully for Yahya as well.”
From hearing the stories of the Syrians to Yahya showing up for his first day of work – this all took place in two weeks and two days. Bill Ruppersberger, Jr. and Old Line Custom Meat Company deserve enormous credit for their willingness to offer Yahya a job.
The linkages described above continue to circle around and deepen relationships. My experience with Tuerk House also led to more connections with Betty whose work with immigrants and refugees is based at the Episcopal Cathedral of the Incarnation, where Tuerk House board meetings used to be held. As both organizations work with marginalized people, Betty and I meet occasionally to discuss common issues. More recently I was part of a group working with Betty on organizational development for ERICA, which was how the invitation to the dinner first came about.
As I reflect on what was a very quick series of events, I am repeatedly struck by the interplay of relationships and luck that made much of this possible, that helped give a man, halfway around the world from his home, a chance to work at his trade as he rebuilds a life ravaged by war.
The lesson for how to help a refugee seems to be — stay connected.
