Resettlement workers found no roadblocks to bringing refugees to Charleston during a day of meetings with various community stakeholders on Friday.
The West Virginia Interfaith Refugee Ministry, a group that started to create greater understanding of the plight of Syrian refugees, is working to turn Charleston into one of the Episcopal Migration Ministry's "resettlement communities." The ministry has 30 of those communities in cities throughout the United States.
Jeffrey Hawks, a consultant for Episcopal Migration Ministries, and Allison Duvall, an employee of the resettlement agency, were in town this week to learn more about Charleston because the ministry is considering establishing an agency that would assist refugees in moving to the area.
Friday, they had a full day of meetings planned with people whose support is crucial to the effort, including school board representatives, police, city officials, a health care provider and social services workers.
Their goal was to make sure no one opposed the effort because refugee resettlement can be a contentious issue.
And while some people - who have voiced their opinions with phone calls and social media comments - are opposed to the potential plan, which would include resettling approximately 100 to 150 refugees each year in Charleston, organizers found no resistance on Friday.
In fact, some of the people organizers met with addressed some of the very concerns opponents have about resettling refugees. For instance, some opponents say refugees will take jobs from West Virginians.
Karl Brack, senior vice-president of human resources and employee engagement for Columbia Pipeline, said, "This isn't an either-or situation."
Organizers met Friday morning with Brack to talk about job opportunities for refugees. During the meeting, Hawks played devil's advocate and asked what Brack would say to those who argue available jobs in the state should go to West Virginians.
"We can accommodate that, and we can accommodate this," Brack said.
The pipeline company has hired approximately 150 to 200 people over the last few years, Brack said, although he said some of the new hires were due to retirements. The company currently is looking for about 25 technicians.
During the meeting, he told employers about struggles to find West Virginians with the appropriate skills.
Hawks told Brack that most of the refugees would be better suited for entry-level manual labor positions, but others would be highly-trained.
"The minute they get here, they're eligible to work legally," he said, adding that their education levels would be as "diverse as the American population in a lot of ways."
Organizers also met with Charleston Police Chief Brent Webster.
"I don't have any immediate concerns," Webster said. "I've got to remain apolitical."
West Virginia Health Right also has no problems, said Dr. Greg Clarke, a volunteer and board member.
"This would be a new realm for them, but there is positive interest," he said.
Representatives from Kanawha schools and Covenant House also expressed no concern. City council members canceled the meeting and will reschedule for next week.
Charleston has a good chance of landing one of the agencies.
Wendy Johnson, a spokeswoman for Episcopal Migration Ministries, said Friday, "I don't know that there is another city really on the radar as much as Charleston is."
"They're inviting us into the process," she said. "They've done all the organizing there locally. ... I think in most cases, that's what a national resettlement agency is looking for in a local partner, the initiative at the ground level, because ultimately, as a national agency, we're not doing the day to day work. Folks in the community are. It's critical the community sees this as an asset."
Reach Erin Beck at
304-348-5163 or follow
@erinbeckwv on Twitter.