Five projects focus on resettlement and social adjustment services for Karen refugees

EAGAN, Minn. (June 21, 2010) — The Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota Foundation awarded $518,500 in grants to nonprofit organizations statewide in support of 16 projects that address the mental health and social adjustment of refugees and immigrants, including Karen and Burmese refugees, among the newest communities in Minnesota. The Foundation has awarded a total of $851,000 to date in 2010.           

The Karen are an ethnic group from Burma (now called Myanmar). There are approximately 30,000 Karen in the United States, with 2,500 in Minnesota. The country has been under military rule since 1962, and many residents have been victimized and uprooted in Burma. Often families have experienced long stays in refugee camps in Thailand.           

“We’re pleased to be able to help support the development of culturally appropriate services for newcomers who are eager to build healthy and productive lives in Minnesota,” said Foundation Vice President Joan Cleary. “Our state is fortunate to have some of the largest and most comprehensive programs in the country for helping people recover from war and trauma, as well as newer organizations with specific knowledge of the Karen culture.”           

Grants were awarded to the following organizations whose work includes the growing Karen community:

Amherst H. Wilder Foundation, St. Paul, $40,000 to increase access to culturally appropriate mental health services in the Twin Cities metro area through the use of a Karen mental health practitioner and expand the new Clinical Training Institute for staff from immigrant organizations to pursue careers in both children’s and adult mental health services.

Catholic Charities, St. Paul and Minneapolis, $10,000 for a peer mentorship training project for newly arriving refugees to help build strong social networks that promote support and resilience

Center for Victims of Torture, Minneapolis, $50,000 for the Partnership in Healing project to pilot a program to ensure that incoming refugees are screened for mental health issues and connected with appropriate healing services

Karen Organization of Minnesota, St. Paul, $10,000 to develop this mutual assistance association formed in 2007 that provides resettlement and adjustment services for Karen and Burmese refugees

Vietnamese Social Services of Minnesota, St. Paul, $40,000 for a Karen community health worker

Eleven additional grants were awarded under the initiative “Healthy Together: Creating Community with New Americans.” Healthy Together fosters civic engagement involving immigrants and the broader community, helps strengthen immigrant-led organizations and promotes the mental health and social adjustment of new Americans.

Visit Grantees for a full listing of grants.

Media contact:
Julie Lee
Program Communications Consultant
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota Foundation
(651) 662-6574

The Blue Cross Foundation is the state’s largest grantmaking foundation to exclusively dedicate its assets to improving health in Minnesota, awarding more than $25 million since it was established in 1986. The Foundation’s purpose is to look beyond health care today for ideas that create healthier communities tomorrow, through a focus on key social, economic and environmental factors that determine health, to improve community health long-term and close the health gap that affects many Minnesotans.