Mission

Danbury Area Refugee Assistance (DARA) is a nonprofit organization that resettles refugee families, providing advocacy and support as they work toward self-sufficiency to become productive members of our community.

What We Do

DARA's work in refugee resettlement

Initially, DARA assists refugee families for 4 to 6 months while they establish themselves with jobs, enroll in school, and become familiar with life in America. With the help of Integrated Refugee & Immigrant Services (IRIS), DARA cosponsors these refugee families as they acclimate and acculturate to a new life and country. What sets DARA apart from the other IRIS-approved groups in Connecticut is that to date, we are the only unaffiliated group in our state; DARA has no social organization or congregation providing financial backing or support. The goal of cosponsorship is to help each family in the short term as they get used to their new lives, and to also empower them with the tools -- both financial and social -- to become self-sufficient within half a year.

The long-term stage of resettlement is an ongoing commitment. DARA will be a part of these families' lives well into the future, not just in helping them in the short term. The ultimate goal of resettlement is to help families become part of our community as full, contributing members of American society. This commitment is DARA's way of investing in the viability our country and in the health, safety, and well-being of people who have endured violence, intolerance, and upheaval the likes of which most of us will never experience.