Karen Cornwell, Sewing Machine Lady

ODFR’s “sewing machine lady” is Karen Cornwell, who for years has been gifting newly arrived refugees, seniors, and low-income individuals with sewing machines via a variety of organizations. “It comes in spurts,” she says. “In the past couple months, working with JSS and ODFR, I think we’ve delivered 20 machines to women from Afghanistan, the […]

ODFR Warehouses: 5 Things You Never Knew

ODFR couldn’t operate without its warehouses: when newcomer families arrive with little notice, ODFR & JSS volunteers collaborate, setting up apartments fast with donated furniture and housewares collected from all over Madison and stored in donated warehouse space. Here are five things you might not know about ODFR’s warehouses!

 Long Road to a Dream Job

In his eloquent appearance on Channel 3000 to promote the 2023 Freeze for Food, Farhan A. shared the eight-year-long road to his dream job as a microbiologist at the University of Wisconsin. Farhan and his family fled Iraq and arrived in Madison in 2014, under auspices of the United Nations International Organization for Migration (IOM) and Madison’s Lutheran Social […]

Afghan Adjustment Act Blocked in Congress

Last year, a bi-partisan bill that has the potential to secure the futures of tens of thousands of Afghan refugees in the U.S. was blocked in Congress. The Afghan Adjustment Act, introduced in August 2022, is designed to create a streamlined path to citizenship for over 75 thousand Afghans who were evacuated to the U.S. […]

Fall/Winter Donation Needs

Looking to donate warm winter clothing? Open Doors for Refugees and JSS Resettlement maintain a supply of winter outerwear that is provided to newcomers when they first arrive in Madison. These donations are vital, as they help our new neighbors during their first Wisconsin winter. The items that are most needed are listed below. We […]

Freeze for Food 2023

The 42nd Annual Freeze for Food is tentatively scheduled to take place on Saturday, March 4, 2023. Join hundreds of racers in an outdoor walk/run to raise money for refugees and food security in the Madison area. More information about the upcoming 5k and 10k races can be found here: https://www.rpcvmadison.org/cpages/freeze-for-food Registration details will be available by […]