Hope & Sesame

10/19/2018

In response to the many inquiries we've received from people wondering how to get involved with our work, we've created a very short Volunteer Interest sign-up. No commitment at all--just a place to start if you want to figure out how you might support refugees in Austin. We are grateful for and excited about your interest!

Hello! We're overwhelmed by the energy and interest surrounding our community dinners, our new English conversation program for women only ("Ladies, Let's Talk"), and our mentor program currently in development ("Sesame Seeds"). The first thing you should know is that no commitment is attached to th...

10/09/2018

We are all still aglow from last week's very special "Taste of Syrian & Iraqi Cuisine," prepared so lovingly and expertly by Chefs Intisar, Hayat, Abeer & Maryam. The whole evening was wonderful, and exciting things are happening as a result! Stay tuned, and take a peek at our photos from the event if you want to know what "delicious" looks like! https://hopeandsesame.org/gallery

09/27/2018

"A Taste of Syrian & Iraqi Cuisine" sold out earlier this week, but keep an eye out on our FaceBook page and our website for photos from the event, and for the announcement of our next dinner. Hope to see you across the table soon!

Hope & Sesame is a Texas non-profit whose mission is to help welcome refugee newcomers to Austin and integrate them into our community.

09/24/2018

We still have a few tickets left, but sales close Wednesday evening at 8pm. Hope to see you there!

Hope & Sesame, a local Texas non-profit and 501(c)(3) public charity, works to resettle refugee women and their families in Austin, and to help them become part of our community. ...

04/11/2018

Very pleased to report that the first session of "Ladies, Let's Talk" (our pilot program of conversational English for women only) had a terrific turn-out and was enthusiastically praised by volunteers and participants alike! We are excited for our next session.

03/06/2018

UPDATE 3/22/18: All "Ladies, Let's Talk" sessions EXCEPT April 20 will meet at the North Austin YMCA, 1000 W. Rundberg Ln. April 20 meeting location will be announced in class.

APPLICATION FORM now online. Link in comments below.

We're trying something new! In April 2018, Hope & Sesame will field-test a Conversation Club model for refugee women who have just enough English to start to work on simple conversation, one-on-one. We plan to meet at 11:00 a.m. each Friday in April, location TBD. Once we've identified the participants, we intend to locate the meetings so that participants can ride the bus or walk (not too far) to get there. No child care will be available, so participants cannot bring children with them. We're looking for women who can commit to attend all of those four dates. If you know of candidates who meet all these criteria, please private message Julie Van De Zande or email [email protected]. We are also testing FaceBook's option to "Post in another language"--if you notice a translation error, we'd love to hear about it! The following link will take you to a PDF you can share if you wish: https://files.acrobat.com/a/preview/ed4f5fc8-e530-44ef-82af-d600510bfe05

12/04/2017

We just posted some new photos on www.HopeAndSesame.org from our last dinner, A Taste of Afghan Cuisine, on November 12. It. Was. Delicious. Thanks to our volunteers and guests, and to our lovely and talented photographer, Mouton!

10/11/2017

We had another wonderful day with Uliya and her daughter, laughing and learning how to make these incredibly delicious dumplings!

09/20/2017

Wonderful! We will participate officially next year--for now, all of us can make every week a "Welcoming Week." Find someone new in your community to invite for coffee. And watch for Hope & Sesame's next dinner event!

09/18/2017

09/18/2017

09/18/2017