In 2024
Since 1988
Refugees welcomed and befriended*
Volunteers involved*
Individuals trained about refugees
*These numbers reflect connections between refugees and volunteers through Exodus programs.
Some individuals may participate in programs more than once per year and are counted for each program they participate in.
Home countries of refugees we've welcomed in Chicagoland
Afghanistan
Albania
Armenia
Bhutan
Bosnia
Burma
Burundi
Cameroon
CAR
Chad
Colombia
Congo
Cuba
DRC
Djibouti
Eritrea
Ethiopia
The Gambia
Ghana
Guatemala
Guinea
Haiti
Iran
Iraq
Ivory Coast
Kosovo
Kyrgyzstan
Liberia
Macedonia
Nauru
Nicaragua
Nigeria
Pakistan
Peru
Russia
Rwanda
Senegal
Sierra Leone
Somalia
Sri Lanka
Sudan
Syria
Togo
Turkey
Uganda
Ukraine
Venezuela
Vietnam
Yemen
Yugoslavia
Our Partners
219
Churches
358
Prayer Partners
27
Community Agencies
Resettlement Agencies
Universities
Catholic Charities
Ethiopian Community Association of Chicago
Heartland Human Care Services
Jewish Children and Family Services
RefugeeOne
World Relief Chicagoland
Ambria
Benedictine
Concordia
College of Dupage
DePaul
Elmhurst
Judson
Lewis
Loyola
Moody
North Park
Northeastern
Northwestern
Trinity International
Wheaton
Impact Stories
Wahidah: A Country to Call Home
Wahidah was born in Burma, but was not recognized as a citizen of that country because she is Rohingya, a highly persecuted ethnic, religious and linguistic minority. Intense persecution in Burma led Wahidah’s family to flee their home.
Isaias: Welcomed Into a Family
Even when they are fleeing for their very lives, it can be heart-wrenching for refugees to leave their homeland. Isaias, for example, worked as a teacher in his home country of Eritrea. However, Eritrea is a totalitarian regime, known for widespread torture and forced military conscription.
Cyrus: From Strangers to Friends
When he was just a young teen, Cyrus and his parents fled a violent civil war in their home country of Central African Republic. They escaped with their lives to a refugee camp in nearby Chad. There Cyrus met Rose, another young refugee. She even spoke the same tribal language as Cyrus.
Sardar: God's Good Plan
Before the Taliban gained power in Afghanistan, Sardar was a doctor with a thriving medical practice. He and his family were living a good life. But everything changed when the Taliban began targeting professionals, including doctors. A colleague of Sardar’s was brutally murdered at the clinic where he worked.