When John’s parents got divorced, his mother could not afford his education and sent him to live with distant relatives in order to make sure he would attend school. But he was abused by the relatives and decided to run away from his temporary home. He wanted to get away as far as possible and wished for nothing but a safe place to live.
He ended up in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and found himself in a very complicated situation. He was happy to start a new life but was very confused and traumatized and longed for contact with his mother. He didn’t have his phone with him and couldn’t remember the mother’s phone number.
“The way REFUNITE’s community leaders care about people they don’t even know has taught me things about life I never thought would be possible.”
John
During a community meeting in John’s new village, one of the members of REFUNITE’s Community Leader Network was approached by a family who’d heard John’s story and knew he was looking to reconnect with his mother back in Kenya. With more than 1 million registered users, REFUNITE is the world’s largest missing persons platform for refugees and displaced people. REFUNITE’s Community Leader Network is a network of more than 4,000 tribal community leaders spread across 100 refugee communities worldwide. With the help of online and offline channels and the power of this community-based peer to peer network, REFUNITE can reach more than 2.4 million people with information.
Determined to help John, the local community leader got in touch with REFUNITE’s central call center team who was able to identify contact details of John’s mother in Kenya, using the reach of the Kenyan tribal leaders who are part of REFUNITE’s network. Confirming identities of son and mother using pictures and other details, REFUNITE was able to reconnect John with his mother again.
“I can have my son in my arms again thanks to REFUNITE.”
John’s mother
In March 2019, John started his travel back to Kenya. REFUNITE’s assisted him all the way back and requested support from other leaders in Uganda and Kenya to ensure he would be sent to his mother’s house and nowhere else. Finally he got reunited with his mother, who was anxiously waiting for him.
“Today, there are no words that can describe the joy I am feeling. I can have my son in my arms again thanks to REFUNITE. I wish the REFUNITE leaders could come to Mata Village one day, so I could receive them and thank them for taking care of my son without asking for anything in return”, John’s mother said.
John adds: “I would also like to become a REFUNITE leader in my village, like the people who helped me while I was in DRC. The way REFUNITE’s community leaders care about people they don’t even know has taught me things about life I never thought would be possible.”
