CRIS Volunteer Spotlight | Kelly

Sometimes, welcome looks like a friendly weekly chat.

A year ago, Kelly McNicholas was connected with a family resettled by CRIS from Afghanistan. She began making weekly visits to their home to teach them English. What started as slow, sometimes difficult conversations has grown into something much more natural.

“When I first started volunteering, it was pretty surface level and really laborious to have a conversation in English, and now it's like we can just fully have a conversation, and I almost forget sometimes that they're not exactly fluent in English,” Kelly said. “So, it's just fun, honestly… They’re just really cool people.”

Over time, Kelly has been able to see her impact firsthand—not just in language skills, but in confidence and connection. And she’s quick to point out that the learning goes both ways.

Before volunteering, Kelly hadn’t fully realized how little support many newcomers receive from the government after arriving in the United States. That gap is where CRIS steps in—something Kelly says makes volunteering feel all the more important.

“I think that it's a really good reason to volunteer for an organization like this, because you make an immediate and super evident impact on your neighbors,” Kelly said. 

Sometimes, welcome looks like helping someone learn a new language.

Sometimes, it looks like showing up week after week.

And sometimes, it looks like simply building a friendship.