[Read the story - Reclaiming roots: Young Russian Americans find – and preserve – their identity - in English] Профессор…

Omar Muhammad did not seriously consider leaving Iraq until 2008—a full year after terrorists bombed his home. Now he can’t imagine returning to Baghdad.

Under the cover of night, amidst the foliage of unbeaten paths, Peter Magai Bul faced the ever-present dangers of wild animals and poisonous snakes without the comfort of a single blood relative. But neither the dark, nor the predators, nor even the loneliness could compare to the harrowing reality: Death itself had picked up their scent, and was perpetually lurking just behind them in the tall grass they walked through.

Thirty years after leaving Cambodia, Leon Lim still treasures the map that his uncle traced to direct him to safety. Simple blue ink scribbled onto a small piece of notebook parchment led him away from his home city of Siem Reap to seek sanctuary in a Thai refugee camp.

A sponsor will set up an apartment for the family, meet them at the airport, help them learn English, familiarize them with the city, introduce them to Big Macs, and, perhaps most significantly, just be there.

Akol was unaware of complexities that came with obtaining the luxuries he desired in Sudan and Kenya that in the U.S. were the basic staples of daily life.

Read Berivan Doskey’s tale of her first ride on the Underground. It was the scariest journey she ever made – even scarier than when she fled chemical bombardment in Iraq.