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Editor's Note: This year, Welcoming Week takes place September 13-22, 2024.
When my former boss first asked me to lead our Y’s Welcoming Week event in 2023, my heart skipped a beat. The question came on a dreary day in February 2023, about six months into my full-time job at the New American Welcome Center (NAWC), a University YMCA program affiliated with the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The thought of adding Welcoming Week to my developing role as grants coordinator was equally thrilling and terrifying. I recalled the constant hum of activity from previous years—staff darting between events, the chaos of printing and distributing flyers, countless new names and faces, and the buzz of excited conversations filling the air. Despite my hesitations, I said yes.
I ultimately took on the role because I could see that Welcoming Week presented a unique opportunity to synchronize and energize both new and existing efforts toward creating a more inclusive community. I had already seen the value of bridgebuilding at NAWC, and this was a chance to engage in more direct programming while meeting tons of community partners. Though the level of responsibility was intimidating, I knew deep down that the role would offer me opportunities for growth as an organizer, ally, and community member.
Established in 2017, NAWC’s mission is to co-create create a community where immigrants can thrive by providing equitable access to services, economic opportunities, and community integration. Our services include a multilingual helpline, legal aid, and bridgebuilding events, primarily targeting Latine, Francophone, and AAPI communities but open to anyone, regardless of status.These resources are so critical in our area! With over 25,000 immigrants (about 12.5% of the population), Champaign County has one of the largest immigrant communities south of I-80 in Illinois. Immigrants contribute significantly to the local economy, adding more than $1.5 billion annually and supporting federal programs like Social Security and Medicare. The changing demographics of our community create new challenges along with tremendous opportunities to make our community stronger and more resilient.
I’ve had the privilege of engaging with an unstoppable force of collective action—a diverse community united in the common goal of treating everyone with dignity, no matter where they come from.
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Getting Ready…and Going Through Changes
As winter turned to spring, I met weekly with one of NAWC’s founding directors to learn everything about leading Welcoming Week. She showed me the planning process and important deadlines, like when to contact sponsors, apply for grants, finalize the calendar, distribute marketing materials, and more. In May, she introduced me to all of NAWC’s Welcoming Week partners during the first virtual partner meeting when we welcome new partners and ask groups to start planning their events. I’m sure it was such a bittersweet moment for her, after planning Welcoming Week from 2018-2022. All I could think about was how nervous I was!
In June, both of NAWC’s founding directors departed and NAWC relocated out of the University YMCA building in Champaign into a more client-accessible office in Lincoln Square Mall in Urbana, two huge steps into the organization’s future. In July, things began to move quickly with Welcoming Week. It was time to design new marketing, review event submissions, and fundraise $10K, something I had never done before. On top of all of that, I was packing up my apartment and preparing to move from Urbana to Chicago!
Celebrating Successes
After months of planning, my first Welcoming Week in 2023 was successful! We put on an impressive array of events that engaged over 2,500 participants, and the feeling of a community coming together over our shared values was more than palpable. We received tons of positive feedback from participants, and the fulfillment I felt when it was all over completely exceeded my expectations.
A standout memory from last year was El Grito, a vibrant celebration of Mexican independence and culture hosted by El Grito Illinois in downtown Champaign. With over 600 attendees last year, it’s the largest event on our calendar. I have great memories from El Grito 2023: dancing with friends and coworkers, spotting our local mayors among the huge crowd, and seeing the lead organizer’s face light up with joy as it all unfolded.
One of the most special parts of Welcoming Week is that it enriches narratives surrounding immigration by creating space for immigrant community members to share their triumphs, struggles, and experiences. During our Welcoming Week in 2023, I attended several smaller, reflective events where I witnessed cross-cultural understanding deepen in real time. One notable event was the 10th Annual Immigrant Welcome Awards, hosted by the C-U Immigration Forum at the Urbana Free Library, which honors leadership and community impact in the local immigrant community. Last year, two NAWC staff members received awards and shared their experiences, recounting challenges such as leaving loved ones behind, navigating legal barriers, learning English, facing discrimination, and raising children in a new culture. Their stories of courage and resilience were so moving, reinforcing my appreciation for their work at our organization.
A Personal Transformation
Throughout the past two years of learning to be an effective Welcoming Week coordinator, there was also a personal transformation taking place with how I feel about Champaign County as a place. When I was first asked to do Welcoming Week, I was already planning to move to Chicago in a few months and continue working remotely for NAWC. This felt like an inherently hypocritical position to be in as the main coordinator of such a place-based program. I wondered if I could still carry the spirit of a program that celebrates welcoming newcomers into every aspect of community life while I was actively building a new life elsewhere.
What I’ve come to realize is that my growing distance from Champaign County has only deepened my understanding of how Welcoming Week mirrors the community’s core values. As coordinator, I’ve had the privilege of engaging with an unstoppable force of collective action—a diverse community united in the common goal of treating everyone with dignity, no matter where they come from. Through collaborating with partners, reflecting on our mission, and observing the event’s evolution from afar, I’ve gained a profound appreciation for how Welcoming Week reflects and strengthens the values that define Champaign County.
