WTNH News Channel 8 / News / Crisis in Kosovo

	Waterbury residents raise funds for Kosovar refugees (Waterbury-WTNH) _ Some local Waterbury residents show care for Kosovo. They gathered Sunday to raise money for the refugees. And with this week's expected arrival of thousands of refugees in the United States their timing couldn't be better. News Channel 8's Jocelyn Sigue reports. Local Albanian-Americans are preparing to welcome several hundred of those refugees to Connecticut. But as they do they also want to make sure that the hundreds of thousands forced out of Kosovo still searching for a home are not forgotten. With hundreds of tickets sold, and all food and entertainment donated, the expected total at today's Albanian refugee fundraiser is $50,000. Albanian-American leaders await specifics from the government on when the expected 500 kosovar families should be arriving in Connecticut, seeking homes and jobs. Nick Ozkan: "I had the fortune of meeting a union representative just a couple of days ago who was very kind enough to offer herself her union for us to find jobs for some of the Kosovars who will be moving to the region." Local Albanian-Americans wait not only to help other families, but to help their own. Pembe Blakaj and her son await word from her husband, a physician helping the refugees in Tirana, Albania, and searching for his own sisters and cousins. An uncle - a leader in the area - was executed. Pembe Blakaj: "He says that it's much worse than we see on TV. It's very devastating. "We have medications but we still need more supplies more water more everything that is needed just for survival for the refugees. Dukagjin Blakaj: "There's an Albanian saying - the idea is whatever we have they're going to have. Which means we'll divide things equally because no matter how bad it gets here it's a hundred times better than where they are currently." It's important to remember that when these families come here it won't be just for a few months. It could be years before they are secure, and before its safe for them to return to their own country. Today's News Page. WTNH Home Page. ©1999 WTNH-TV A LIN station.

Waterbury residents raise funds for Kosovar refugees
(Waterbury-WTNH) _ Some local Waterbury residents show care for Kosovo. They gathered Sunday to raise money for the refugees. And with this week's expected arrival of thousands of refugees in the United States their timing couldn't be better.
News Channel 8's Jocelyn Sigue reports.

Local Albanian-Americans are preparing to welcome several hundred of those refugees to Connecticut. But as they do they also want to make sure that the hundreds of thousands forced out of Kosovo still searching for a home are not forgotten.

With hundreds of tickets sold, and all food and entertainment donated, the expected total at today's Albanian refugee fundraiser is $50,000. Albanian-American leaders await specifics from the government on when the expected 500 kosovar families should be arriving in Connecticut, seeking homes and jobs.

Nick Ozkan: "I had the fortune of meeting a union representative just a couple of days ago who was very kind enough to offer herself her union for us to find jobs for some of the Kosovars who will be moving to the region."

Local Albanian-Americans wait not only to help other families, but to help their own. Pembe Blakaj and her son await word from her husband, a physician helping the refugees in Tirana, Albania, and searching for his own sisters and cousins. An uncle - a leader in the area - was executed.

Pembe Blakaj: "He says that it's much worse than we see on TV. It's very devastating.
"We have medications but we still need more supplies more water more everything that is needed just for survival for the refugees.

Dukagjin Blakaj: "There's an Albanian saying - the idea is whatever we have they're going to have. Which means we'll divide things equally because no matter how bad it gets here it's a hundred times better than where they are currently."

It's important to remember that when these families come here it won't be just for a few months. It could be years before they are secure, and before its safe for them to return to their own country.

Today's News Page.

WTNH Home Page.