News & Views

Love, not hate.

A year later, we remember the 11 people who lost their lives at the Tree of Life Synagogue in Pittsburgh. In memory of that day, one of our former clients, a refugee from Syria, wrote the below poem. Like Ossama, we dream of a day “Where the darkness retreats/And the light engulfs the earth and sky.” Thank you to all of you who supported us and continue to support us, as we work towards bringing light to our clients’ lives.

A poem written after the Pittsburgh Tragedy
by Ossama Herkel
Translated by Dana Beseiso

Tears from the heart
Love has fled from people’s hearts
And has left instead a gloomy void
Vacant, cold and dark

We live in a strange time marred by misery
Pure hearts are taken from us daily
Torn away by those hearts that are black
Our spring does not bloom, and is devoid of hope

On a calm autumn morning
The sound of treachery roared
And there blood was spilled
Silence reigned, and hearts wept
Souls fled

And that night the moon had companions in the sky
With every soul lost
There is a star that weeps in agony
And with every drop of blood spilled
A rose, vanquished, withers
And weary eyes that slept in grief,
Waiting for the spring of our hearts

The appointed time
Of grief is emblazoned in the sky
And fear is now the subtext of existence
Terrorism is a disease with no treatment

The prophets bore books of peace
And wrote words of love and compassion
The Quran, Bible and Torah
Are words from God to us
To sail in seas of faith
And illuminate our paths that lay in darkness,
To seed the Earth with gardens of love and compassion

I dream of a coming time
Where we live in warmth,
Where we live in one world
Where birds sing to us
And flowers bathe us in their scent

I dream of a day
Where humans are as stars in the night sky
Embracing one another
And shedding tears of joy and love
Where we write poems of hope and peace

I dream of a day where our hearts are as pure
As the dew waiting for the morning sun
Where the darkness retreats
And the light engulfs the earth and sky

Read more poems by Ossama at

http://fps.swarthmore.edu/works/poetry-ossama-ahmad-herkal/

TONIGHT (4/20) - Join us ONLINE at the 2023 Golden Door Awards!

Join us ONLINE at 6:45PM TONIGHT, Thursday, April 20th, for HIAS PA's 2023 Golden Door Awards: United for Immigrants!

Happy Passover from HIAS Pennsylvania!HIAS PA is closed in observance of the Jewish holiday of Passover

HIAS Pennsylvania will be closed in observance of the Jewish holiday of Passover from 1PM on Wednesday, April 5th through Friday, April 7th, and on Wednesday, April 12th and Thursday, April 13th.

Join us at the 2023 Golden Door Awards!United for Immigrants

The Golden Door Awards is HIAS Pennsylvania's annual fundraiser. Your generous support helps us serve low-income immigrants from all over the world as they build new lives in our community.

Building closed until further noticeHIAS PA remains open!

HIAS PA’s physical offices at 600 Chestnut Street are CLOSED until further notice due to a burst pipe in the building.

Our organization remains open, and HIAS PA staff continue to work remotely at this time.

Please call (215) 832-0900 with any questions.

Building closed until further noticeHIAS PA remains open!

HIAS PA’s physical offices at 600 Chestnut Street are CLOSED until further notice due to a burst pipe in the building.

Our organization remains open, and HIAS PA staff continue to work remotely at this time.

Please call (215) 832-0900 with any questions.

TONIGHT: Join us at the table!Join us for Thankful Together!

Thankful Together, formerly known as Refugee Thanksgiving, is happening TONIGHT at 6PM!

Register here to join us tonight: https://hiaspa1.wpengine.com/event/thankful-together-2021/

Celebrate our volunteers who make this all possible!Click here at 11:45AM to join our Annual Meeting!

Click here to join our virtual Annual Meeting!

The Annual Meeting starts at noon, but join us at 11:45AM for an informal chat before the event!

POSTPONED! Speed Advocacy: Afghanistan

Today's Speed Advocacy: Afghanistan Facebook Live event has been postponed due to a worldwide Facebook outage. We will update you as soon as possible about rescheduling the event.