Our Mission
The Joel Nafuma Refugee Center is a volunteer-driven haven where refugees and asylum seekers — we call them guests — can find daily necessities, the tools they need to rebuild a life, and friendly faces to walk alongside as they do.
Operating in the crypt of St. Paul’s Within the Walls Episcopal Church in the heart of Rome, Italy, the Joel Nafuma Refugee Center (JNRC) is a day center where refugees and asylum seekers can relax in a safe and warm space, learn, and get the advice and guidance they need to build themselves a life in Italy.
Most of our guests are unhoused refugees and asylum seekers sleeping in parks and train stations around the city, so we take a comprehensive approach to supporting them: clothing and hygiene supplies, a relaxing atmosphere, and opportunities to socialize and find fun, legal and social advice, employment clinics, and language and skills courses. We seek to address both the urgent needs of those just arriving to Rome, as well as the needs of those seeking to settle in Rome. We serve around 250 guests each day.
How We Work
An introduction to JNRC created in collaboration with The Episcopal Church Europe and Episcopal Relief and Development.
Since the beginning, JNRC’s hospitality has extended to all forced migrants regardless of faith tradition, cultural backaground, or race. While we’re located in St. Paul’s Within the Walls Episcopal Church and grounded in Christian values, we respect the faith traditions of all JNRC guests and never proselytize.
The center has always and will welcome the help of all who wish to serve their fellow human beings without bias.
“I am a Shia Muslim and many of these men are Sunni. Shias and Sunnis are at war around the world. In my country, there has been a constant war of one kind or another for 34 years, but those who gather here are tired of fighting and respect this center as a place for peace.”
—Joel Nafuma Refugee Center guest from Afghanistan
It is our hope that the Joel Nafuma Refugee Center will continue to remain a sanctuary for political refugees in the heart of Rome for years to come.
Interested in a first-hand look at JNRC’s work and impact? Our community outreach program pairs a visit to the Center with education highlighting the complexities of migration, the experience of seeking asylum, and the importance of structures like the JNRC.