Corner 65 helping refugees feel home in Cleveland

CLEVELAND — Moving to Ohio from another country comes with a laundry list of challenges, especially for kids. Thats why Corner 65 is trying to help kids find a home away from home.

Nelson Baguma teaches young kids how to read, write and speak English. When he came to the U.S. from Uganda at 17-years-old, he needed that same help.

“Right after high school, I decided I wanted to give back to my Congolese community and my refugee community,” he said.

Baguma is part of a Refugee Response and Corner 65, a joint effort to welcome newcomers and provide kids with sports and activities. 

One of those kids is 5-year-old Lailatie Mutoka from Uganda, who came to the U.S. hoping to get a better education.

“I like it in Cleveland because I get to play with my friends,” she said. “I get to play with my family. I don’t get to worry about anything.”

Becky Trout is the director of Corner 65. She started the program in 2017 and now helps around 100 refugee kids.

“That all started because we were struggling to find opportunities for the students to get involved and also have transportation and all of their paperwork taken care of as well as translating to their parents,” she said.

Trout said Corner 65 has come a long way, and when the road gets tough she reminds herself of the bigger picture.

Meanwhile, Nelson lights up, knowing he is now making a difference in his community.

“It makes me feel good because what makes them happy is doing productive activities like yoga and any kind of sports, that’s better and keeping them out of trouble in the summer and bored at home, so this is really good for them and good for me too,” he said. “It’s really satisfactory.”