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Bhutanese refugees use artistry to celebrate culture

Talented refugees start new lives in Erie

Born and raised in Nepal where her Bhutanese parents lived as refugees, Anu Khanal, 21, learned artistry with needles and thread

It didn't take her long.

"I just watch others," Khanal said. "I see and then do."

Many immigrants arrive in Erie with skills and creativity they can't describe in English. Their talents must speak for themselves.

The artisans use their handiwork to keep in touch with their traditions and cultures. Some knit hats and scarves, others crochet blankets and table covers and bedspreads. Father of four Kamal Upreti, 41, can tailor new Nepali clothing.

This Easter finds the new immigrants hopeful and excited about their new lives.

With a bright smile, and a small laugh, Khanal said she hopes to do "good stuff" in America. When her English improves, she said, she might like to work in a hospital.

Khanal moved to Erie with her family Dec. 15. For now, she takes English as a Second Language class at the International Institute several hours a day.

After school, she works on her thread pieces and said she can have one finished in less than a week. As delicate as they look, she said, they stand up in the wash.

"Washing more is good," she said with a shy smile.

Some Bhutanese refugees living in Nepal were given the chance to move to America through a program called Bhutanese Refugees Aiding the Victims of Violence. The refugees had to weigh the pain of leaving familiar cultures, friends and families against the hope of new lives that they could start in America.

The families of Khanal and Upreti decided to come.

Khanal's brightly colored lacy threaded pieces adorn TVs, bed spreads and tables around the home where she lives with her parents, a sister and two brothers.

Right now her pieces are made as gifts for family and friends, but she might like to sell them someday.

Upreti and his family fled Bhutanese violence for Nepal, where they lived for 18 years. He learned to work as a tailor in Nepal, but that's difficult for him to do here. He said he can mend clothes of his family and friends, but the raw materials to create new pieces are difficult to find.

"The fabrics are different and the machines are very different" in the U.S., he said. "I would like to do that again, too."

Upreti used his skills as a tailor at a second job in Nepal before he and his family moved to Erie on Nov. 6. He worked full time as a triage nurse in a hospital in Nepal. He said he wants to find a job in health care here, which is difficult, he said, because as yet he has no transportation or computer skills.

"I hope to continue in the hospital line in any type of entry level job," he said. "I want to help people. That is my great hope."

Upreti has prepared a résumé, but doesn't know how to get it online, or how to use e-mail.

"I will learn," he said. For now, Upreti is helping teach English as a Second Language to new Bhutanese immigrants.

He said he gets homesick sometimes, especially during traditional Bhutanese and Nepali festivals.

Fabric of Hope: Talented refugees start new lives in Erie

Date: 4/3/2010 Album ID: 974116

Photos by Janet B. Campbell

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