ORAM

ORAM ORAM is a leading international non-profit organization dedicated to protecting LGBTIQ asylum seekers

ORAM is a leading international non-profit organization dedicated to protecting the world’s most vulnerable refugees.

✨ Last chance to make your impact in 2025 ✨Before the year ends, your support can help LGBTIQ refugees facing violence a...
12/31/2025

✨ Last chance to make your impact in 2025 ✨

Before the year ends, your support can help LGBTIQ refugees facing violence and displacement find safety, opportunity, and community.

Because of supporters like you:
💈 Emelda turned her passion for barbering into a small business — and now mentors others.
🌍 Omar found confidence and purpose after growing up in Kakuma Refugee Camp and continues supporting LGBTIQ refugees today.
💛 Franklin found healing, friendship, and hope through ORAM — and is building a future of independence.

These stories span continents, but they share one truth: your generosity makes hope possible.
🕛 There’s still time to give before midnight — and there are many ways to make your year-end gift count:
💳 Donate online (credit/debit, PayPal, Venmo, or bank transfer)
📁 Give through your Donor-Advised Fund (DAF)
📈 Donate appreciated stocks or securities
📬 Mail a check

ORAM is proud to have earned Candid’s 2025 Platinum Seal of Transparency, reflecting our commitment to accountability and impact.

👉 Learn more or make your year-end gift: https://give.oramrefugee.org/campaign/738304/donate

A true friend — and a chance to begin again.After fleeing Honduras in search of safety, Franklin found himself in Mexico...
12/22/2025

A true friend — and a chance to begin again.

After fleeing Honduras in search of safety, Franklin found himself in Mexico with few options and many doors closed.

Then he found ORAM.

Franklin, a gay refugee from Honduras, first connected with ORAM at a small community gathering while living in a refugee shelter. That moment opened the door to connection, dignity, and support when he needed it most.

“Thanks to ORAM, I have found a true friend — someone who stands by me no matter what. ORAM is one of the very few organizations that has never shut the door in my face, never looked at me badly, and never treated me with contempt,” Franklin shared.

Your yearend gift helps ensure LGBTIQ refugees like Franklin are not navigating displacement and recovery alone.

Read Franklin’s story here: https://www.oramrefugee.org/post/a-true-friend-and-a-chance-to-begin-again
Make your yearend gift here: https://give.oramrefugee.org/campaign/738304/donate

Please note: Franklin’s story includes references to physical and emotional trauma.

From Kakuma to Berlin 🌍At ORAM’s first meeting with LGBTIQ refugees in Kakuma Refugee Camp, Omar* stepped in to help tra...
12/17/2025

From Kakuma to Berlin 🌍

At ORAM’s first meeting with LGBTIQ refugees in Kakuma Refugee Camp, Omar* stepped in to help translate for Arabic-speaking community members who didn’t speak English. From that moment, his care for others was clear.

Omar grew up in Kakuma after his family fled civil war in Sudan. As he got older, he struggled to come to terms with his bisexual identity. “I didn’t know who to turn to,” he shared.

Over time, Omar became deeply involved in the growing LGBTIQ refugee community. After participating in ORAM’s economic empowerment programs, he went on to serve as one of ORAM’s first Field Assistants — supporting community members and helping shape programs based on their most urgent needs.

After nearly two decades in Kakuma, Omar was resettled to Berlin, where he’s continuing to rebuild his life and stay connected with ORAM’s work in Germany. He’s now working toward his goal of becoming a translator — continuing the same commitment to community that first brought him into ORAM’s work.

Stories like Omar’s show what’s possible when refugees have access to opportunity and community.

Read Omar’s remarkable story here: https://www.oramrefugee.org/post/building-community-and-confidence-in-kakuma
Donate to support LGBTIQ refugees around: https://give.oramrefugee.org/campaign/738304/donate

*Name changed to protect safety.

Just off a dusty road in Nairobi, Emelda has built more than a barbershop — she’s built a future.When ORAM’s team visite...
12/12/2025

Just off a dusty road in Nairobi, Emelda has built more than a barbershop — she’s built a future.

When ORAM’s team visited Nairobi, we met Emelda, a bisexual refugee from Uganda who rebuilt her life after surviving years of abuse and violence. Through ORAM’s skills training and seed funding, Emelda launched her own barbershop — and in just two months, she’s already built a steady stream of clients.

Today, Emelda is also mentoring other LGBTIQ refugees through ORAM’s Training-of-Trainers program, passing on skills, confidence, and opportunity.

Her story is part of ORAM Around the Globe, our year-end series highlighting LGBTIQ refugees whose lives have been shaped by ORAM’s programs across the world.

👉 Read Emelda’s story: https://www.oramrefugee.org/post/a-fresh-start-in-a-barber-s-chair
👉 Make a yearend gift to support LGBTIQ refugees: https://give.oramrefugee.org/campaign/738304/donate

As we look toward 2026, your support helps ensure LGBTIQ refugees can access safety, skills, and the opportunity to rebuild their lives with dignity.

Name changed to protect privacy.

Thank you.Your generosity yesterday reminded us just how powerful this community is. Because of you, LGBTIQ refugees aro...
12/03/2025

Thank you.
Your generosity yesterday reminded us just how powerful this community is. Because of you, LGBTIQ refugees around the world will start 2026 with more safety, opportunity, and hope. 💙

But we’re not at our GivingTuesday goal yet — and we’re keeping the campaign open through the end of the week so we can continue meeting the growing need for our services.

If you didn’t get a chance to join in yesterday, you can still be part of this effort.
And for one more day, every gift is DOUBLED until 11:59 PM tonight, thanks to a generous match.

Every contribution helps us reach more LGBTIQ refugees who are rebuilding their lives and supporting their communities.

💙 Make your gift today: https://give.oramrefugee.org/campaign/748812/donate

We urgently need your help — we’re not at our goal yet, and every gift matters tonight.2025 has been one of the most c...
12/02/2025

We urgently need your help — we’re not at our goal yet, and every gift matters tonight.

2025 has been one of the most challenging years for ORAM. USAID cuts and shrinking humanitarian aid have left major gaps — and we need our community more than ever to keep life-saving programs going.

But even in a difficult year, hope is emerging from within the community itself.

From Steve, ORAM’s Executive Director:

“I recently visited an apartment rented by Lee*, a transgender refugee from Uganda. With support from ORAM’s short-term housing program — and through her own CBO — she shelters up to four LGBTIQ refugees at a time for up to three months, providing sanitary items and personal essentials at no cost. When I stepped into her ‘healing house,’ I felt the warmth and safety she creates for new arrivals.”

To keep supporting leaders like Lee — and prevent cuts to these critical programs — we must reach our GivingTuesday goal tonight.

Thanks to several generous donors, your gift
will be DOUBLED up to $10,000.
This match won’t last much longer.

💙 Donate now to help us reach our goal: https://give.oramrefugee.org/campaign/748812/donate?utm_source=ig&utm_medium=social&utm_content=link_in_bio

Your support this helps ORAM unleash radical generosity — and that generosity flows directly to LGBTIQ refugees who ar...
12/02/2025

Your support this helps ORAM unleash radical generosity — and that generosity flows directly to LGBTIQ refugees who are making extraordinary impacts in their own communities. One of them is Lee.*

Lee, a trans woman from Uganda, first connected with ORAM through our kitchen gardening program, transforming a small patch of land outside her safe house into a thriving garden that fed her community. Her leadership was clear from the start.

Today, she’s doing even more.

Lee now rents an apartment to shelter newly arrived LGBTIQ refugees. Through ORAM’s short-term housing program, she provides safe accommodation for up to four people for 30 days — and through her own community-based organization, she extends that support for up to three months, offering sanitary and personal supplies at no cost.

This is radical generosity in action. And today, you can help Lee extend that healing to even more people.

Every dollar you give is DOUBLED thanks to our $10,000 GivingTuesday match from several generous ORAM donors.

💙 Double your impact now: https://give.oramrefugee.org/campaign/748812/donate?utm_source=ig&utm_medium=social&utm_content=link_in_bio

This GivingTuesday, you can DOUBLE your impact for LGBTIQ refugees who are unleashing radical generosity in their own co...
12/01/2025

This GivingTuesday, you can DOUBLE your impact for LGBTIQ refugees who are unleashing radical generosity in their own communities — including Darlene.

From Kyle, ORAM’s Communications & Development Coordinator:

On my first day in Nairobi, I visited Darlene’s beauty salon in the heart of the city’s Central Business District. Outside, the streets were busy and loud — but inside her studio, everything felt warm, calm, and full of possibility.

Darlene, an asylum seeker from Uganda, told me how difficult things were when she first arrived in Kenya last year. But everything began to shift when she enrolled in ORAM’s skills training program, learned professional wig installation, and — with seed funding — opened her first small salon.

And then she did something remarkable.

As her business grew, Darlene began supporting others — offering opportunities to young Kenyan women who came to her looking for work.

This is what Radical Generosity Begins with Us looks like.
Your generosity helps LGBTIQ refugees rebuild their lives — and then turn around to uplift others.

And thanks to several generous ORAM donors, we have a $10,000 Matching Gift for GivingTuesday. That means your impact will be DOUBLED.

💙 Click the link to start the generosity chain today: https://give.oramrefugee.org/campaign/748812/donate

2025 has been heavy.Global conflict, economic strain, and shrinking humanitarian resources have left many of us wonderin...
11/25/2025

2025 has been heavy.

Global conflict, economic strain, and shrinking humanitarian resources have left many of us wondering where to even begin. For LGBTIQ refugees, that uncertainty is even more real.

Two weeks ago in Kenya, our Communications & Development Coordinator, Kyle Kvamme, heard LGBTIQ refugees share their fears about what it would mean if major humanitarian organizations were forced to scale back support.

But he also witnessed something profoundly hopeful. “I met LGBTIQ refugees who were turning around and lifting others up. Even with limited resources and their own challenges, they used what they had to support those who came after them.”

This , ORAM is celebrating Radical Generosity Begins With Us — honoring LGBTIQ refugees who are giving back and inviting our community to join them.

Your gift empowers LGBTIQ refugees to rebuild their lives and support one another.

And thanks to several generous donors, we have an $8,000 Matching Gift — meaning your impact is DOUBLED when you give now.

🌟 Donate today and help spark a chain reaction of generosity! https://give.oramrefugee.org/campaign/748812/donate

2025 has brought immense challenges for transgender, non‑binary, and gender‑diverse people around the world — many of wh...
11/20/2025

2025 has brought immense challenges for transgender, non‑binary, and gender‑diverse people around the world — many of which build on long‑standing injustices. 💔

In the U.S., research shows transgender people are more than four times as likely as cisgender people to experience violence.

Globally, the Trans Murder Monitoring Project has recorded more than 5,000 murders of trans and gender‑diverse people since 2008.

At ORAM, we honour and mourn the lives lost to anti‑trans violence — especially among refugee and displaced communities, who face compounded risks. 🕯️

We reaffirm our commitment to protect, empower, and advocate for transgender refugees and other displaced LGBTIQ individuals worldwide. 🏳️‍⚧️

For , we shine a spotlight on a trans‑led CBO partner supporting q***r and trans refugees in Nairobi. 🏳️‍⚧️🫶🇰🇪Meet Free...
11/19/2025

For , we shine a spotlight on a trans‑led CBO partner supporting q***r and trans refugees in Nairobi. 🏳️‍⚧️🫶🇰🇪

Meet Freedom House Initiative (FHI), which collaborates with ORAM's short‑term housing program to provide safe, dignified shelter to displaced LGBTIQ people. Through an apartment the organization rents, four LGBTIQ refugees live with support to rebuild their lives — access to essentials, community, and stability.

Last week, ORAM's team visited the space and met three clients: a trans woman from Uganda, a trans man from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and a trans woman from an undisclosed location. They spoke about how the apartment has become a "healing house" — a place of belonging that many had not known in a long time.

We extend our gratitude to Freedom House Initiative for their leadership, and to all their staff who make this work possible. Together, we're building a path to safety and inclusion for trans and q***r refugees in Kenya.

Members of ORAM’s global team are in Nairobi this week! 🇰🇪Our Executive Director, Steve Roth, Director of Programs Anja ...
11/11/2025

Members of ORAM’s global team are in Nairobi this week! 🇰🇪

Our Executive Director, Steve Roth, Director of Programs Anja Limon, and Communications & Development Coordinator Kyle Kvamme have traveled to Nairobi to connect with our Kenya team and meet with LGBTIQ refugee clients. 🏳️‍🌈🏳️‍⚧️

We look forward to sharing updates from their week together — follow along to see how we’re working side by side to empower displaced LGBTIQ people and build safer communities. 🫶

Address

1325 Quincy Street NE Ste A1
Minneapolis, MN
55413

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm

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+16126825044

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