Sponsorship and Community Involvement

We are fortunate to welcome Kit Taintor from Welcome.US at our next virtual Learning Luncheon on June 13, 2022 at Noon (CT).

Kit Taintor is the Vice President of Policy and Practice at Welcome.US, a nonprofit initiative with the mission to inspire and empower people from across divides to unite in common purpose and welcome newcomers, meet their essential needs, and help them thrive. Before joining Welcome in April 2022, Kit worked for Governor Polis in Colorado as his senior advisor on New American integration and inclusion. In this role, she helped pass legislation that created an Office of New Americans, ensured key data privacy protections for immigrants without lawful presence in the U.S., and opened the door for occupational licensing for all immigrants and refugees. Prior to her time on Team Polis, she was Colorado’s State Refugee Coordinator and the executive director of the Colorado African Organization, an immigrant-led community-based organization. She was also the President of the State Coordinators of Refugee Resettlement affinity group and a Health Equity Commissioner at the Colorado Department of Health and Environment. Kit served in the Peace Corps in Malawi and attended the University of Virginia and Tulane School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine.

Building Peaceful Bridges has partnered with Welcome.US through a grant to expand community support for Afghan newcomers by creating an All Faiths Collaborative for Refugees.

Welcome.US began with our new Afghan neighbors and have expanded to those fleeing Ukraine, while also building a durable capacity and ability to welcome other newcomers. Welcome.US operates on the evidence that direct participation with newcomers transforms both the welcomer and those being welcomed.

Four former Presidents and four former First Ladies have joined Welcome.US as leaders of this effort.

BPB hosts educational luncheons listening to refugee stories and “knowledge experts” speak on immigration and refugee programs.