Making Home: Resettling in Montana

Since 2016, over 500 people from Syria, Afghanistan, Iraq, Eritrea, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo have resettled in Missoula primarily as refugees.

Most families have traveled thousands of miles with kids, fled their home countries, left family members behind, and started over with suitcases. They have begun to learn a new language, gotten driver’s licenses, changed career paths, bought homes and started businesses. Many were forced to leave their homes due to war, violence or threat of persecution.

The city of Missoula, which first welcomed about 200 Hmong refugees from the Vietnam War in 1979, has a nearly 40-year history of resettlement. These are some stories that showcase the resiliency, challenges, and connections from the resettlement community in Montana.

Wisam Raheem sets the table for his family during Ramadan in Missoula, Montana, on Tuesday, April 8, 2024. Wisam moved to the US and applied for asylum from the United Arab Emirates with his wife and kids in 2017. He was forced to leave his home in
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Wisam and his brother-in-law Ammar Omar opened Kamoon & Ragheef in January 2022. Their restaraunt serves Arabian cuisine, including shawarma, flat bread, baba ganosh, falafel and hummus in Missoula, Montana.
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The drive from Missoula to Spokane is precarious during winter, but an important connection for many families from the resettlement community. It takes six hours, crossing northern Idaho, and travel over four mountain passes round-trip.
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Mary Poole, one of the directors at Soft Landing, poses for a portrait on Tuesday, November 18, 2025. The USDA recently released a memo that states all refugees and asylum seekers who have resettled in the U.S. in the last 5 years will lose SNAP eli
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Chef Grace Mussiwa, a refugee from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, prepares Beef a la Tomate with volunteers for the United We Eat program at the First Methodist Church in Missoula, Montana on Monday, March 11, 2024. United We Eat uses food as
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Members of the Missoula Muslim community spill out into the hallway during Friday Prayer at the University of Montana on Friday, March 8, 2024. The community, which is partly made up of refugees and asylees, has struggled to find a suitable space to
Kamar Mardelli, a Syrian refugee, practices pronunciations with her students from the resettlement community at the Missoula Public Library on Sunday, April 27, 2024. Many of the kids are fluent in English, but some have partially forgotten how to s
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Abeer's husband, who has ongoing health issues, receives a massage to help mitigate chronic neck and spine pain on Thursday, November 13, 2025. The refugee community is perhaps even more worried about the potential loss of Medicaid coverage in 2026.