Hero: Local Woman Serves Those Looking to Call Roanoke Home

In her 19 years in Roanoke, Barbara Smith has worked with immigrants and refugees from all over the world.

By: WSLS-TV Staff Reports | WSLS-TV 10
Published: March 13, 2008

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In her 19 years in Roanoke, Barbara Smith has worked with immigrants and refugees from all over the world.
"Afghanistan, Bosnia, Iran, Cuba, Haiti, a lot of countries in Africa," Smith said.
In fact she’s helped more than 35 hundred people at Roanoke Refugee and Immigration Services.
"We've watched families grow up and become part of the fabric of where we live," she said.
Of course, there have been challenges along the way.
"Language, language, language. It’s always been a big issue,” she said.
Smith says she remembers one woman from Somalia who couldn't read or write in her own language when she came to the United States. She could only speak a dialect, but it didn’t take her long to learn English.
"Two years later, she's picking up the phone and calling me and talking to me in good English."
Smith says it's moments like those that made her job worth-while.
"So many, just so many success stories."
Stories that wouldn't be if it weren't for the work of people like her.