POTSDAM -- Thirteen members of the Potsdam Central High School Red Cross Club traveled to the Mohawk Valley Resource Center for Refugees in Utica earlier this month.

“Like most students today, their knowledge of refugees, was only what is in the press or they have learned at school,” said Potsdam Central Red Cross Club advisor Joe Van Ells.

The trip turned out to be an eye opener about the many myths that surround refugees who arrive in the United States, he said.

During the day they got to meet refugees from Myanmar, Nepal, Sudan, Dominican Republic, Malaysia and the Ukraine. These refugees were studying English in an ESL class offered at the center.

Rory Sixberry, club president, said that one woman stood out to her.

“Eh Ta, a mother of seven who was born in Myanmar, told me all about her family and life before moving to New York, Sixberry said. “She was incredibly kind and sweet. Learning about both her struggles and experiences opened my eyes to a whole new part of the world. Spending time with not only Eh Ta, but each of the ESL students at the refugee center, was a great experience that I am so grateful I was allowed to have.”

Camryn Mangual, the club’s vice president, said the trip to the Mohawk Valley Resource Center was amazing. “It was a great chance for kids my age to see and actually understand who refugees are. And it was a great learning experience to be in the environment that many refugees are put into after traveling to the U.S.”

“I have an entirely new outlook on how they live and what kind of problems they face,” said Isabelle Foisy, a club member. “The few refugees I talked to who were mainly escaping civil wars were some of the most interesting and nice people I have ever met. Like me, many Americans don’t realize the reality of the way refugees live and what they are like. They are not here to terrorize or cause any harm, they are here to escape brutal conditions and protect their own lives.

In addition to interviews with the refugees, club members were provided a tour and explanation of services offered at the center. They also had a chance to sample some of the food and desserts from other countries.

Club members were able to try the driving simulators that teach a person how to drive in 23 different languages.

Members also spent time helping organize donated clothing for new families arriving in the Utica area.

They also made welcome cards that are placed in the homes of the new refugees and presented the center a check for $700 that they raised from their annual Monster Bash for 5th and 6th grade students.