On a warm and breezy Saturday in June, around 80 people, comprising people served by IWR, staff, board members and volunteers, gathered for our annual picnic. Music was in the air, kids were running and laughing, and adults shared food and engaged in lively conversations. The picnic marked IWR’s 10th anniversary, and the IWR community spirit shone bright despite the burdens of our current political climate.
Like every year, the celebration was a community effort. Before the start of the picnic, Travis Winter from Cornell Health led a workshop on the US healthcare system for IWR families. Spanish, Arabic, Ukrainian, and Dari interpreters helped convey the information. Once the picnic started, attendees were serenaded by Rick Manning on the fiddle and John Simon on the guitar.
New Delhi Diamond’s Restaurant and Visions Federal Credit Union generously donated a festive array of Indian dishes, and many attendees brought home-cooked food to share. The IWR community filled the pavilion, enjoying food from diverse culinary cultures, from samosas and curries to rice and beans to Haitian-style fried chicken.
“Every dish is so good!” remarked one new arrival. “It’s good to be with other people,” he continued. He shared that he hadn’t been among this many people in a while. IWR Executive Director Casey Verderosa reflected, “It’s so good to see everybody come together. It’s especially important now because of the political context—people are feeling isolated, afraid, targeted, and that is just the opposite of the kind of community we want to create. We want everybody to feel included and welcome, like they are a valuable part of the community, because they are.”
The smiles and laughter that brightened up the cloudy afternoon proved how at ease everybody was at the picnic. “I love it,” said another attendee. “I get to meet new people and talk to people.” Meanwhile, children ran around trying to catch bubbles, while others threw frisbees and cornhole bean bags. Someone procured a soccer ball and teenagers from countries around the world kicked it around together. Cornell Cooperative Extension provided fun lawn games and an arts and crafts table, where children and adults alike turned pieces of paper into colorful doves and decorated a giant IWR logo.
At the other end of the pavilion, local muralist Hugo Medina invited people to help him design a mural celebrating refugees and immigrants that he is working on with IWR. He is leading a series of community activities and workshops to gather inspiration for the mural, which will be painted in downtown Ithaca this Fall.
By the end of the picnic, Hugo’s big canvas was filled with rainbows and flowers. Right in the middle, someone had written “ALL ARE WELCOME.” That one short sentence—painted down in shades of red, yellow, green, and blue—truly captured the spirit of IWR’s 2025 community picnic.
