You guys, now I know I’m not Irish (shocking... did the name Hanin give me away?) but St. Patrick’s Day has special significance to me.

On March 17, 1999, my family and I were granted political asylum and became refugees! This was an epic legal triumph for us as immigrants from Jordan and one that symbolized the beginning of a new self-definition.

I won’t get into the politics of the US immigration system, but on a humanistic level, it was the beginning of my rebirth as an American. The process of becoming a full US Citizen took many more years but was monumental when it finally happened. True, it’s only a piece of paper, but for those of us who live for so long without the validation of having a country to belong to, it’s an unsettling feeling of being lost, a wanderer, a type of homeless, and a bohemian (only not by choice).

When HIDE Studio was just an idea, I told myself that as part of my dream of creating sacred spaces with our design services, we would give back to organizations that align with our values. We know “home” is sacred, it provides a feeling of security (or at least it should) and we know that not everyone has a home. So we narrowed our focus down to three non-profit organizations whose own missions are to provide shelter to homeless people locally, nationally, and internationally.

Today, I thought it was fitting to make our 2nd annual donation to the American Refugee Committee (ARC) in honor of the day I found refuge in the US. This humanitarian aid organization works to help 2.5 million people each year take back control of their lives by providing health care, sanitation, shelter, and legal services in DRC, Rwanda, Uganda, South Sudan, Sudan, Pakistan, Thailand, Myanmar, Somalia, Syria, and Jordan. On top of that, of its 2,000 employees, 95 percent are hired locally.

So in the sea of green beer and shot glasses that say “kiss me I’m Irish” you’ll see today, say cheers to how important it is to have a place to call home!