If needed, the address for RISSE is 715 Morris St., Albany, N.Y., 12208-2208

In recent weeks, the number of refugees being admitted to the United States – there are more refugees in need of homes than at any time in recorded history – has plummeted by more than 40 per cent.

I have met a number of refugees at RISSE, the refugee and immigrant center in Albany – whose husbands or wives, even some children – have been left behind. One mother told me she was assured her children would be granted visas shortly, “I would never have left them behind if I thought they might not come,” she told me.

This is devastating news for people who have already suffered enough.

It has left the refugees already here in dire emotional, sometimes literal, straits. They are devastated to be cut off from their families, many of whom are in the gravest danger, and are struggling to feed and care for their families.

The RISSE Amazon Wish List has helped, we have already buzzed through it twice. RISSE has more than 200 refugee and immigrant children enrolled in its after school program, and serves more than 1,000 adults with special classes in English, economics, taxes, job-hunting and citizenship.

There are now only four items left on the RISSE Amazon Wish List. They are a  Rubbermaid drink and juice dispenser ($21); a floor lamp ($30.47); two bean bag chairs (one blue, one green.)

The list is being updated and expanded, it will show up shortly. The cheapest items – some for as little as $4 – are gone. More are on the way. Look at the wish list here.

Everything is gone and either on the way or already at RISSE. If you need it, the shipping address is RISSE, 715 Morris St., Albany, N.Y., 12208-2208.