Each year, World Refugee Day, June 20th, gives the IRC’s staff and clients the perfect opportunity to honor those who have endured incredible journeys to build new homes in communities across the United States and Europe. This year’s festivities, celebrating these newcomers and the contributions they make, included a special guest, Trinidadian American musician TRISHES, who collaborated on a unique songwriting project.

TRISHES has achieved fame for her original approach to songwriting and for her exploration of complex themes related to human struggles. She partnered with three talented individuals, all beneficiaries of IRC’s resettlement efforts, to produce a special song just for World Refugee Day titled “We Won’t Lose Count.”

One of these collaborators, IRC Charlottesville client and local musician David Divin, accepted an invitation to join this creative process, and he played piano for the track. “It felt like it was a huge responsibility because I play guitar and write songs better than I play the piano, but it was exciting because it was a new challenge for me,” said Divin, who came to the United States from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. “I love the diversity [of my new country]. I love to be a part of that, like being able to make a contribution to something great that brings people together. I hope the audience sees what we felt when making the song because, in the early stages of the project, TRISHES explained to me that the goal was to bring hope to people who have been through a lot, like violence and displacement, and to say, ‘Finally, we are here.’ So I feel like it’s a song of hope, one that brings people together, people of different colors and cultures and values from different places.”

Though the song’s World Refugee Day premiere has come and gone, Divin continues to find ways to reach people in his new community with this message of hope. He’s also joined another collaboration, this one between the IRC in Charlottesville and the University of Virginia’s community radio station, WTJU. The partnership gives IRC clients a platform for telling their stories through a series of recorded interviews, excerpts of which WTJU will play on air throughout the month of September.

 “I want people to believe that anything is possible through sharing my story with Charlottesville,” said Divin. “It’s never too late to achieve great things. I hope the IRC will continue to support me like they have and [that they will] help me spread my message and music even further.”

After excerpts of Divin’s interview play on WTJU’s airwaves in September, the IRC plans to share his full interview online. You can also find his collaboration with TRISHES on the IRC’s website, rescue.org, by simply entering his name into the site’s search bar. Divin’s solo work is available on all platforms for music including YouTube, iTunes, and Spotify.