Champaign County Welcoming Week 2026

Did you know that Welcoming Week starts on September 9th and goes until September 19th? It is a community-led campaign that invites community members to support foreign-born individuals in Champaign County! 

For more information, visit https://welcomingweek.org/#overview for an overview and https://nawc.universityymca.org/programs/welcoming-week for a detailed schedule.

Read more about the campaign:

Welcoming Week is an annual campaign that celebrates the work in communities to become welcoming places for all, including immigrants. Launched in 2012 by Welcoming America and its members, Welcoming Week provides individuals and organizations the opportunity to showcase their values through events and initiatives that foster connections and collaboration between immigrants and non-immigrants, as well as belonging for all.

‍Welcoming Week celebrates the growing movement of inclusive communities that fully embrace immigrants and their contributions to the social fabric of our country. We are thrilled that The Refugee Center and Immigrant Services CU joined NAWC in leading Welcoming Week this year! With over 25,000 foreign-born individuals living in Champaign County, we all need different opportunities to engage, build mutual understanding and raise awareness of the benefits of welcoming all! This year's community-wide celebration takes place Wednesday, September 9 to Sunday, September 19 and features nearly 30 fun, family-centered events. We also have discounts from 16 immigrant-owned businesses in this year's Immigrant Business Showcase.