OUR STORY

The parallel between many families in international schools and refugee families are the challenges that must be faced when establishing life in a new country. But the similarities end there. Families at international schools typically have moved voluntarily and possess the financial means to secure a safe life in the new country.  On the other hand, displaced families have been forced to flee their homes due to war, natural or human made disasters, and other such situations that threaten their lives and livelihood.

Lisa Mougin, a parent at the American School of Barcelona (ASB), created Furnish a Future because she believes that the establishment of a home by displaced families is a critical cornerstone in their process of building a new life in their host country. Lisa’s personal experience of moving to Barcelona served as a catalyst for the project.  

“The move for our family from the USA to Spain proved to be more challenging emotionally, linguistically and logistically than I had anticipated.  This experience opened my eyes to the extreme challenges that refugee families must experience, but without the economic means to help solve them or a proper bed to sleep in each night. I was lucky to meet Marta Vernet with ASB, who has deeply established relationships with local refugee organizations and together we created the Furnish a Future project.”

With the constant cycle of international families moving and trying to sell or give away their furniture, ASB’s community provided the perfect environment for launching the project. The project began in May, 2018 by running a trial program to collect unwanted furniture from ASB families and redistribute it into the homes of displaced people.

In August of 2023, Ms. Marta Vernet and ASB alumnus Victoria Alvarez (class of 2023) restarted the program after a brief post-Covid hiatus in its operations with help from its founders.

OUR GOals

Furnish a Future began operations in 2018. Given the project’s early success in the first year of operations and the increased need for services, Furnish a Future’s intends to expand its reach and impact moving forward. Our goals include:

  • Increasing the number of displaced persons served

  • Partnering with other local refugee aid organizations

  • Engaging and increasing our volunteer base, especially with students

  • Creating a sustainable program model that can be easily replicated in other locations around the world