Suzanne came to the UK as a refugee from Rwanda - a country torn apart by genocide and civil war. Determined to get qualifications and a good job, Suzanne enrolled at college and then went on to do a HND and then a business degree. She now runs the Time Together mentoring scheme in Birmingham. Caroline has been mentoring Suzanne since 2004. She decided to volunteer for Time Together because she wanted to find out "the real story about refugees". "It's amazing," says Caroline. "Suzanne didn't know any English when she came here and managed to complete a business degree, which is hard enough to do if you speak English!" After working as a French translator for Birmingham City Council, Suzanne applied for the job as training coordinator for Time Together in Birmingham. She explains: "I was looking for volunteering opportunities on the Internet when I came across TimeBank and Time Together. I've always felt a bit annoyed at the negative press that is given to refugees. Time Together seemed like a positive thing to do, taking action and finding out the real stories behind the media." Suzanne and Caroline meet regularly - usually they go to a cafe and just have a good chat. "You get all kinds of people volunteering for Time Together," says Caroline. "When I speak to friends about what I am doing it does sounds daunting, but it's not, once you get into it. The main focus for us is to improve Suzanne's written English but I've learnt a lot from her too. I'm hugely impressed by her courage and determination and everything she has managed to achieve in the short amount of time she has been here." | 
