How soccer brings a Bhutanese community together in Harrisburg, Pa.

NPR | By Maansi Srivastava

Published July 21, 2026 at 5:30 AM CDT

Children in Asian Refugees United's Soccer for Success program huddle during soccer practice in Harrisburg, Pa., on April 16, 2025.

HARRISBURG, Pa. — At a park in the hills of central Pennsylvania, children in jerseys shout in a mix of English and Nepali, chasing a ball across the grass while their parents watch from the sidelines. A mother cheers on her son. For this community of Nepali-speaking Bhutanese refugees, the field is more than a field. It's where they've rebuilt a homeland that no longer exists.

Tens of thousands of Bhutanese refugees settled in Harrisburg starting in the late 2000s, after their families were forced out of Bhutan in an ethnic-cleansing campaign on the Lhotshampa people, as the country sought to modernize and unify and the government enacted policies in the 1980s that targeted ethnic Nepalis' legal status and culture. The refugees spent nearly two decades in camps in Nepal. It was there that soccer became a lifeline. Barred from work permits, families built farms and schools by day. At night, they turned to the sport to help cope with their traumas. One refugee, Kalu Singh Tamang, had been a national soccer star in Bhutan before the expulsion. In the Beldangi camps of Jhapa, Nepal, he coached thousands of fellow refugees on how to play. He died in the camp, never getting the chance to leave.

Children from ARU's Soccer for Success program play in a scrimmage during the Kalu Singh Tamang Memorial Championship in Harrisburg, Pa., on Sept. 21, 2025.

Bhagawat Dulal, a coach for Asian Refugees United's Soccer for Success program, poses for a portrait during soccer practice in Harrisburg, Pa., on April 16, 2025.

Kripal Khatiwoda, 10, (center) watches as Nepali-speaking Bhutanese men's soccer teams play in the Kalu Singh Tamang Memorial Championship in Harrisburg, Pa., on Sept. 21, 2025.

Robin Gurung greets volunteers who are helping run ARU's Kalu Singh Tamang Memorial Championship in Harrisburg, Pa., on Sept. 21, 2025.

Robin Gurung, co-founder of Asian Refugees United, poses for a portrait next to a depiction of a Nepali-speaking Bhutanese shaman in Harrisburg, Pa., on April 17, 2025. Gurung says there have been shamans in his family, including his father.

That tradition crossed the ocean with the community that carried it. In 2007, the U.S., with the support of the U.N., initiated a program that resettled about 85,000 refugees. Each year, a memorial tournament bearing Tamang's name reunites refugees from across the country. Birkha Gurung, one of its co-founders, said he started it because, "When we were in Nepal, in the refugee camp, I played with [Tamang] and he coached so many of the refugee soccer fans. Our community, especially the adults, are having so many problems with mental health issues [since the camps], so I started this adults' tournament." Proceeds now fund Soccer for Success, a youth program serving over 50 kids a week — passing the game down to children who might never see the camps or the country their parents fled.

Seema Gurung, the owner of Seema's Boutique, poses in front of her shop filled with traditional Nepali and Indian clothing on April 17, 2025, in Harrisburg, Pa.

Binod Biswa, the co-owner of a jewelry shop in Harrisburg, Pa., produces and repairs gold pieces on April 16, 2025. He learned the craft from his uncle, who co-owns the store.

Binay Luitel poses for a portrait in his office in Ghimire Homes real estate brokerage, in Harrisburg, Pa., on April 16, 2025. Luitel, a U.S. Army veteran, works to find homes for members of his community.

Soke Ran Rai, a martial arts teacher at the DISKA Harrisburg Dojo, began teaching karate in the refugee camps in Nepal before relocating to the United States. He poses for a portrait in the dojo, where the U.S. and Bhutanese flags hang behind him, on April 16, 2025, in Harrisburg, Pa.

Students of the DISKA Harrisburg Dojo, mainly of Nepali-speaking Bhutanese origin, begin their warmup on April 16, 2025, in Harrisburg, Pa.

The DISKA Harrisburg Dojo hosts community members from Ohio and Pennsylvania for a celebration of Vishwakarma Jayanti, or Vishwakarma Day, which honors skilled workers and craftsmen, in Harrisburg, Pa., on Sept. 14, 2025.

Bhagawat Dulal and Pratik Chhetri, staff members at ARU, eat together with community members and friends after soccer practice in Harrisburg, Pa., on April 16, 2025.

At the Asian Refugees United office in Harrisburg, Pa., a map built by staff and youth members shows the different identities of their community.

Robin Gurung walks with other ARU staff after meeting with lawmakers on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C., on Sept. 17, 2025. He works in concert with the Asian Law Caucus to make sure that the issues facing his community, largely regarding the deportations of refugees, are seen by lawmakers.

Both programs run through Asian Refugees United (ARU), a Harrisburg nonprofit that also teaches cultural classes to refugee children. But the fields have become something else too: one of the few places this community still feels safe, as it faces a wave of deportations unlike anything it has seen before.

Under an intensified immigration crackdown, dozens of community members have been deported over the last 18 months. Before March 2025, the U.S. government did not deport these stateless refugees regardless of criminal history. Now they are being flown to Bhutan — a country that still refuses to recognize them as citizens and expels them on arrival to India or Nepal. Unable to repatriate to Bhutan, Nepal, or the U.S., they are left stateless twice over, with nowhere left to land.

Immigration and Customs Enforcement did not respond to requests for comment.

ARU co-founder Robin Gurung has traded running soccer programs for full-time advocacy, spending evenings and weekends with immigration attorneys, training staff in civic engagement, and flying to Washington to meet lawmakers. "We were not prepared for this when we [built] the rapid response team. Our job now requires us to talk to the family members, folks who are in ICE detention. The immediate need is to stop the deportations. Folks who are deported, they are not safe," Gurung said.

Nirjala Timsina, a coach with ARU's Soccer for Success program, works with a group of young players in Harrisburg, Pa., on Sept. 15, 2025.

Teen girls from the Nepali-speaking Bhutanese community play soccer through the Soccer for Success program at a park in Harrisburg, Pa., on Sept. 15, 2025.

Parents watch their children play in ARU's Soccer for Success program, in Harrisburg, Pa., on Sept. 15, 2025.

Cousins Kavya Saru, 9, and Denisha Saru, 8, blow bubbles as their sisters play soccer in Harrisburg, Pa., on Sept. 15, 2025.

Members of ARU's Soccer for Success program react as the Nepali-speaking Bhutanese men's soccer teams play in the Kalu Singh Tamang Memorial Championship in Harrisburg, Pa., on Sept. 21, 2025.

Shabin Subba, the head coach for ARU's Soccer for Success program, idly spins a soccer ball while watching the Kalu Singh Tamang Memorial Championship in Harrisburg, Pa., on Sept. 21, 2025.

Volunteers and friends Reena Pradhan and Jenny Gurung, both helping ARU's Soccer for Success program, hang out on the sidelines of the Kalu Singh Tamang Memorial Championship in Harrisburg, Pa., on Sept. 21, 2025.

Cincinnati's Nepali-speaking Bhutanese men's soccer team plays in the Kalu Singh Tamang Memorial Championship in Harrisburg, Pa., on Sept. 21, 2025.

The fear has outrun the deportations themselves. Bhagawat Dulal, a Soccer for Success coach who now also translates for detainees, said even ordinary life has started to feel dangerous. "I had some people I was talking to ask, 'Can I go garden or should I not do that because of the [ICE] situation?' The one thing that has always been there through Bhutan, Nepal and to America: We found a way to garden, because that is what brought us joy — and now the same people are scared to go garden," Dulal said. "I'm so frustrated."

Even so, the fields fill every week with children learning the game from their elders. The community still gathers to mark their religious festivals. Their trades from life before the camps are flourishing through small businesses. On the soccer field, as everywhere else, they keep carrying forward what ARU staff member Manju Gurung called, ahead of a day of advocacy on Capitol Hill, "a future of hope, for our parents and all refugee parents around the globe."

Kripal Khatiwoda, 10, plays soccer with his sister, Christina Khatiwoda, 14, in their front yard in Harrisburg, Pa., on Sept. 14, 2025. Kripal participates in ARU's Soccer for Success program.

Aaron Tamang, 9, waters his family's backyard garden under the guidance of his mom, Nir Tamang, in Harrisburg, Pa., on Sept. 14, 2025. His sister, Naishi Tamang, 13, tags along.

Aaron Tamang, 9, jumps on his trampoline while his sister, Naishi Tamang, 13, and his mom, Nir Tamang, look on in Harrisburg, Pa., on Sept. 14, 2025. Aaron is a player in ARU's Soccer for Success program.

Community members gather for dinner and music at Robin Gurung's home in Harrisburg, Pa., on Sept. 14, 2025. Longtime friends Nawal Rai, who works as a storytelling and communications coordinator for ARU and runs the We Belong Here campaign, and Manju Gurung dance together as everyone sings together and Bibek Rai plays guitar.

ARU's Soccer for Success head coach, Shabin Subba, leads a troupe of young adults in Deusi/Bhailo, providing dancing and singing in exchange for cash and blessings, alongside soccer coach Nirjala Timsina, during Tihar, the Hindu festival of lights and animals, in Mount Holly Springs, Pa., on Oct. 23, 2025.

Manju Gurung's family home is decorated with lights and decorations in honor of Tihar, the Hindu festival of lights and animals, in Mount Holly Springs, Pa., on Oct. 23, 2025. A part-time volunteer coach for the Soccer for Success program, Gurung also helps lead the civic engagement arm of ARU to educate their community on their rights and voting power.

Manju Gurung prepares a plate for offering blessings amid festivities in honor of Tihar, the Hindu festival of lights and animals, in Mount Holly Springs, Pa., on Oct. 23, 2025. A part-time volunteer coach for the Soccer for Success program, Gurung also helps lead the civic engagement arm of ARU to educate their community on their rights and voting power.

Manju Gurung helps feed her grandmother, Phul Gurung, at their home amid holiday festivities in honor of Tihar, the Hindu festival of lights and animals, in Mount Holly Springs, Pa., on Oct. 23, 2025.

Manju Gurung's family keeps a portrait from their time in the camps, as seen in their home amid holiday festivities in honor of Tihar, the Hindu festival of lights and animals, in Mount Holly Springs, Pa., on Oct. 23, 2025.

Manju Gurung's cousins and family members, Jason Kharel (from left), Bryan Gurung and Pritam Gurung, sneak in some Chick-fil-A amid holiday festivities in honor of Tihar, the Hindu festival of lights and animals, in Mount Holly Springs, Pa., on Oct. 23, 2025.

ARU's Soccer for Success head coach, Shabin Subba, hosts young siblings Bianka and Bryan Gurung at his family's home amid festivities in honor of Tihar, the Hindu festival of lights and animals, in Mount Holly Springs, Pa., on Oct. 23, 2025.

Maansi Srivastava is a freelance documentary photographer based in Washington, D.C. Find more of her work on her website, Maansi.photos, or on Instagram, at @maansi.photo.

Corrected: July 21, 2026 at 7:16 AM CDT

Two photo captions in a previous version of this story incorrectly described the photos as having been taken during a celebration of Krishna Janmashtami. In fact, it the celebration was of Vishwakarma Jayanti.