BUFFALO, N.Y. — Thousands of refugees resettle in New York, but making a new home out of an unfamiliar setting can be very difficult. That’s why there’s a team of volunteers that are helping out.

“Today we are doing a setup for an Ethiopian mom and her six children,” said Kathy Elias, creator of Kathy’s Happy Helpers.

Elias has a system down pat.

“We do a setup in three days,” she explained.

They measure, clean and move in furniture, over and over again.

“I thought we'd do one house," she said. "Then Catholic Charities said, 'Can you do another house?'”

All this hard work is to welcome refugees to this country.

“It's a scary situation," said Kate Pelczynski-Walker, public relations and communication specialist for Catholic Charities of Buffalo. "Having a group of people that are here to say welcome to the community, that can be a really helpful experience to them.”

Catholic Charities has a system of volunteers helping with house setup, but also picking them up from the airport, making appointments for them, showing them how public transit works and much more.

“We couldn't do half of what we do without our volunteers,” said Pelczynski-Walker.

That is why this work is so important.

“All our furniture, everything that you see, is all donated, except the beds,” said Elias.

She pulls from a team of people in her Facebook group called "Kathy’s Happy Helpers."

“Buffalo is known as the City of Good Neighbors, and I think it's incredibly important to help those who who are asylum seekers and who are immigrants coming in, because that's like the core American message,” said volunteer Connor Devans.

Whether its measuring, moving or trying to set up, they all get something out of this too.

“It's kind of like Tetris. You know, it's a puzzle," said Devans. “It’s just one click away, one drive away, or walk away and even with your neighbor, just go out and help. You don't have to see the effect, but just always doing the right thing.”

Refugees will continue to come in.

“I feel that the need for volunteers is going to increase in the coming years,” said Pelczynski-Walker.

That means Elias will keep showing up.

“It certainly takes up more of my time than my job did," she said. "But it's so gratifying.”

While they usually don’t meet the families they serve, sometimes the people they help do join Kathy’s Happy Helpers. Then, they pay that help forward.

Elias is looking to get more young people involved in the effort. You can find them on Facebook or reach out to your local Catholic Charities branch.