I Was a Stranger and You Welcomed Me—in Many Ways |
|||||||||||
|
by Susan Wersan |
 |
||||||||||
New World Outlook, July/August 2005 Since World War II, United Methodist congregations have provided caring communities ready to welcome refugee families to their new homes. Refugees have suffered grievous losses of homeland, family, friends, and community. Many find their adjustment to a new way of life smoothed by the friendship, care, and guidance provided by church sponsors or congregations ready to reach out to them in other ways. Last year, the United States admitted 52,826 refugees for resettlement. Each adult refugee met the international and US definition of the word "refugee"—having a well-founded fear of persecution if he or she returned home—and each met the additional requirements of the US Refugee Program. Refugees came from Sudan, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Rwanda, Burundi, Somalia, Iran, Azerbaijan, Ukraine, Russia, Burma, Laos, Colombia, and Cuba. This year, it is hoped that funds will be approved to permit at least 50,000 more refugees to be resettled. The majority of arriving refugees join relatives already resettled here, but their family members often lack the resources with which to provide for the new arrivals. The responsibility then falls on the local affiliate offices of the resettlement agency (Church World Service Immigration and Refugee Program is the agency with which the United Methodist Committee on Relief works in resettlement) and on local churches, whose hospitable outreach and variety of responses and resources help make a difference. Youth groups have offered some of the innovative contributions cited in this article. The power of the resettlement ministry lies in refugees, and church members, getting to know one another and appreciating the gifts everyone has to offer. Local churches that offer full sponsorship may gain not only a broader world view and insight into the plight and values of others but also a new sense of mission, congregational cohesiveness, and mission experienced face to face. When nonsponsoring congregations contribute through donations and volunteer services that provide personal contact with refugees, they can enjoy the kind of grace-filled moments experienced by sponsoring churches whose interaction with refugees is ongoing. But refugees and the local affiliate offices that serve them are thankful for all the thoughtful and meaningful donations made by local churches. Refugees Want to Learn One of the first challenges facing most refugees is the need to learn, speak, and write English. Usually the local affiliate places refugees in English as a Second Language (ESL) classes. Sometimes women at home with small children may lack the opportunities their spouses have to learn English. Child care is needed to enable women with young children to attend classes. The Refugee Task Force in Des Moines under Iowa's Refugee Coordinator, Muriel Griffin, has helped to revive ESL classes for refugee women. The classes are free, and the students are provided with transportation and child care. Presently, many of the students are widows from Afghanistan or women from Sudan, Vietnam, or Cambodia. One graduate of the program, an Afghan mother whose husband was murdered by the Taliban (his body left on her doorstep), learned to speak English in two years. She now works as a cook in a downtown club. The ESL classes are part of Hawthorne Hill, a multiservice agency supported by the Iowa Annual Conference, local businesses, and other church and UMW groups. Attempting to meet refugees' often intense desire for higher education is a challenge. St. Paul UMC in Louisville has contributed creatively and generously to fund a Refugee Youth Internship at Kentucky Refugee Ministries (KRM), the local Church World Service affiliate office. The purpose of the grant is to give refugee youth who wish to further their education a chance to explore career options while balancing study and paying tuition and living expenses. At present, Asmir Terzic, a refugee from Bosnia, is filling an intern position. He is planning to attend Spalding University, where he has received a soccer scholarship. Christ Church United Methodist in Louisville (which has also sponsored several refugee families) has established a scholarship fund for refugees. A large church, it held an offering for the Refugee Scholarship fund last October and raised $8000. Currently, the scholarships enable two Sudanese youth, Abraham Bul and Ajaangm Ajack, to attend two different colleges in Kentucky as full-time students. Abraham Bul used his money to attend classes at the local community college while he worked full time. When he had accumulated enough hours to transfer, he received scholarship assistance from Lindsey Wilson College, a Methodist-supported college in Columbia, Kentucky. The college president helped him work out a financial package. Smaller congregations can make contributions also. When Phyllis Fye, Refugee Coordinator in North Central New York, realized how desperately the Sudanese youth resettled in Syracuse wanted an education, she worked with several local churches to arrange for a large jar to be placed at the back of the church on two selected Sundays in the year. The jars labeled "Education for Sudanese Refugees," were collected after each service and provided the beginnings of a fund for the refugees. Giving "Things" Most Americans have "things" in abundance, so giving refugee families furniture, kitchen equipment, and clothing can be rewarding for donors and recipients alike. Local refugee affiliate offices faced with the arrival of several refugee families in quick succession appreciate quality donated items. If donations can be delivered, so much the better. (If the items are somewhat exotic, it is wise to call first to be sure that they can be used.) Nondenominational Northeast Christian Church in Louisville learned a lot about refugees and the Kentucky Refugee Ministries (KRM) affiliate office when one of its church members gave a car to a Sudanese family. The two families became friends. As a result, a giving relationship developed between the church and KRM. Lee Welsh, the affiliate sponsor developer, reported, "At Christmas time, the church collected over 700 beautiful warm coats that we gave to refugee clients—who then dispersed them to the larger refugee community through their refugee associations." Equipping refugees for cold climates can be a special challenge. To help families who do not have church sponsors, the Minnesota Council of Churches (a Church World Service affiliate) and First Christian Church in Minneapolis organized a "Shoe Spree." In February, 20 refugee children from Burma were able to buy new shoes and socks from Payless Shoes on University Avenue in St. Paul. Volunteers from the church helped the children select shoes, and Payless provided a 30 percent discount on all purchases—including those made by the volunteers! But best of all, the youth of the Disciples of Christ conference raised enough funds so that the children were able to "purchase" socks and a pair of shoes at no cost to them. Donations of furniture can be difficult to collect, but this did not faze Muriel Griffin, the United Methodist Conference Refugee Coordinator for Iowa. Learning that the resettlement agencies in Des Moines were expecting between 300 and 400 refugees in the coming year, mainly from Liberia and Sudan, she contacted local churches and pulled together a refugee task force from 13 local churches—about half of the United Methodist churches in Des Moines. These included a Korean, a largely African American, and an AME Zion congregation. With so many refugees arriving and needing to set up homes, furniture was a pressing need. The task force members relayed the needs to their churches and were able to gather together seven truckloads of furniture, home furnishings, and other donated supplies to give to the resettlement agencies. Space, Transportation, and Welcome Kits When Grace United Methodist Church in Dallas no longer needed its roomy two-story parsonage for its pastor, it became the home of the Church World Service affiliate office—Refugee Services of Texas, with a staff of 12. Grace UMC does not hesitate to loan out its 12-seat passenger van to Refugee Services of Texas when refugees need to be picked up from the airport.Manlius United Methodist Church in Syracuse uses its van on Sunday mornings to bring refugees living in downtown Syracuse to its worship service. The women of Rowlette United Methodist Church in Texas presented Refugee Services of Texas (RST) in Dallas with 30 individual toiletry kits for men and women, in individually sewn, drawstring bags. Monetary Donations in Appreciation Twenty-five years ago, Thousand Oaks United Methodist Church in California sponsored the Tang family from Cambodia. The family members flourished, received their education, and are now prospering. Every five years since their arrival, the family—the children now grown and with children of their own—hosts the former members of the church's Refugee Committee at a dinner in appreciation for all that the church did for them. This year, on the 25th birthday of the sponsorship, Thousand Oaks decided it would like to honor the family by making a gift to the Global Refugee Response, Advance #982540. Other refugee needs remain to be met—refugees from Chechnya, Turkey, Sudan, and Nepal. Contributions to the Global Refugee Advance project enable UMCOR to respond to these needs as they arise. A Project for Youth In search of a mission project that would meet its desire to visit a big city, the Youth Ministry Team (aka "Fishy Friends") of First Sturgis United Methodist Church, South Dakota, drove 800 miles from Sturgis to Minneapolis. They visited the refugee office of the Minnesota Council of Churches (MCC) and heard a presentation by its director, Joel Luedtke, on the Hmong refugees currently being resettled in the area. The group then headed off to shop for items to make a Refugee Welcome Basket. They returned some time later hauling several large storage bins. The team had $350 to spend—raised from car washes and the sale of hand-painted chef's aprons. They visited dollar and other bargain stores to buy supplies on the list—linens, toiletries, and kitchen items—as well as some not on the list. Glea Beck, the youth-team leader, reported, "The youth felt that a pizza cutter was essential, as refugees would surely soon appreciate this inexpensive American staple." The Dollar Store proprietor, learning about their mission, contributed $50 worth of goods. Elk River United Methodist Church in Minnesota is 35 miles outside Minneapolis. Its congregation decided its members could best connect with a Somali family by providing a Welcome Kit, a project of the Minnesota Council of Churches. The congregation spent the winter gathering blankets, pillows, dishes, and toiletries to equip an apartment for a family of eight with essential household items. The family members wrote to the church expressing their thanks. They saw the kit as a sign of the generosity and hospitality of Minnesotans. Bibles for Refugee Detainees Gloria Whilby serves as the United Methodist representative on the board of the Church World Service (CWS) office in Miami. Board members are encouraged to report the needs of the refugees to their churches. As part of her outreach to gather clothes and food for arriving refugees (many from Haiti and Cuba), Gloria encourages her church, Fulford United Methodist Church, to preserve a corner in its bulletin to register the needs of refugees. This bulletin section is also used to report news of the refugee program. Church World Service operates the Religious Services Program at Krome Detention Center in Miami, where asylum seekers and immigrants are held. Gloria gathers Bibles and devotional materials to help sustain detainees during long hours of tedium and isolation from the outside world. Volunteering for Refugees Volunteer time can be a highly valued gift. Mary Lynne Ziegler, a member of Springdale Presbyterian Church in Louisville, became hooked on refugee work when her church sponsored a Liberian family. Now she commits several hours of volunteer time a week to organize the goods donated to the Kentucky Refugee Services office. She packs all the apartments for the refugees who arrive without church sponsors. Lee Welsh, sponsorship developer in the affiliate office said, "She's a godsend, not to mention a thrifty shopper with a keen eye for bargains." Susan Wersan is the Executive Secretary for Refugee and Immigration Ministries, United Methodist Committee on Relief.
Date posted: Jul 08, 2005 |
|||||||||||
The Mission Magazine of the United Methodist Church
