Caring for Our Neighbors
By Amy Lee Carpenter, Director of Communications
We are very excited to announce that we have agreed to sponsor another refugee family here at St. Paul. In conjunction with Kentucky Refugee Ministries, we will be assisting a Syrian family to assimilate into the United States. This Muslim family, consisting of mother, father, and 4 children (all boys; ages: 6, 9, 15, 21) was accepted in the United States Resettlement Program in 2013. They have been living in Turkey since this time, awaiting availability of resettlement to the US. They will arrive in NYC on July 20 and KRM will assist the family with getting to KY in the days immediately following.
This opportunity requires help from many people! You can share the love of Christ by helping us make this difficult transition as smooth as possible. One of the most important ministries we can provide is being a kind, welcoming, and helpful presence to this family.
How you can get involved:
1. Set up their new home!
Please see the Sign-up Genius at the link below, if you have items to donate
www.SignUpGenius.com/go/
There will be a day where the Beyond the Walls team will rent a truck for larger furniture (TBA). The team will come to you to pick up these larger items. Smaller items can be dropped off at the church office during the day.
***Please do not drop off items that are not listed on the Sign-up Genius.***
2. Stock their kitchen with groceries (one-time) and prepare a welcome meal!
If you are interested in helping with either of these, please e-mail Jill Ramsey at trainingwithjillramsey@gmail.
3. Help with transportation needs for the first 4-6 weeks.
Our goal is to get a distribution list of as many volunteer drivers as possible. This will ensure that this task does not become too overbearing on any one individual. We know that many of you will be able to help some of the time and not all of the time. Also, please know that if your car does not seat 7, we can still use your help! Many of the driving needs will be for just certain members of the family.
***All transportation volunteers will need to submit a copy of their driver’s license and proof of insurance. They will also need to attend a short Team Orientation (time to TBA). These are requirements of KRM.***
4. Assist with acclimating the family to our community and culture.
Examples include: Taking members of the family to a park, the library, hiking, etc.
I encourage you to consider getting involved with this important mission. You will likely find that you too will be blessed by this unique experience to personally assist those from another culture.
Any general questions may be sent to Jill Ramsey at trainingwithjillramsey@gmail.