A Message from Our Agency Director ~
By now you’ve seen the drastic cuts to the number of refugees that will be allowed into the US this coming year. Based upon this new information, I have a simple message for the many volunteers who make up The Welcome to America Project:
Don’t quit! Instead, do more than ever. Help refugees to not just settle in America, but to flourish! People’s tomorrows depend upon your actions today.
Think of the journeys that refugees take. Their lives are in danger and they run. They’re at risk because of who they are. Faith, ethnicity, politics, war, trafficking, slavery, dictatorship, forced military conscription. They run to save themselves. They run to save their children. They run because they have no other safe choice.
Not all refugees make it to safety. Some live in tents for the rest of their lives. Very few make it to America. For those who do arrive, how are you going to be a part of their welcome? What will you share? Time? Talent? Furniture? Funding? This period of history will not define refugees. They are resilient. But it will define us, the more fortunate. We are all a part of the welcome. What role will you play?
People often ask what does WTAP need and why. We most need funds, monthly donors, who help us to meet the obligations of running a non-profit. Rent, insurance, salaries, truck maintenance. Basic boring stuff but absolute requirements to function. You can
CLICK HERE TO DONATE NOW
and help us to continue the welcomes. Every little bit helps us to help refugees.
WTAP and the refugees we greet also need your time and talent.
CLICK HERE TO VOLUNTEER
and learn what volunteer opportunities exist. Everybody, every week has a role in the welcomes. Sorting donations. Packing for upcoming welcomes. Readying the clothing closet. Staffing welcomes. Helping with administrative duties. Taking photos for social media. Fixing broken furniture. Readying bikes for refugees. Building computers. And a whole bunch more. What role will you play?
And we need help with furnishings for the homes. Have you ever helped someone with contributions to their first apartment? These are the sort of items we take in donation. Dressers, coffee tables, end tables, kitchen chairs, upholstered couches and chairs, kitchen items, clothes, and much, much more. You can
CLICK HERE TO SEE OUR WISH LIST
and know what items are most beneficial.
Below are a few slides that illustrate refugee intake, historic and future. No matter who is granted asylum to our country, please let’s band together to give refugees the welcomes they deserve and to share our resources such that we accelerate their self-sufficiency, helping them to flourish not settle.
Yes, we are all a part of the welcome. What role will you play?
