by Rick Greene

…be earnest and disciplined in your prayers. Most important of all,

continue to show deep love for each other, for love covers a multitude

of sins. Cheerfully share your home with those who need a meal or

a place to stay. God has given each of you a gift from his great

variety of spiritual gifts. Use them well to serve one another. 1 Pet 4:7-10 

Below is a list of some of the people in the Bible (there are many more) who took refuge, sought asylum, or migrated for other reasons, including being sent into exile, escaping natural disaster or famine, fleeing from political strife, violence, or persecution, etc. This list includes Noah, Abraham, Lot, Joseph, Jacob, Moses, Ruth, Daniel, Esther, Nehemiah, and Jesus and his family.

The U.S. Government has projected a 100% increase for the number of refugees for the year—an increase to 125,000. Since 1983, central Ohio has resettled 16,596 refugees from around the world, most arriving in the past decade, and, since 2002, nearly half of the refugees resettled in Ohio have come to Franklin County. The current events in the world underscore the humanitarian need to help those forced to start over.

Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service has identified the benefits of accepting refugees in the United States. These include: refugees create inventions some rely on (i.e., video games, Sriracha, Google, etc.), offering refuge is part of our history (let’s face it, everyone in this country is here because of immigrants, slaves, indigenous people, or refugees), a dynamic cultural diversity, refugees prop up our economy including filling up crucial gaps in our job market, refugees go on to become leaders (i.e., Henry Kissinger and Madeleine Albright), and American values are at stake (“I had always hoped that this land might become a safe and agreeable Asylum to the virtuous and persecuted part of mankind, to whatever nation they might belong.” George Washington).

Refugees are not a burden but an opportunity.

First Community Church members interested in helping have been invited to join Welcome Teams. These teams, managed by Community Refugee and Immigration Services (CRIS), through training, learn in detail about the process necessary to get refugee status in the United States, and the challenges faced by resettling families. CRIS's Welcome Teams assist these families in overcoming the challenges to successfully resettle and start a life here in Central Ohio.

If you would like more information about the Refugee Welcome Teams, see below. If you're interested in First Community Church, its other Mission programs, or are interested in joining the Mission Council for 2022, please email us at mission@fcchurch.com.

Monday Night Meals

for Friends of the Homeless

by Amy Caskie

There are a few times a year when small groups are needed, and it's always the third Monday of the month. This year, we are still looking for a volunteer group for December 19. It has been challenging to solicit new help for this program over the past few years, especially since the onset of the pandemic. Fresh eyes and new ideas have resulted in some procedural updates, some of which should remove possible obstacles from volunteering. We hope these small changes will encourage more groups to volunteer for this ministry.

These updates include:

• Sign-ups will now be managed online, to help us work as a team.
• The church kitchen at First Community South is available for meal preparation only by special request.
• Groups providing the meal are not required to stay at the shelter to serve. They may choose simply to deliver the meal.
• We no longer request or require that meals be homemade.

Groups can choose to provide meals in the following ways:

1. Plan, purchase and prepare homemade meals on their own.
2. Plan, and purchase premade meals as a group.
3. Pick-up meals provided with the support of a long-term Friends of the Homeless volunteer.

Yes, you read that right! A volunteer has offered to plan, order and purchase the meals on the Mondays remaining this year. All that would be required of the volunteer group would be pickup and delivery. Pat Porterfield and the Mission team will work with the volunteer group to make arrangements so this is as easy as possible. Pat is willing to join any first-time group in riding along and delivering the meal or just chat on the phone to answer any questions or ease any worries.

More information on the process and a link to sign up can be found at: FCchurch.com/monday-night-meals

Tandana Foundation Updates

We were happy to virtually welcome Anna Taft to our June Mission Council meeting on Tuesday, June 2. Anna gave us an update about what the group has accomplished since the council awarded them a grant of $21,650 in May.

Tuesday, June 3

Dear Amy and Kate,

Please convey our enormous gratitude to Mission Council for making possible the construction of a reservoir in Moe-Leye, Mali! The community is already working hard on their part, and everyone is coordinating to get it done as soon as possible, so that hopefully it can conserve water from the rainy season, which is starting now. 

Tandana staff, the contractor, and village leaders met recently to mark out the exact location of the stone dam that will be built. Residents have already been breaking the stones to use in the construction and are making good progress on that. I look forward to sharing more updates with you soon! Some photos are below.

Anna

Founding Director

Saturday, June 25

Dear Literacy Program Supporters,

Greetings and hopes that this finds you and yours well. I thought you would like to hear some news that is the direct result of your life-changing impact on our friends in Mali.  

Five new women's associations won the recent business plan contest and thus received startup funding for their initiatives. They are starting businesses in market gardening, indigo dyeing, and transforming cotton into cloth--and are very excited to move things forward!  

Here are a few photos from the ceremony at which they were given their initial funding:

Thank you for your continuing support of Tandana's mission!  

With profound gratitude, 

Richard J. O'Hara

Development Director

If you are interested or actively participating in any way with the First Community Prison Ministry, please plan to join us for updates and fellowship. Click to join the meeting

Did you miss the last issue of On a Mission! blog? There's a great story from the Trading Post. View it, and all past issues, by clicking the link below.

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