Our Hillside
Refugee Ministry
A Letter about Joseph
Hillside Free Methodist Church has placed
a high priority on meeting the needs of the refugee. Hundreds of
thousands of refugees from Sudan, Bosnia and Kosovo have entered
the United States for refuge over the past 8 years. In conjunction
with World
Relief, the global-impact branch of the National
Association of Evangelicals , Hillside Church has
provided resources necessary for relocation, resettlement and/or
full sponsorship for over 100 refugees and their families over
the past 7 years. They have come from Bosnia, Kosovo, Eretria,
Liberia, Rwanda, Sudan and Iraq.
Presently, we are providing support to
over 35 families from Africa, and Iraq and the Eastern Europe. Many
of these men and women have been arrested for their faith, forced to
kill others in tribal warfare or be killed, have seen family members
murdered or have lost touch with close relatives. Their families remain
in a regions where Islamic extremists have enslaved over a million
Christians and many more have been murdered. Did you know that fewer
than 1% of refugees who enter America are receiving any public aid
one year after their arrival?
What exactly does Hillside
Church do for a refugee? Hillside Church provides...
• furnishings, sundries and other items necessary to set up an apartment
for a refugee family.
• training and transportation in securing necessary legal documents, identification,
public aid and social security assistance.
• linkage for the refugee to the closest English classes.
• training for shopping and food preparation of American foods, and at
least one large-scale staples shopping trip for each refugee.
• (when providing full sponsorship) the security deposit and first two
months of rent for the refugee family's apartment, including utilities.
• clothing resources as necessary.
• friends, support and encouragement during one of the most difficult periods
in a person's life.
• opportunities for introduction to the love and saving grace of Jesus
Christ to those who are hurting and in deep need.
What can I do to help?
* Pray for refugees. He upholds the cause
of the oppressed and gives food to the hungry, the Lord sets the prisoners
free. The Lord gives sight to the blind, the Lord lifts up those who
are bowed down, the Lord lvoes the righteous. The Lord watches over
the alien and sustains the fatherless and the widow, but he frustrates
the ways of the wicked. Psalm 146:7-9
* Donate furnishings to the Refugee Ministry,
always needed are coffee tables, dining room tables and chairs, small
couches, bed and mattresses, dressers, etc. Most refugees move into
very small apartments, so large, grandiose furnishings are counter-productive.
* Donate cash. Funding apartment rents,
utilities, food, transportations costs, etc. depends upon your generosity.
* Donate time. We are always in need
of people to transport refugees to various appointment, to befriend
and spend time with them, to share American culture and to listen to
their stories as well as to pick up furniture, sort through donations,
etc.
* Do NOT donate clothing. We have discovered
that it is better to take the refugees shopping so that they can choose
their own apparel, for more often than not the clothing donated does
not fit either the size or taste of our international guests.
Who do
I contact to help?
Hillside Free Methodist Church, 2727 Crawford Avenue, Evanston, IL 60201. Pastor
Mark Adams . 847/328-7182
