You love Jesus, right? You want to follow his teaching and example, right? Then join me for a little happy dance: Yesterday the US State Department launched a program called Welcome Corps. Finally, American citizens can band together and sponsor refugees.
Just the facts, Ma’am:
“Refugees” not “immigrants” (documented or not): Welcome Corps allows for private sponsorship of vetted, documented legal refugees. Most will initially come from Sub-Saharan Africa. This effort is distinct from the issues on our southern border.
What do sponsors do? In groups of five, sponsors will “take on tasks like securing and furnishing initial housing, greeting the refugee newcomers at the airport, enrolling children in school, and helping adults find employment.”
Who pays for this? The sponsors will be required to have $2275 per refugee they sponsor.
Two things that I like about Welcome Corps:
It’s politically ambidextrous! If you’re blue, “Yay, we’re helping marginalized people.” If you’re red, “Good, we’re giving power from the government back to the people.” If you’re Christian, well, our Jesus does have a soft spot for people who got dealt a bad hand.
It’s timely relative to the employment environment. Anecdotally, the Department of Corrections in my state, Colorado, currently has over 1700 openings! Other agencies are similarly understaffed.
The pilot effort is looking for 10,000 Americans who can help 5000 refugees. A quick peek at the Church Angel website says there are over 4000 churches in Colorado alone! Seems likely that Christians around the country could step up and say, “Hey, we got this!”
Can you think of five local friends whose gifts, resources and connections compliment yours? My mind is spinning! Get started here. And please let me know what you think about Welcome Corps.
Special thanks to readers who weighed in with info and advice for my upcoming trip to Ivory Coast. If you haven’t yet, please open and read last week’s Muslim Connect.