Monthly Outreach - Update!
Our Outreach feature for November is the St George’s Refugee Fund. As many of you know Ruth and Tesfalem have safely arrived in their new Victoria home! However, due to cost of living increases we have had to amend our sponsorship budget, which was set 5 years ago.
The Refugee Team appreciates the Grace with which people have already donated financially as well as setting up their home.
With the support of our Social Justice and Outreach Team we are now asking for a last final push to add $10,000 plus to the budget to help our commitment to Ruth and Tesfalem until September 2025.
Our goal is to reach $10,000……we can now say that we are on our way, and hope to exceed this.
All donations are gratefully accepted via several methods: The Outreach Blue Envelopes with cheque or cash, or indeed any Envelope dropped off at the Church Office, also online with Tithel.y. All formats should be clearly defined as “St George’s Refugee Fund”. This also means that tax receipts will be available via the Church.
Prayerfully submitted by your Refugee Team: David, John, Jennifer, Peter and Rosamund.
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Monthly Outreach - St. George's Refugee Sponsorship
As many of you know Ruth and Tesfalem have safely arrived in their new home!
Now that we all have had time to take a breath, we look forward to the upcoming year as we fulfill our sponsorship support, along with their co-sponsor, Ermias, Ruth’s brother.
The reality of five years passing since we drew up an original budget incurs cost-of-living increases. Also acting on information given by Immigration Refugee and Citizenship Canada [IRCC] in January we retained a suite in the Spring, and then had to hold that while we waited for their arrival week by week, which finally came to be on Sept 20th.
All this means that although we have them safely settled in a comfortable home, we have to consider our new sponsorship budget, which in reality brings a $10,000 short fall.
The Refugee Team appreciates the Grace with which people have already helped Ruth and Tesfalem. With the support of our Social Justice and Outreach Team we are now asking for a last final push of donations to complete our commitment over their full year, into Sept 2025.
Prayerfully submitted by your Refugee Team: David, John, Jennifer, Peter & Rosamund.
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Exciting Refugee update!
On Friday September 20th, a few minutes after midnight, we were so happy to be at the Victoria airport to greet Ruth and Tesfalem after their mammoth journey from Addis Ababa to Victoria! A journey five years in the making for this young refugee couple.
With Rev Christine, we were four from St George’s Refugee Team. Ruth’s brother and brother-in-law were also there to welcome the young couple into their family’s embrace. Many hugs and happy faces swept away the fatigue for them.
We would like to take the opportunity to express our heartfelt thanks to everyone for their prayers and support in so many ways over the five years! As well we give thanks for the abundance of household items we could provide for them, to make their new place a home here in Canada. The Team looks forward to the year ahead as we supporting them through their first year here.
May God bless them, and support them as they move forward into a new future.
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St. George has had a long history of sponsoring refugee families through the Refugee Committee of the Anglican Diocese.
The current Refugee Sponsorship Steering Committee was established in October 2015 under the auspices of the Social Justice and Outreach group in response to public outcry regarding the Syrian refugee crisis.
Since then, four of the five sponsorships the Parish has been involved in have come to a successful conclusion:
• Feb 2016-2017 - Raed & Natasha Belal and their four children (Syria)
• May 2018-2019 - Haile Yemane (Eritrea)
• Oct 2019-2020 - Abdul & Betul Elcuk and their three, now four, children (Syria)
• A fourth sponsorship, of another young man from Eritrea, was unexpectedly and permanently cancelled by Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) in Nov 2018.
• The fifth was committed to in July 2019, for a young Eritrean woman Ruth and her husband, Tesfalem. They arrived here in Victoria on September 20th!
We are now looking for new volunteers to get involved with this important ministry. If you are interested, please contact admin@stgeorgecadborobay.ca.
Financial support for this ministry is also needed and appreciated. Gifts can be made out to St. George's Anglican Church with a note that the donation is for the Refugee Ministry.
For more information about refugee sponsorship in the Diocese of British Columbia, visit https://bc.anglican.ca/ministries-and-programs/refugee-sponsorship--218