One of my favorite parts of working at City of Refuge is the incredible team we have. Each of them brings their unique personality, experience, and passion into the work we do every day. Every person is here for a different reason, motivated by their core values. I’d venture to say that it’s not “just
Love… It looks like a lot of things. Big things, little things. Noticed and unnoticed. It looks like patience and kindness. Sometimes, it looks like silence – after all, it’s better to say nothing than something when the words threatening to come out are laced with hate and malice. Sometimes love is easy. But, often, it
We have some updates for you. With the new executive order “Realigning the United States Refugee Admissions Program“, certain funding streams were cut off to resettlement agencies nationwide during the 90 day review. This means that many new arrivals (some just here a few days), no longer have access to the federal funds that were
Six weeks ago I shared the story of how my connection to City of Refuge led to the miraculous occasion that I was able to help sponsor and welcome Mugisha, a Congolese refugee living with limited possibilities in Kenya. Since then I’ve heard from countless folks who were moved by the story asking me how
It was a crisp autumn day when I first stepped into Daniel Boone Regional Library as a 19-year-old, three days after arriving in America. The grandeur of the place overwhelmed me not just because of its towering bookshelves or the quiet hum of knowledge, but because it was the first library I had ever entered.
I’m not sure if you know this, but if you don’t… City of Refuge is a local non-profit that works with people from all over the world. People from all over the world that now live in mid-Missouri. 40 countries. At least 23 different languages. And it is beautiful. And while the future feels foggy
It’s fall, y’all! Truly, my favorite time of year. The dipping temperatures, changing leaves, cozy meals and football! Autumn also means the start of a new school year. This fall marked the second semester of City Preschool! We opened our doors to 18 energetic three, four and five-year-olds from across the world and across town.
“I want to blow out the candle!” “NO! You did it yesterday, it’s my turn!” Screamed at the top of their lungs around the kitchen island, these are the arguments of our four children, and each one wants to blow out the family-devotional candle. Guess what the devotion was about today? “Love your neighbor.” I tried
Have you ever been in a place where you were forced to be truly dependent? A place where you had no autonomy or choice over where you slept, what you ate, what job you worked? A place where, simultaneously, people drove on the other side of the road, said hello in a different language, and
Read below from Jenn Burkholz, our Youth Empowerment Specialist, about how your support is changing young lives in our city! Recently, I hung a large, colorful paper “quilt” on the wall in my office. Elementary, middle and high school students in the Homework Helpers and Youth Impact Group created squares, which were then creatively arranged
