April 23, 2025
In October 2024, Sarah Justice joined our team as our first ever Basic Needs Program Manager. For our entire history, City of Refuge has been meeting basic needs through a variety of ways and we are so excited that Sarah has been able to come in and focus specifically on growing these efforts. Read directly from Sarah below on the progress, the partnerships, and the how lives are being transformed through this program.
City of Refuge has a mission to serve and empower refugees through relational care, education, and development. One of the ways we do this is through our Basic Needs Program. Some of the ways our Basic Needs Program assists our refugee friends are with household and personal supplies to establish homes in our community, healthy food through partnerships with several local agencies and farmers, and backpacks with school supplies to help young learners get off to a good start.
The Basic Needs Program also holds Health Clinics throughout the year to provide vaccines and other medical screenings and care to refugee members of our community. Our most recent Health Clinic was held this month.
On a rainy Saturday morning in April, City of Refuge first opened its doors to our team of Health Interns. Amy, Claudia, and Haley have been learning all semester about the needs our refugee friends have, and have been helping us establish community partnerships with health care providers as a way to meet these needs.
Next to arrive were our group of volunteers from the MU student chapter of Doctors Without Borders/ Médecins Sans Frontieres. Chloe, a former intern herself, started this group and wanted to continue to help City of Refuge. These student volunteers came ready to assist our friends and providers.
We then greeted our Health Clinic’s providers: Broadway Dental, Georgetown Dental and the Scholar Clinic. These partners generously offered to provide free dental, hearing, and vision screenings. They have also continued the relationships made that day by providing follow-up care and necessary appointments.
Soon our refugee friends arrived. They were greeted warmly and asked which type of screenings they would like to have. Volunteers helped them check in, walked them through the stations to the providers, played with their children while they were seen, and helped them check out after determining if follow-up appointments were needed.
It was heartwarming to see the smiles on the faces of our refugee friends and everyone who helped at our Health Clinic that day. We may not all speak the same language, but we can all communicate with one another through helping hands extended in friendship. I am grateful for the opportunity to get to know friends I might not otherwise have had the chance to meet. It was a wonderful way to spend a Saturday morning.
City of Refuge, along with our interns, volunteers and partner providers, assisted 55 refugees from 7 countries at our Health Clinic. These important screenings caught the need for glasses, ear cleanings, and dental care. Our refugee friends were able to get professional, caring assistance to meet these basic needs. This is what Loving Your Neighbor means to us.
Your continued support of City of Refuge helps our refugee friends thrive in our community. Every volunteer hour, supply drive, and dollar donated helps. Thank you to our interns, volunteers, and providers for participating in our Health Clinic. Thank you to everyone who has supported us in our endeavor to make these events possible by partnering with City of Refuge. Please consider becoming one of our $50/month donors so that we can continue to offer this relational care to our newest community members.
Sarah Justice
Basic Needs Program Manager
This month our Poem-a-thon has raised $5,667 so far – a new record! With five days left, would you consider supporting one of our poets?
Life in the Refugee Camp
They asked us if we had sisters. We
were scared, guns pointing at us ready to strike.
Eric told them “It’s me and Mama.” With a sister it was dangerous
we chased wild dogs, stealing their puppies. We
had no plans. We had forgotten about school. Some of us could sing
the ABCs. School was killing birds. Lighting dry fields on fire was a habit. Sin
was an act we gave home to. We
were the devil’s kids, they said, thin
little boys. We
wanted to be like the soldier who drank gin,
waiting for someone’s sister. We
did everything carelessly. We
danced and sang to African Jazz,
“Anita” was the song.
climbed banana trees in June.
ten years later in America, we barely touched a tree. We
knew the life of a refugee.
Die Soon.
Thank you to the 100+ of you who have signed up, increased, or have been committed to giving to City of Refuge on a monthly basis. We are so grateful for the support and will be looking to you more than ever before to sustain what we have built. Continue to help share with your spheres of influence about the work City of Refuge is doing! If you aren’t a giver yet, please consider joining in – any amount helps!
