New beginnings for a family. That is the dream that brought people from St. John’s Lutheran Church, Hillview elementary school and the community of Vernon together for a luau dinner earlier this month.
The dinner raised $8,000 for this purpose and affirmed that, although this dream was spurred on by the need of Syrian refugees, we would be open to providing new beginnings for a refugee family wherever they came from.
This week we have heard that our dream has taken another step forward. Canadian Lutheran World Relief (CLWR), the sponsorship agreement holder, has forwarded our application to the Canadian government for consideration with others applying to receive some of the 10,000 refugees that are being cleared for immigration to Canada this year.
This does not mean we will be getting a family from this group. However, it does mean our application will be considered. Watch for further news on that. Meanwhile, we will continue to do the work for a family to come here. That includes seeing that the remaining funds we need are raised. So far we have $18,200 of the $30,000 we need. And when we know a family will be coming, there will be a lot of opportunities for helping. If you are interested in being part of this, let us know.
You can reach us at stjohnsvernon.com, emailing us at refugeecommittee@stjohnsvernon.com or by calling the church office at 250-549-2244.
Editor’s note: CLWR, through The Lutheran World Federation (LWF), is providing support to Syrian refugees living in urban areas in northern Jordan and in the Za’atari refugee camp.