|
Minute for Mission
Community Refugee & Immigration Services (CRIS)
| | |
|
by Rick Greene
MISSION GRANTS TEAM MEMBER
| |
For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me. Matthew 25:35 | | |
|
CRIS is an independent non-profit organization that serves the refugee and immigrant populations in Central Ohio. Among other things, CRIS is a refugee resettlement agency and, as an affiliate of Church World Service, it has a cooperative agreement with the Department of State to directly receive and place refugees in our community. It's mission is to help refugees and immigrants reach safety and stability, sustain self-sufficiency, and achieve successful integration into the Central Ohio community. According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, refugees are defined as people fleeing conflict or persecution. They are defined and protected in international law, and should not be expelled or returned to situations where their life and freedom are at risk.
In a recent On a Mission! newsletter, CRIS was cited as an integral part of the operation of the Refugee Ministry Team at First Community-- to help sponsor new arrivals and to assist with emergency funds for expenses and unexpected costs not covered by federal assistance. CRIS also helps special needs situations, such as in-home English tutoring for those unable to attend group classes. This organization offers a wide array of programs and services that aim to facilitate sustained self-sufficiency and successful integration for those we serve, including English classes, employment training and placement, health and wellness groups, youth mentorship, family support, advocacy for victims of crime, and legal services.
Historically, the organization began as the outreach service of the Buddhamamaka Society, Inc., a mutual association founded in 1987 by refugees from Laos. In 1995, the Society established CRIS in response to the unexpected closing of two local refugee resettlement offices. Initial funding for services was provided by a grant from the Columbus Foundation and the Franklin County of Human Services. CRIS was selected in 1999 by the City of Columbus and United Way to open a second office and became an independent 501(c)(3) organization while retaining a close relationship with the Buddhamamaka Society. In 2001, CRIS became the Church World Service Ohio affiliate to provide refugee resettlement services. The agency, in 2004, was approved to represent clients before the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services
Specifically, CRIS also prides employment, legal, newcomer support, refugee health and wellness, parenting for LEP (limited English proficiency), early intervention, older refugee and immigrant, and resettlement services with the community.
In 2023, Ohio welcomed refugees of 37 countries (2,818 refugees), with those from 27 countries settling in Columbus (902 refugees). 83.7% of refugees settling in Columbus were primarily from six countries, including Democratic Republic of Congo, Afghanistan, Somalia, Syria, Ukraine, and Eritrea.
CRIS has group volunteer activities, such as First Community Church’s Refugee Welcome Teams, which help with the successful resettlement starting for a life here in Central Ohio. These teams commit to walk alongside a refugee family in their first six months in the U.S. Team participants have learned the process necessary to go through the steps to get refugee status in the United States and the challenges faced by resettling families. If interested in participating and helping with these Welcome Teams at FCC, contact Shirley Barney.
There are ways to support the work of CRIS through both individual activities. Individual activities include buying groceries, transporting clients to medical appointments, teaching basic computer skills, moving furniture, tutoring future U.S. citizens, donations both cash and new or gently used items to help make each refugee’s living space a home, etc. contact Flannery Rokeby-Jackson at frokebyjackson@cris-ohio.org.
If you would like more information about First Community Church, its Mission programs, or are interested in joining a team, please email us at Mission@FCchurch.com.
| | |
|
Monthly Update
by Yohan Kim
FOOD PANTRY MANAGER
Heart to Heart has been feeling like Christmas in July, buzzing with the efforts of many volunteers and gifts delivered by our friends. We’ve had large donations from First Community, Our Lady of Victory, First Merchants Bank, Penzey's Spices, and Columbus Humane. Gardens supporting us have included Share & Learn, Seeds of Hope, South Side Family Farms, Barrington, etc. That doesn’t even get into the gifts we receive regularly from Giant Eagle, Marc’s, Nothing Bundt Cakes, Connie Warren, and Monday Night Meals. It’s a blessing that begets blessings, often initiated by volunteers and employees who act upon being inspired.
The pantry is always vibrant with youthful energy during the summer, as teens fill most of the shifts. That ends when school starts. Our big drop-off in volunteers, particularly the Drive-Thru, will begin during the week of August 19. Please spread the word that we will need volunteers to fill that gap, which usually takes a while to occur during colder seasons.
As of this writing, our Pop-Up Pantry has served 143 families and the Drive-Thru had 470. That includes 94 new families served by those teens at First Community South. That takes a lot of work, with our volunteers receiving donations, picking up food, stocking many thousands of pounds, setting up and tearing down our distribution point, preparing food for delivery to sites, and fulfilling orders from our neighbors. Everything that we do inches us closer to the Beloved Community spoken of by Martin Luther King, Jr. Love and justice takes a village to create, continually refreshed by the next generation willing to stand in solidarity with their neighbors.
| |
Service Statistics
Service Numbers
- Households 681
- New Families 147
- Drive-Thru Pantry 496
- Pop-Up Pantry 185
Individuals 2,192
- Seniors 287
- Adults 1,115
- Children 790
Meals Served 19,728
| |
Incoming Materials
in pounds
- First Community Church 1,931
- Giant Eagle 1,696
- Marc’s 294
- MOFB 38,021 (total weight)
- Shop Thru weight 11,869
- Order weight 26,152 ($7,125.34)
| |
|
School Supply Drive
by Amy Caskie
DIRECTOR OF MISSIONS
Beginning Thursday and ending Sunday, August 11, we will be collecting new backpacks full of school supplies! We are hoping to collect 150 backpacks with a complete set of supplies for Riverview International Center, one of our Pop-Up Pantry's regular service locations.
Receptacles for donations will be available at both First Community locations outside worship spaces and near donation stations. Volunteers will be present in the parking lot of both First Community locations on Sunday, August 11, our last day for collection!
Take advantage of the State of Ohio's upcoming tax holiday (July 30- August 8) to purchase these items for donation. Back-to-school shopping with your own students? Pick up an extra set of items while you're shopping!
See the graphic for details. Please help the volunteers donating their time to this project by closely following the instructions for donation. Note: we cannot accept financial donations or used items for this particular project! This is a time-sensitive collection that must be completed by August 11, so no late donations are accepted.
| |
|
by Shirley Barney
REFUGEE MINISTRY TEAM LEAD
Our team has been really focused on helping the families’ budget and manage their money, which has been a big opportunity for some. Mary Buzby has been working tirelessly and diligently to ensure funds on their SNAP cards are deposited and helped them manage their money, pay bills, etc.
Through the support of donations from the congregation:
- RMT donated $3,000 to CRIS (Community Refugee and Immigration Services) to purchase Welcome Kits / household items for newly arriving and to purchase grocery gift cards for families in need.
- RMT paid $1,500 past due bills (electricity, water, sewage, etc.) for a family in need.
- RMT paid $600 to enable 10 asylum seekers to take OSHA training for brick layers union employment.
- RMT paid 3 months of rent for family in need.
Thank you so much for donating to the RMT funds. There are so many families that need financial help and are grateful that we can provide support.
- We have a new addition to the RMT. Welcome to the team, Megan Willman. Megan jumped right in and is engaging with our families and provided suggestions to help families struggling with mental health challenges.
Help Wanted
We are looking for volunteers to help refugee families resettle to life in Columbus, by helping with the following:
| | |
- Gather household items (dishes, utensils, etc.)
- Stocking their pantry
- Clothing collection
- Apartment Setup
- Airport welcome
- Hot welcome meal
- Apartment move in
- Transportation assistance
| |
| |
Donations Needed
- Washer & dryer
- Car donations
| |
If you are interested in volunteering or donating the items needed, please contact Shirley Barney. | | |
|
by Beth Hanson
TRADING POST VOLUNTEER TEAM LEAD
With so much anguish in every corner of the world right now, it is easy to feel like we are standing idly by…..going to the pool, putzing in the garden, shopping for a new lipstick, having a barbeque…while other people on this earth are in hellish circumstances. It is a constant struggle in my mind. No matter what I do, the suffering of the world ramps up. I continue to shamelessly complain about my first world problems. My dishwasher has another leak, my magnolia tree has scale, my cat won’t be caught to go to the vet. Meanwhile, people in Sudan, Ukraine, Gaza, Haiti, our own drug-infested cities, and so many other places struggle to survive another day.
I can’t turn the other way and forget what is happening. Sympathy floods over me and I feel some guilt that I live in relative peace and plenty. Some of my friends tell me they don’t watch the news because it is too negative and depressing. Besides, there is nothing they can do about it. But I feel a responsibility to at least be a witness to the pain and trauma others are experiencing. If I was in their shoes and people half a world away turned away because my suffering was too much of a downer, I think I would feel so sad and abandoned…..even by God. Anyway, this is my chronic conundrum. What can I do? What is enough?
A couple of weeks ago, I was mindlessly pushing my cart around Kroger, when I noticed a young guy doing the same. He was wearing a red t-shirt with a quote on the back. Part of the quote caught my eye, and I got curious, so I sneakily maneuvered my cart until I got a good look at what it said. It read, “I cannot do all the good that the world needs. But the world needs all the good that I can do. – Jana Stanfield” The quote really hit a cord. (Ms. Stanfield is an inspirational humorist and singer-songwriter.) It was good food for thought and gave me some insight and calm and a whisper of acceptance. Every little kindness and comfort we offer to others counts toward making the world a more just and loving place.
At the Trading Post, we are raising money to help people in many of these faraway places as well as in the US. We do it one blouse, knick-knack, curling iron, pair of earrings, book, and CrockPot at a time. Last year we raised over $125,000 for missions at home and around the world, and it will provide some comfort, encouragement, nutrition, education, access to water, and health care for other people and families we will never meet, but who need our help. Besides the money we raise, our little store provides a place of community for all who shop there and enjoy the ambiance, friendliness and the bargains. It’s not going to lead to world peace, but it’s a start.
Please come down to get acquainted with our store in the basement of the Annex Building at South Campus. We are open Monday, Wednesday, Friday and the first Saturday of the month from 10 am to 4 pm. Donations are received on the first floor of the Annex Building during store hours.
| |
|
Monday Night Meals
Monthly Update
| | |
|
by Amy Caskie
DIRECTOR OF MISSIONS
A note from Pat, team coordinator:
"All is going smoothly with our groups... thank you for all the Monday groups and their dedication... The men say thank you over and over again for our service, we come away knowing that our time spent is appreciated. "
We need cooks on the second and fourth Mondays of each month, and servers on the fourth Monday. If you're interested in joining an existing team, please contact Pat Porterfield.
| | |
|
In The Garden
Updates from the Share & Learn Garden
| |
The Share and Learn Garden at First Community North sits on the property behind the Mary Evans Child Development Center. All the produce grown in the garden comes directly to Heart to Heart. The garden is managed and harvested by a small but mighty and fun group of volunteers. Master Gardeners Cheryl and Loren VanDeusen, and their daughter, Kate Paulson, are the group's leaders. The group convenes on Tuesday mornings, weather permitting. We receive weekly updates from Kate Paulson during the growing season, including these excerpts below. | |
 | |
July 28
Hello all!
Thank you for last week’s session. We harvested a lot of tomatoes, okra and cucumbers.
This is the hot part of the year and people start getting “garden fatigue”. It happens with every group activity…particularly when the total of amount of “work” that needs accomplished is not as much. What is needed mid-season as produce ripens a bit quicker, is check ins and possible harvesting at the garden on say, Fridays. This will also help volunteers that cannot make Tuesday mornings. I will outline some ideas and a sign-up sheet to Tuesday’s session. Everyone can choose a check-in time best for them…and the work is distributed evenly.
To date, we have harvested 226 pounds of produce total
- 142 cucumbers
- 46 bags of collards
- 102 containers of tomatoes
- 300 heads of cured garlic
- 14 containers of Okra
- approx. 12 bell peppers
- 11 pounds of onions (at the beginning of season)
Why do we keep track? Mainly because we need the data for the Growing to Green grant submitted each fall. Also to fold in with Heart to Heart’s data - also for funding purposes and records. It is not just the poundage, but how many families we can help.
Our season will extend to Thanksgiving and possibly even the first week of December as we will harvest carrots and onions (yet to be planted!) so we have a ways to go.
See you Tuesday!
Kate and Loren
| |
|
July 20
Hello all!
We will meet Tuesday the 23rd at 9am at the garden.
I checked on the vining plants in pots adjacent to the arches and the potted herbs yesterday, (Friday), and ended up picking a lot of 4th of July tomatoes and cucumbers.
I will bring what I harvested to the garden on Tuesday (and get packaged up). I will run the produce to Heart to Heart this Tuesday after we all harvest.
There will be more tomatoes (both varieties), collard greens, additional cucumbers, and a lot of Okra to harvest.
The garlic is finished curing and I will include the cured garlic in this week’s produce delivery.
See you Tuesday!
Kate, Loren, Cheryl
| |
|
July 14
Hi all!
We will have a gardening session this week, July 16 at 9am.
This week we only need to harvest collard greens, cucumbers and tomatoes. The okra is still growing, but the okra plants at my home have started producing, and I will add them to the mix. The garlic is just about finished curing in my garage, and I plan to drop this off to Heart to Heart on Thursday.
Last week the garden was visited by Cindy from Franklin Park Conservatory’s Growing to Green program. I believe the visit was a success! Cindy was pleased with our work, and had a few minor suggestions for us…garden is a continuous learning endeavor!
See you Tuesday and stay cool!
Kate, Cheryl, Loren
| |
FPC G2G Visits SLG at FCC
by Amy Caskie
Each October, our garden team applies for a grant from Franklin Park Conservatory's Growing to Green Program. Each year we have applied, we have been named grant recipients, receiving both monies and materials as a result. This spring, we received $1,500, 50 bags of mulch, 50 bags of soil and 35 bags of manure.
As a part of the program, grant recipient sites have an annual visit from a member of the FPC team. On July 9, the Share & Learn Garden had a site visit from Cindy Maravich, one of the Growing to Green Coordinators, pictured below with some of our team!
Cindy was impressed with the work of the gardeners, excited about the possibility of additional beds in 2025, and gave some advice to the team. As Kate Paulson said, "garden is a continuous learning endeavor", even for Master Gardeners like Cheryl and Loren Van Deusen, who oversee the work in the gardens!
I met the garden volunteers on site to document the visit in photos and share our gratitude for FPC's continued support of this impactful project and marvelous group of volunteers. But I never leave a visit to the SLG empty handed. This time, I received a warm chocolate chip cookie from Kate Paulson and a jar of homemade peach jam from Cheryl Van Deusen. I'm telling you, this is the group to volunteer with if you love a tasty treat. Contact Cheryl Van Deusen if you want to get involved!
|  | Left to Right: Cheryl Van Deusen, David Hanhilammi, Kate Paulson, Sam Schaadt, Joy Converse, Loren Van Deusen, Cindy Maravich (FPC) | | | |
|
July 7
Hello all!
This Tuesday, July 9, we will have a work session at 9:00am, and more importantly, Franklin Park Conservatory will be out at 9:00 to visit our garden.
So…all of the hard work has paid off, and we can show it off! Chocolate chip cookies and lemonade will be provided as a refreshment.
Thank you to everyone last week who weeded and harvested. It is appreciated. This week we will continue to harvest and keep up with those pesky weeks in the okra bed, LOL.
As an FYI, the garlic continues to hang in my garage and cure (for another 2 weeks). In place of the garlic, we will plant onions, green onions and shallots (not this week, but future sessions).
See you Tuesday!
Kate
| |
|
June 29
Hi all!
This week we will indeed have a work session despite the holiday this Thursday.
Dad (Loren) will be the sole director as I will not be in town this week. This past Friday, I picked several tomatoes and all of the garlic 🧄 (it is now curing in my garage for the next few weeks).
This week we need -
Weeding:
- In all the playground beds
- Around the whiteboard sign
- All of the beds outside of the playground (particularly the Okra bed!)
- Around the archways
Clipping up any stray tomato or cucumber vines
Harvesting:
- Tomatoes
- Bell Peppers
- Collard leaves
- check for cucumbers
Janice Rook will be potting up Basil, Parsley and Chives on new pots as well!
The Franklin Park Conservatory site visit is July 9 at 9am so let’s make the garden look as nice as possible before then!
Thanks for your help, and have a safe holiday later next week!
Kate, Loren, Cheryl
| |
|
by Amy Caskie
DIRECTOR OF MISSIONS
We are gearing up to start a collection in our donation stations at both First Community locations. We will be collecting pill bottles for Matthew 25 Ministries in Cincinnati, Ohio.
To get this effort off the ground, we are seeking additional volunteers! Time commitment would be very minimal. Jobs include checking receptacles, moving donations to storage, sorting, and prepping containers, and coordinating deliveries. If you or someone you know regularly travels to Cincinnati, Ohio and would like to help by acting as our courier, we would love to hear from them, too!
Interested volunteers should contact Rick Greene, who will coordinate the effort.
| |
PLEASE do not bring any donations to either First Community location until the receptacles are available and collection is announced. | | |
|
Monthly All Teams Meetings
A Standing Invitation
| |
Did you miss the last issue of On a Mission!? View it, and all past issues, by clicking the link below. | |
| |
|
Did you know Heart to Heart is on social media? Click the buttons below to follow us. We also have a blog! Read the weekly blog posts at h2h.FCchurch.com/blog | |
Did you know Trading Post is on Facebook? Click the button below to follow us. You can also sign up for the email list for occasional announcements, sales, and events. | |
|
News from our Mission Partners | | | | |
