May 2023 Newsletter

Whew! We have been busy. We hope you will browse the images and stories in this newsletter. Welcome House Raleigh is a collection of churches, institutions, and individuals who believe that welcome and hospitality can change the world. While this work is not easy, it is JOY filled. This has been confirmed in 1,000 different ways over the past few weeks. We have found the Spirit of God enlivening our passions in spaces filled with hundreds of people from 5 different states at the recent Hospitality and Housing Summit, and we have sensed that same Spirit sitting alongside a recent immigrant at a bus stop. Thanks be to God for calling us forward into a brighter and richer community.

Housing and Hospitality Summit

Read about the Hospitality and Housing Summit

Sparks of Joy

Transforming Underused Spaces into Sanctuaries of Welcome

About a dozen churches in North Carolina’s Triangle region, anchored by Raleigh, Durham and Chapel Hill, have retrofitted ancillary buildings for use by refugees. In all, about 40, including churches in Virginia, Tennessee and Texas, have joined the Welcome House network.

Click the image above to read the full article.

Join a Circle of Friends

Hannah Turner, Assistant Coordinator, recently spent a few hours with a guest riding the bus. Our newly arriving neighbors are learning so many things at once: English, transportation systems, grocery stores, school system, healthcare system, etc. You can help. Consider gathering a few of your friends and committing to befriending a Welcome House guest. The only requirement or prerequisite is that you are friendly. No special skills or certifications required. Our guests have a social worker and a support team, but they need friends. We all do. The commitment is for 6-9 months. Contact Kim Wyatt for more information.

Welcome House Raleigh Hosts its first Wedding

For most guests arriving at Welcome House Raleigh is the first time in a long time they have experienced enough safety and rest to think about the future. A recent couple had spent years fleeing and running. The wedding that they had hoped for was just not possible.

We were delighted to celebrate this couple's wedding, and our very own Michelle Hays made the cake! A local church offered its space and even set up the technology so that their extended family could watch.

Title 42's Impact on Raleigh

Welcome House Raleigh House Manager, Ashley Glimasinski, was recently featured in a WRAL news story discussing immigration and Title 42. She did a great job along with our friends at USCRI of making sense of a confusing and troubling topic. Ashley is a great resource for questions you might have concerning current immigration issues and how you might be a better advocate for our neighbors.

Click the above image to watch the news video.

How You Can Help

At the present time there are 14 guests at Welcome House Raleigh. If you would like to provide a week of groceries for these families, it would be a BIG help. Use the Sign Up Genius link to learn more details and sign up.

Grocery Sign Up

We are running low on a few much needed supplies. If you are able to donate, please let us know so that we can coordinate delivery.

toilet paper
laundry detergent
cleaning supplies
mattress pads (twin/full/queen)

Make a Gift to Make a Difference

Contributions to Welcome House Raleigh are given through the CBFNC web site.

A Note: In the drop down menu under Additional Information - "Where would you like to direct your gift?" PLEASE CHOOSE "WELCOME HOUSE (WYATT MINISTRY)"

If you would like to mail your gift, kindly use this address:

CBFNC | 2640 Reynolda Road | Winston-Salem, NC 27106

Please indicate on your check: Welcome House Raleigh

Save the Date - World Refugee Day Celebration

Welcome House Raleigh is part of CBF North Carolina's Welcome House Community Network, a collaborative missions program of CBFNC, CBF field personnel, partner churches and individuals that provides hospitality ministry to vulnerable neighbors across the state.