New Journey Joins Northeast Valley Churches in Resettling Afghan Families
New Journey Lutheran Church members gathered a substantial collection of kitchen items, as well as additional furnishings, to join with ELCA churches of the Northeast Valley Consortium in preparing three apartments for newly arriving Afghan refugee families. Phoenix area apartments were set-up on February 2, 8 and 15 for families of 6, 7, and 13 members, respectively, in partnership with Lutheran Social Services of the Southwest, which has welcomed eight Afghan families in February.
The Northeast Valley Consortium – comprised of Ascension Lutheran, Christ the Lord, Living Water, New Covenant, and New Journey congregations – has been involved in Afghan evacuee resettlement since November 2021. Following a successful effort to raise more than $30,000 for emergency staffing for LSS-SW to support the initial wave of evacuees from Afghanistan, the churches have fully prepared 4 apartments and furnished 14 more, prior to this month’s work.
The “resettlement team” led by Keith Hainy, Christ the Lord, has both learned from longer-standing refugee housing support provided by members of the Living Water congregation and developed a strong collaborative mission to house those in need. Periodically, the NEVC team also supports requests from Scottsdale’s Paiute Neighborhood Center to help prepare apartments for neighbors experiencing homelessness. By partnering consortially, much more can be accomplished than a single church can accomplish alone.
The work to prepare new homes for refugees has also raised awareness of broader issues of hunger, homelessness, and immigration policy. In particular, while the initial evacuees arrived to the U.S. in early Fall 2021, having worked with and supported U.S. troops in Afghanistan, they remain on temporary status (which expires in summer 2023) and have yet to be granted a clear path to citizenship. Though strongly supported by U.S. veterans and clearly favored by Republicans and Democrats alike, the Afghan Adjustment Act was dropped in final negotiations of the omnibus spending bill in December 2022, leaving some 70,000 persons to continue to live in uncertainty.
Lutheran Social Services’ refugee caseload for January was 20 arriving individuals or families, from several nations, and February will see a total of 58 arrival households. Susan Masood, LSS-SW faith and community engagement specialist offers: “We assist refugees from the first day of their arrival till they become citizens of the US. We love to help refugees and we would like communities to come together to welcome them and affirm that they are safe.” As a resettlement agency, LSS-SW provides core services for the first 3 months of individuals’ arrival, which include housing, furnishings, employment, registration of children in school, immunization and other medical appointments, assistance in application for state benefits, transportation for any appointment, and much more. LSS-SW partners with employers who are seeking workers; more information is available at hire@lss-sw.org.
Kris Bartanen, Social Ministry
