St. Paul's UMC Refugee Ministry
St. Paul's UMC is a small United Methodist Church on the south side of Scranton, PA. We are an aging congregation whose attendance averages in the twenties and who runs on a bare bones budget. There has been a lot of uncertainty for the future of St. Paul's over the next few years.
Back in October families from the Congo began attending worship with us. When they first came we found out that they had walked 1.8 miles from the other side of Scranton to be with us for worship. We began offering rides to and from church and the number of refugees attending continued to grow to the point that we were making five trips to bring them to church.
Through the generosity of others we, were recently able to purchase a van to help with transporting them on Sunday mornings. It is our hope that we can continue to include them more and more in the life of the church.
We have received grants from our denomination to help with translation services and other immediate needs. This week we will be purchasing a translation system that will aid us in helping to include our new families in worship. We have already been printing the Scripture passages in both English and Swahili. We have also begun alternating stanzas of the Lord's prayer between English and Swahili. We are continuing to try and find new ways to allow them to participate in worship.
We have been able to meet many of the immediate needs of our new families, especially more weather appropriate clothing. We have also been able to make connections with others in the area who have been working with those who are coming to the area. It is our hope to gather additional resources to help them. We would like to work with others to begin programs to reach out to these individuals that can help them adjust to life in the United States including finding employment, companionship for single mothers, English classes and youth programs to keep youth off the streets.
The purpose of this GoFundMe is to help continue to meet the needs of our families through the creation of the aforementioned social programs. This account is separate from the general church accounts. The funds in this account would be used for English lessons, translation services, bi-lingual worship materials, emergency assistance for families, emergency transportation and other needs that arise.
We would appreciate any gift that God would lead you to give. We would also appreciate your prayers that God would continue to provide the needs for this great opportunity that is before us. If you, your church or organization would like to be involved in helping with this ministry in any other way, please contact us.
Thank you and God bless!
Pastor Scott
Back in October families from the Congo began attending worship with us. When they first came we found out that they had walked 1.8 miles from the other side of Scranton to be with us for worship. We began offering rides to and from church and the number of refugees attending continued to grow to the point that we were making five trips to bring them to church.
Through the generosity of others we, were recently able to purchase a van to help with transporting them on Sunday mornings. It is our hope that we can continue to include them more and more in the life of the church.
We have received grants from our denomination to help with translation services and other immediate needs. This week we will be purchasing a translation system that will aid us in helping to include our new families in worship. We have already been printing the Scripture passages in both English and Swahili. We have also begun alternating stanzas of the Lord's prayer between English and Swahili. We are continuing to try and find new ways to allow them to participate in worship.
We have been able to meet many of the immediate needs of our new families, especially more weather appropriate clothing. We have also been able to make connections with others in the area who have been working with those who are coming to the area. It is our hope to gather additional resources to help them. We would like to work with others to begin programs to reach out to these individuals that can help them adjust to life in the United States including finding employment, companionship for single mothers, English classes and youth programs to keep youth off the streets.
The purpose of this GoFundMe is to help continue to meet the needs of our families through the creation of the aforementioned social programs. This account is separate from the general church accounts. The funds in this account would be used for English lessons, translation services, bi-lingual worship materials, emergency assistance for families, emergency transportation and other needs that arise.
We would appreciate any gift that God would lead you to give. We would also appreciate your prayers that God would continue to provide the needs for this great opportunity that is before us. If you, your church or organization would like to be involved in helping with this ministry in any other way, please contact us.
Thank you and God bless!
Pastor Scott
Organizer
Scott Miller
Organizer
Scranton, PA