CWS Fundraise Your Way supporting Church World Service
Mary Hinds
In honor of Valentine's Day -I'm raising funds to show refugees and vulnerable communities that they are loved and not forsaken.
Mary Hinds
In honor of Valentine's Day -I'm raising funds to show refugees and vulnerable communities that they are loved and not forsaken.
Raise Funds. Give Hope.
Recent Executive orders and actions have suspended the refugee resettlement program, cut off foreign aid and halted critical USAID programs around the world. Refugees fleeing violence, struggling communities fighting hunger and poverty, survivors of disasters are being significantly impacted. The US Government is turning its back on the American values of compassion and leadership. BUT I WILL NOT! We can show vulnerable people in our neighborhoods and our world that people of faith, humanitarians still exist and we believe in a better world. For Valentine's day, I am raising funds to support programs that help those who are faced with hunger, poverty, disaster or displacement. I will show them that they are loved. They will not be cast aside. Please support my fundraiser and join me to help change someone's life for the better!
This is Maria and her friend in Cairo.
Policies impact people.
The beautiful little girl here is Maria. She’s the daughter of my colleague, Wajdi Al Mowafak and now 11 years old. This photo was taken at a CWS supported program in Egypt that supports refugees. A place where Wajdi and his family found temporary safety. You see, Wajdi was a pretty big deal back in Yemen. As an auditor he discovered corruption and when he spoke up he put his life at risk and had to flee to the country. (Read full story here: https://cwsglobal.org/stories/wajdi/). Current cuts to foreign assistance are negatively impacting this vital program for refugees fleeing violence and persecution.
Fast forward to now- He is the Director of Financial Business Partners for CWS and he and his wife and children are building a beautiful life here in the U.S. (Read all about it here: https://cwsglobal.org/stories/fathers-day-a-celebration-of-resilience-and-new-beginnings/) Our country’s previous commitment to be a safe harbor and a place of welcome is why Wajdi’s family has this chance and why we are greatly benefitting from having them be a part of our community.
Their story ALMOST had a happy ending…
Wajdi’s parents have been waiting nine years as refugees in Egypt for the chance to rebuild their lives with their son, daughter-in-law and grandchildren. Through the US Government’s Welcome Corps program, Wajdi had successfully secured their permission to reunite. They finally had a flight booked for February 16—only to receive a call from IOM, 12 days ago, saying it was canceled. No explanation. No new date. Just more uncertainty.
Wajdi says, “I don’t know if I will ever see them again. I don’t know when or if they’ll get another chance. After nearly a decade of waiting, after everything they’ve endured, they are left with nothing but more silence.
This is the reality for so many refugees, as executive orders continue to strip away their hopes. They deserve better. They deserve dignity. They deserve a chance.”
Through CWS you can fight for this chance… and you can support refugees who are still waiting for a safe place to call home.