Posts by worldrelief
Women and Equity at World Relief
March 8th marks International Women’s Day, a day devoted to celebrating women’s achievements for a more diverse and inclusive world. At World Relief, we believe in equality and the importance of increasing awareness of women’s experiences, challenges and contributions in our communities every day. We are blessed to work and serve with many women from all walks of life.
Meet Lanre Williams-Ayedun, SVP of International Programs. She is one of the incredible women of World Relief whose unwavering dedication, passion and hard work serve as an inspiration to all of us!
Known amongst colleagues as a dynamic and passionate leader in the global development field, we were eager to sit down with Lanre to hear from her about how World Relief is embracing equity and equality in our workplace.
Thank you for talking with us today, Lanre! To start, can you share what brought you to World Relief, and what excites you most about your role?
It gives me great joy that I can say with confidence that the Lord brought me to World Relief and has been uniquely preparing me for this role throughout my life. I have worked in various aspects of international development for over 18 years and it has been both humbling and powerful to see my past experiences and skills come fully to bear in this position. More concretely, I am at World Relief because I have had a deep respect for the World Relief people I’ve known over the years.
I am fueled by World Relief’s vision to reach the most vulnerable by working with the local church in partnership with local communities. I get excited to see our teams serving God with diligence and excellence with their passions, talents and experiences to bring his kingdom near.
This year’s theme for International Women’s Day is “embracing equity.” How are you embracing equity in International Programs at World Relief?
First, as a leadership team, we have decided not to be afraid to examine where there might be inequities in our organization, whether they be related to nationality, culture, gender, disability, age or other differences. It is so important that we are mindful of healthy practices that not only encourage equity but that can actually be measured. For example, we are scoring each of our international offices against a gender scorecard and tracking results over the years.
Additionally, we are reviewing our staff engagement results on Diversity, Equity and Inclusion and creating an associated action plan. Training around gender equity and disability inclusion for staff and with program participants across International Programs is also underway.
Along with consistently celebrating women and men leading together, we are also embracing a spiritual and holistic approach by participating in devotions on racism and cultural diversity as a team.
Why is fostering an inclusive work environment so important?
Right now, World Relief’s International Programs is a team of great diversity: Our staff consists of people from at least 20 different nationalities, with many ethnic and tribal differences. We are based in 11 countries, from various church traditions, and covering various age and generational groupings. 29% of our staff are female, and there is a 50/50 split of men and women on our expanded leadership team. And our work is to serve people that are themselves very diverse and have unique needs and preferences.
All of this diversity can mean that learning to recognize and honor each other for our differences and to make room for each other does not come naturally. Yet, we have to grow in our ability to work for and serve with people that are different from us; it’s our mandate from God and a testimony to the watching world.
God has called us to be different parts of the same body, and to cherish and help each part fulfill its purpose. When we seek to make offices and a work culture that allow people to bring their gender and culture to share, the employee is happier and more engaged, and the collective staff is made stronger and reflects God’s vision of Christian unity better.
How do you think World Relief and other organizations like it can embrace equity and equality?
A good start is to intentionally ensure having diverse representation at the highest levels of power — on boards and senior leadership teams — including diversity of gender, race, age, disability and culture. It’s also important to have that representation throughout the organization by making HR practices and policies equitable, and having a feedback mechanism that allows the organization to address when there are violations that hurt people and abuse authority.
Also, we should make resources available to create equitable access to opportunities for all staff while decolonizing our language, service models and structures of authority. And by recruiting and supporting diverse staff to thrive by fostering a culture of belonging and providing generous family leave, health insurance and child care coverage is essential. The work can be challenging but we must also be sure to acknowledge and fight against the systemic forces within the organization and industry that perpetuate inequities among and between staff and the people we serve.
That is so insightful. Last question — what are your long-term aspirations for International Programs at World Relief?
I want to see World Relief’s International Programs be a place where diverse people can be successful and bring their whole self to work in a culture that celebrates their individuality and promotes their well being. I want us to take the work of equity and equality seriously for our staff and for the people we serve — using our prophetic voice to call focus to the issues affecting the most vulnerable.
Thank you for sharing with us Lanre! If you want to hear more stories of how the women of World Relief are creating change around the globe, follow us on Facebook, Instagram or LinkedIn.
Jessica Galván is a Content Writer at World Relief. She is passionate about storytelling and amplifying diverse voices to reveal the beauty of God’s creation. She is also the Editorial Director for Chasing Justice and prior to World Relief, she was a freelance writer and editor for a variety of clients in publishing, most recently Penguin Random House. When she isn’t wordsmithing for the pursuit of faith and justice, she is spending time with her husband and their 3 children in the Houston, TX area.
World Relief Announces Opening of New Location in North Texas in Response to Increased Refugee Needs
March 1, 2023
CONTACT:
Pinkston Team
wr@pinkston.co
Dallas, TX – In response to an increased number of refugees arriving in Northern Texas, today World Relief is opening a new office in Dallas County to meet the community needs for refugee resettlement services. World Relief North Texas Dallas County office services are now being made available to provide support to refugees in the initial stages of rebuilding their lives in Texas.
“As refugees continue to enter our communities, we are grateful to provide them with a warm welcome by expanding World Relief’s refugee resettlement resources in our state,” said Garrett Pearson, Office Director of World Relief North Texas. “With over forty years of serving the refugee community in Texas, we have experienced first hand how our state is made stronger by their presence and contributions, and we’re grateful for the opportunity to play a role in helping them rebuild their lives in their new home.”
World Relief’s Dallas County office will build upon the resettlement services provided by its longstanding Fort Worth location, helping newly arrived refugees and other vulnerable immigrants in the process of securing housing, finding employment, adjusting to a new culture and integrating into the Dallas community. The new location anticipates welcoming at least 80 refugees in its first year of operation. As in all World Relief locations, the new Dallas County office will work closely with local churches and volunteers to facilitate the integration process.
“Refugees are a uniquely vulnerable group of people who need support when they first arrive in their new communities,” said Aerlande Wontamo, Senior Vice President of US Programs at World Relief. “At World Relief, we aim to provide them with resources and support that empowers them to start their lives in the United States with confidence.”
To learn more about World Relief’s refugee resettlement work in Texas and how to get involved, please visit worldrelief.org/texas.
To download a PDF version of this press release, click here.
World Relief Announces Opening of New Location in North Texas in Response to Increased Refugee Needs
March 1, 2023
CONTACT:
Pinkston Team
wr@pinkston.co
Dallas, TX – In response to an increased number of refugees arriving in Northern Texas, today World Relief is opening a new office in Dallas County to meet the community needs for refugee resettlement services. World Relief North Texas Dallas County office services are now being made available to provide support to refugees in the initial stages of rebuilding their lives in Texas.
“As refugees continue to enter our communities, we are grateful to provide them with a warm welcome by expanding World Relief’s refugee resettlement resources in our state,” said Garrett Pearson, Office Director of World Relief North Texas. “With over forty years of serving the refugee community in Texas, we have experienced first hand how our state is made stronger by their presence and contributions, and we’re grateful for the opportunity to play a role in helping them rebuild their lives in their new home.”
World Relief’s Dallas County office will build upon the resettlement services provided by its longstanding Fort Worth location, helping newly arrived refugees and other vulnerable immigrants in the process of securing housing, finding employment, adjusting to a new culture and integrating into the Dallas community. The new location anticipates welcoming at least 80 refugees in its first year of operation. As in all World Relief locations, the new Dallas County office will work closely with local churches and volunteers to facilitate the integration process.
“Refugees are a uniquely vulnerable group of people who need support when they first arrive in their new communities,” said Aerlande Wontamo, Senior Vice President of US Programs at World Relief. “At World Relief, we aim to provide them with resources and support that empowers them to start their lives in the United States with confidence.”
To learn more about World Relief’s refugee resettlement work in Texas and how to get involved, please visit worldrelief.org/texas.
To download a PDF version of this press release, click here.
Going Further: Q&A with Ukraine Response Coordinator Robert Hessenauer
February 2023 marks the 1-year anniversary of the war in Ukraine. From the beginning, World Relief has been responding — welcoming Ukrainians seeking safety in the U.S. and working alongside Christian agencies and churches in Ukraine and the surrounding countries of Slovakia, Poland, Romania and Moldova to support those displaced by the ongoing war.
Our partners have been running refugee shelters, providing transportation to those who are fleeing, sending convoys of food and supplies into Ukraine and providing emergency humanitarian aid to those in greatest need.
Over the past several months, it has become clear that a long-term presence in Ukraine is needed and that World Relief has been called to respond.
To lead our ongoing response in the region, we recently welcomed Robert Hessenauer into the role of Ukraine Response Coordinator. We sat down with Robert to learn more about what led him to this work, his heart for those suffering in Ukraine and what World Relief hopes to accomplish in the region.
Thank you for speaking with us, Robert. Could you start by telling us a bit about yourself and how you came to World Relief?
I grew up in the Philadelphia area and went to college to study business. After learning more about the international development field, I switched majors, and soon after that heard about World Relief. I’d never heard of any Christian organization doing development work the way World Relief did, and from that moment on, I became intrigued by our mission.
In college, I spent a semester abroad working with Compassion International in Uganda. While there, one of my host family’s sons died from a treatable disease, awakening me to the need and the call God placed on my heart to respond to the suffering around me.
After college, I worked for a homeless shelter before enrolling in my graduate studies. While there, I met my wife, got married and took a job with the Mennonite Central Committee. Since I loved the time I’d spent in Uganda, I hoped to serve abroad again. So when the role of Ukraine Country Director opened up, I leapt at the opportunity. I served in that role for two years, allowing me to become comfortable in the local language and for our family to adapt and immerse ourselves in the culture.
Now that I’m with World Relief, the Response Coordinator position feels like a homecoming. My family has a big heart for Ukraine and we’re so happy to be back.
Can you tell us about something that’s inspired you since starting your new role?
World Relief has been on the ground in Romania working with a local partner called Fight For Freedom (FFF). Though FFF started as a prison and homelessness ministry, they pivoted to humanitarian aid for refugees when Ukrainians arrived near the border with very specific needs.
FFF has grown tremendously since last February. I’ve witnessed their staff really pour out their hearts for Ukrainians, sacrificing so much for their neighbors up north. Their work has also received recognition from Ukraine’s government, which has requested their help in receiving refugee children from Kyiv and Odessa.
Already, FFF has received 200 children from Ukraine and found temporarily housing until they are able to return home. And this is in a country whose border disputes, language barriers and other cultural divisions with Ukraine have made direct refugee responses to its citizens very challenging.
Why should Americans care about what’s going on in Ukraine?
Since most of us live an ocean away, it’s easy for Americans to fall victim to the news cycle and assume that the suffering experienced across Ukraine is new. In reality, the Russo-Ukrainian War has been ongoing since 2014, wreaking social and economic havoc across the country for nearly a decade. Now that missiles are flying, Ukraine’s already-vulnerable communities are in a very fragile state. It’s hard to find work, electricity is scarce and many struggle to find reliable hot water or shelter.
What’s more, Ukraine’s freezing climate makes it unique from most areas where World Relief works. Cold-weather poverty is a challenge that requires speed and resilience but also patience and prayer. I believe that we should care not only because we as Christians are called to serve the most vulnerable, but also because the challenges Ukraine is facing are immediate yet deeply complex with many nuances. Therefore, it requires listening, patience and grace when hearing the news and responding to needs.
How is World Relief planning to tackle these complex challenges in the coming year?
So far, World Relief has already developed close relationships with partners across Romania, Poland, Hungary and Slovakia. Moving forward, we plan to build partnerships with organizations based in Ukraine itself. Thankfully, World Relief’s emergency response to Ukraine with regional partners lends us both the expertise we need in areas such as winterization and food shipment as well as key relationships we’ll be able to leverage as we carry out cross-border refugee assistance.
Once firmly established in Ukraine, we will launch a needs assessment, which will include learning from local churches, organizations and government officials about how World Relief can leverage its capacity and partnerships — both current and future — to serve the community. We plan for food and NFI (non-food items such as blankets and cooking items) assistance and winterization aid to be the core pillars of our work in the short-term.
What unique role do you see us playing as we establish a presence in Ukraine?
I think that World Relief fills a niche that no other organization can fill in Ukraine for two reasons. First, we have a unique relationship and a high level of credibility with churches around the world, allowing us to respond quickly to the needs of fleeing Ukrainians rather than starting from scratch. Second, World Relief has been working in the United States to help resettle Ukrainian refugees for nearly 20 years, giving us insight into multiple sides of their struggles and stories. Both these things allow us to connect with Ukrainians and meet them in the midst of their struggle in ways that others cannot.
How can we be praying for Ukraine right now?
I would be grateful if readers prayed for faithful, compassionate team members as the Ukraine team grows and expands in the region. Please also pray for the safety of the local organizations and World Relief’s partners as they do their work in Ukraine, move across borders and meet the needs of Ukrainians. Lastly, I’d ask that our readers pray for the churches of Ukraine — that they are able to continually rely on Christ and look to him for strength and guidance in the midst of these desperate times.
We are grateful for Robert and all of our staff across the globe who go further to meet those in need. By giving monthly or a one time gift, you can help us reach even more people in more places as we move forward together.
Sam Pence serves as a Partnership Content Specialist at World Relief and has a passion for seeing communities transformed through radical kinship, faith and service. He lives in Washington, D.C. and enjoys running, reading, and writing songs when not working alongside his incredible World Relief teammates.
5 Things You Should Know About the Earthquakes in Turkey and Syria
Early in the morning on February 6, massive earthquakes hit Turkey and Syria. For many of us who live thousands of miles away from the devastation, it can be hard to imagine the profound scale of loss — and even harder to know how best to respond.
And yet, if you’re like us, your faith compels you to respond.
At World Relief, our mission is to empower the local church to serve the most vulnerable. When natural disasters like this one occur, those who are already in vulnerable situations are put at even greater risk. By responding together, we can extend the love of Christ to those who are suffering in their greatest time of need.
That’s why we’ve shared five things you should know about what’s happening in Turkey and Syria, why we at World Relief are responding and how you can join us in praying for and serving those who are suffering.
1. How widespread is the impact of the earthquakes?
The earthquakes struck in the early morning hours in a region that has not experienced a major earthquake in over 200 years, leaving residents little prepared. As a result, the devastation has been widespread and severe.
At the time of writing, an estimated 36,187 have died in Turkey and more than 5,800 in Syria — and these numbers continue to rise. More than 5 million people across Syria are now in need of shelter while nearly a million more men, women and children are now homeless in Turkey as a result of the earthquakes. Basic infrastructure, including power and water, has been completely demolished in some areas.
The earthquake’s devastation is further compounded by freezing winter temperatures and, in Syria, decades of civil war have left residents especially vulnerable.
2. What are the greatest needs and how is World Relief responding?
As those impacted grapple with freezing temperatures, decimated infrastructure and profound loss and trauma, the greatest immediate needs include shelter, water, power, blankets, non-food and sanitary items and psychosocial counseling.
World Relief is responding on the ground through long-standing, trusted partners, including Tearfund Germany and the Integral Alliance. Our partners are connected with local churches and organizations in Turkey and Syria who can more quickly deliver aid — especially in hard-to-reach regions or where international aid may be restricted by governing authorities due to protracted conflicts.
Our local partners are working especially hard to provide assistance to the most vulnerable, including the elderly, children and persons with disabilities.
Thus far, our response efforts have included:
- Establishing mobile kitchens and distribution centers for food, water, hygiene supplies, emergency shelter, heaters, batteries, tools and more
- Operating mobile hygiene trailers that offer toilets, showers and washing machines
- Facilitating a kids club and trauma counseling center for children impacted by the disaster
- Providing mobility devices such as wheelchairs, protheses and walkers to those who need them
To stay up-to-date on how we’re responding to this and other crises around the world, sign up for our mailing list, here.
3. What will happen after the initial response?
Natural disasters on the scale of what we’re seeing in Turkey and Syria affect every facet of life. Responding immediately is essential to ensure the survival and safety of as many people as possible. At the same time, we at World Relief understand that rebuilding and restoring what has been broken — whether infrastructure or lives — takes time and commitment.
That’s why we’re beginning conversations with our trusted partners in the region to determine how we can best come alongside local communities so that they not only survive the current crisis, but can flourish and thrive in the future. In places like Syria, which have already been wracked by unimaginable conflict and loss, this commitment is all the more important.
4. Has World Relief worked in the affected region before?
Yes! World Relief formerly had programming in both Syria and Turkey which we transferred to our partners at Tearfund Germany in 2019. We continue to have a strong relationship with Tearfund Germany, allowing us to respond quickly and effectively through our partners who are still at work in the region.
Additionally, World Relief has been helping Syrian refugees resettle in the U.S. for over a decade. Members of the Syrian community in the U.S. have become our coworkers, neighbors and friends. We are grieving and praying alongside them at this difficult time.
5. How can I help?
- Pray: As in all things, we first turn to prayer. Pray for those who are still missing to be found, for the injured to be healed, for the hungry to be fed, for the cold and weary to find shelter and for the grieving to be comforted. Pray also for those responding to do so with wisdom and endurance.
- Give: You can rush help to Turkey and Syria by giving today. Your donation will support our partners at work in the region, ensuring more help can reach more people in this time of great need.
- Share: As the news cycle moves on to the latest headlines, you can help keep Turkey and Syria in the prayers of your friends, family and neighbors by sharing what you’ve learned in this blog.
Was Jesus a Refugee?
“Jesus Was a Refugee.” Recently, I’ve seen that message all over — on billboards, TV ads, on t-shirts, debated on social media and beyond. Much of this messaging is part of a broader campaign called He Gets Us that aims to help people recognize that Jesus was a human being who can identify with us in our humanity.
That’s a powerful reality for the more than 32 million refugees in our world today, a number unprecedented in recorded history. Jesus “gets” them because, early in his human experience, the Gospel of Matthew tells us that he was forced to flee the threat of Herod’s persecution. He was carried by Joseph and Mary to Egypt, beyond Herod’s dominion, where they would be safe from the genocide inflicted by a jealous ruler on the little boys of Bethlehem.
Many of today’s 32 million refugees know viscerally what it means to awaken in the middle of the night and to flee with what little they could carry, as an angel instructed Joseph to do. To feel danger just behind them. To complete a grueling journey only to arrive in a new land and a new culture with the ongoing grief of the loss of one’s homeland. Jesus presumably lived all of that in his fully human flesh as a small child. And millions today find solace in that reality. He gets them.
But was Jesus really a refugee?
We now have formal legal definitions for the term “refugee” in both U.S. and international law: refugees are those outside of their countries of origin who are unable or unwilling to return because of a well-founded fear of persecution on account of their race, religion, political opinion, nationality or membership in a particular social group. But, of course, these definitions did not exist when the holy family made their journey.
Some, especially on social media, have vehemently insisted that Jesus was not a refugee — perhaps defensive at the implication that their preferred refugee and immigration policies to keep most, if not all, refugees out might actually have harmed the incarnate God.
But while it is clear from the biblical text that Jesus was displaced by a credible threat of persecution, it’s fair to ask just how he would fare under our contemporary policies — as theologian Glenn Butner Jr. does in a new book, Jesus the Refugee: Ancient Injustice and Modern Solidarity.
Butner argues that Jesus largely satisfies the contemporary legal definition of a refugee, but it’s debatable whether the journey to Egypt took him “outside of his country of origin,” since Egypt and Bethlehem were both part of the Roman Empire. Perhaps it’s more precise to characterize the holy family as “Internally Displaced Persons” — those, including more than 60 million people in our world today, who have been forced to flee their homes but remain within the boundaries of their countries.
Would Jesus have faced the barriers many families fleeing persecution face today?
Perhaps Jesus was actually an asylum seeker: asylum seekers profess to meet the definition of a refugee. They say that they’re afraid of persecution on account of one of the enumerated grounds — but they’re not ensured protection under the law unless and until they have demonstrated (to the satisfaction of the governing authorities of the country where they hope to find refuge) that they indeed qualify. Sometimes they lack documentary evidence of the credibility of their fear. Would Joseph have cited an angelic message as his evidence that persecution was likely for little boys in Bethlehem? Would that have satisfied an Egyptian immigration judge?
Fortunately for our Lord and Savior and his earthly parents, there’s no evidence in the biblical text that they faced any barriers to finding refuge in Egypt. But the Gospel of Matthew gives us very few details about their experience there. We’re left to speculate: were they welcomed, seen as a potential threat or simply ignored? Did Jesus learn to speak his first words with a different accent than his parents? Did Joseph easily find work, or was he told that he would be “stealing” a job from an Egyptian carpenter?
Decades later, in one of his final sermons before his crucifixion, Jesus commends certain individuals for having welcomed him when he was a stranger. The disciples are confused: “When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you?” (Matthew 25:38). They did so, Jesus says, when they welcomed one of “the least of these brothers and sisters of mine” (Matthew 25:40). Jesus identifies himself perpetually with the vulnerable and the stranger — which, at least early in his life, he himself was.
Does Jesus’ story shape how we respond to refugees and other immigrants?
Whether Jesus would satisfy the precise legal definition of a refugee or not, what’s clear for those of us who profess to follow him today is that an unprecedented crisis of forced migration — with more than 100 million people forced from their homes, experiencing displacement similar to what Jesus experienced as a child — presents an unprecedented opportunity to demonstrate love for Jesus himself.
At World Relief, it’s our great privilege to partner with local churches both across the United States and in various other parts of the world to welcome and care for refugees and others who have been displaced. From our U.S. refugee resettlement program’s foundations in the 1970s, we — and the tens of thousands of church-based volunteers who have partnered with us — have resettled more than 300,000 individuals, motivated by Jesus’ challenging words in Matthew 25. As Evelyn Mangham, the cofounder of World Relief’s refugee resettlement program said, the Christian response to an unprecedented global refugee crisis is “simple”:
“Respond to what Jesus said, that’s all: ‘I was hungry, and you gave me something to eat. I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink. I was a stranger’ — refugee — ‘and you took me in… Inasmuch as you did unto of the least of these my brethren, you did unto me.’ It’s simple obedience.”
Are you ready to create a more welcoming and just world for refugees and other vulnerable immigrants? Learn how you can join us today.
Myal Greene has a deep desire to see churches worldwide equipped, empowered, and engaged in meeting the needs of vulnerable families in their communities. In 2021, he became President and CEO after serving for fourteen years with the organization. While living in Rwanda for eight years, he developed World Relief’s innovative church-based programming model that is currently used in nine countries. He also spent six years in leadership roles within the international programs division. He has previous experience working with the U.S. Government. He holds B.S. in Finance from Lehigh University and an M.A. from Fuller Theological Seminary in Global Leadership. He and his wife Sharon and have three children.
5 Things You Need to Know about Chad
Chad is home to one of the most diverse and vibrant people groups on the planet. The country also faces multiple humanitarian crises including political uncertainty, food insecurity and climate instability.
Over five million people are food insecure, and nearly 1.7 million suffer from recurrent cases of preventable diseases. What’s more, Chad plays host to thousands of refugees and internally displaced people — a displacement crisis that The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) says tends to go underfunded, in spite of the country’s evident need.
That’s why this year, World Relief is expanding its programming into Chad, compelled by our faith to go further and reach deeper to respond to the needs of the most vulnerable.
While Western news and media outlets often overlook stories from this Central African country, we believe it’s essential for you to get to know the people and the places where World Relief operates. With that in mind, here are 5 things you need to know about Chad, its people and its history.
1. Chad is one of the world’s most ethnically and linguistically diverse countries.
Home to over 200 ethnic groups who speak over 100 languages, it’s little wonder Chad earned the moniker “Babel Tower of the World.” The country’s two official languages are Arabic and French, echoing the country’s not-so-distant colonial past.
About 75% of Chad’s population live in rural areas and belong to a nomadic or pastoral tribe, while others primarily live in and around the capital city of N’Djamena.
2. Lake Chad, a primary ecosystem and food source, has lost 90% of its original surface area and counting.
Many people depend on Lake Chad for fishing, farming and as a watering source for herds of cattle and goats. Yet because of climate change, the lake’s ability to serve as a sufficient resource shrinks yearly, contributing to conflict over access to its shores.
Extreme weather patterns in the region prohibit the primarily agrarian society from reaping sufficient harvests year after year. The length of “lean seasons,” the time before crops are ready to harvest, also continues to grow.
Faced with such volatile weather and arid land, some Chadians are now partnering with scientists to integrate indigenous farming methods and rehabilitate the dry land.
Hindou Aoumarou Ibrahim, a Chadian activist and President of the Association for Indigenous Women and Peoples of Chad, advocates for the importance of using traditional knowledge to combat the effects of climate change in Chad.
3. Chad hosts over 555,000 refugees and over 400,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs).
Despite Chad’s turbulent government, its doors remain open to refugees from South Sudan, Cameroon, the Central African Republic (CAR) and Nigeria, all bordering countries impacted by violence and climate change.
For example, Chad shares a border with Sudan’s Darfur region. Though not as prevalent in the news today, Darfur saw high rates of conflict in the early 2000s, which contributed to large numbers of refugees fleeing across its border to Chad.
4. As of 2020, the WHO reports a shortage of medical professionals in Chad — less than one medical doctor for every 10,000 people.
Similar to many countries during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, Chad found its health system even more constrained by a shortage of doctors and a rising number of cases mid-2020. Chad also contended with a need for essential medical equipment, such as ventilators, medicines and vaccines.
Yet months after the pandemic began, the UN developed an innovative partnership with troubadours, or traditional storytellers, to deliver and communicate information about the virus to Chad’s remote and nomadic communities — in much the same way World Relief equipped church and community leaders in places like Rwanda. These troubadours, along with community-selected health workers, traveled between communities and, instead of news or songs, shared critical health safety measures (i.e. social distancing) to help stop COVID from spreading.
5. Chad ranks 187th out of 189 countries on the Human Development Index, and 42% of the country lives below the national poverty line.
A land-locked country of 16.8 million, Chad ranks among the poorest countries in the world today. More than 6.1 million Chadians require humanitarian assistance as of 2022, almost one-third of the country’s population.
The need in Chad is two-fold: immediate emergency responses and capacity building for holistic, long-term sustainability and ministry.
What is World Relief doing?
In 2023, World Relief will open a new office in Chad.
The Southern portion of Chad — a Christian-majority region where population density is high and humanitarian actors are few — is ideal for World Relief’s holistic ministry model. Additionally, the number of Christian humanitarian agencies who work closely with churches in the area is limited and competition for funding is low. Existing local, faith-based NGOs are in need of capacity building from an international Christian NGO like World Relief to scale and expand impact.
At World Relief, our mission calls us to listen and walk alongside the men, women and children of Chad. As our world continues to change, we must respond in new ways and go further than ever.
Meghan Gallagher is a Seattle-based freelance content writer and strategist. She has a B.S. in Marketing Management and a background in digital marketing for healthcare, nonprofit, and higher education organizations. When she’s not writing, you can find her working as a local bookseller and enjoying all the Seattle area has to offer.
World Relief Mobilizes to Provide Immediate Support to Devastated Communities in Wake of Turkey and Syria Earthquake
February 7, 2023
CONTACT:
Pinkston Team
wr@pinkston.co
Baltimore, Md. – In the wake of a devastating earthquake that hit Turkey and Syria, World Relief has mobilized resources on the ground to provide immediate assistance and long term support for search and recovery efforts.
“We join with our international partners in grieving the significant loss of life from the earthquakes and extend our prayers to the impacted communities,” said Myal Greene, president and CEO of World Relief. “At World Relief, we desire to see a world free from suffering, and when disaster strikes, our faith compels us to respond. By providing immediate emergency aid, World Relief is committed to delivering hope to impacted communities and assistance in rebuilding from this disaster both in the short term and in the years to come.”
World Relief is partnering with local partners and churches on the ground in Turkey and Syria to provide support and resources to impacted communities including food and clean water, emergency medical assistance, safe shelter, sanitation and hygiene, and psychosocial support.
World Relief is committed to extending the love and compassion of Christ to suffering and grieving communities in Turkey and Syria by joining with its international partners to provide immediate support and build resilience.
To download a PDF version of this press release, click here.
Go Far, Go Deep, Go Together in 2023
When I was a student at Fuller Theological Seminary, one of my professors, Bryant Myers, taught me that, “At the heart of poverty is broken relationships.”
Years later, that teaching shapes the way I see the world and the way I lead at World Relief.
Myers taught that before the fall, God established five foundational relationships that each person was created to live within: relationship with God, with self, with others, with community and with creation.
When these relationships function properly, they make way for human flourishing. But when one or more of them is broken, they precipitate all types of poverty in our lives and in the lives of others:
- Broken relationships with others can cause conflicts.
- Broken relationships with creation deprive us of God’s life-giving intention for the earth — that everyone has access to beauty and sustainable food, water and resources.
- Broken relationships with ourselves mar our ability to see the potential for change and transformation.
- And broken relationships with God keep us from experiencing grace and restoration.
Current Crises, Broken Relationships
Over the last year, we’ve talked at length about how COVID, conflict and climate change have converged to create the worst humanitarian crisis we’ve seen in decades.
In these crises, we see evidence of broken relationships. War displaces families from their homes. Communities suffer the effects of natural disasters. Women and girls face increased violence and discrimination. Our own brokenness often leaves us feeling hopeless and unable to engage, while pride and division prevent us from seeking collaborative solutions to these complex problems.
It’s clear that the old paradigms of providing humanitarian aid may not be enough. If we want to move forward, we must embrace a new vision. We must remember that a flourishing world is a connected world, and it takes all of us to create change that lasts.
At World Relief, we’ve long been committed to addressing our world’s problems holistically, making way for people and communities to restore relationships and flourish. For nearly 80 years, we’ve been moving with local churches and community leaders as they create lasting change, and many of you have moved right along with us.
As we settle into the new year, the problems facing us in 2022 have not been left behind. But thanks to the generosity of people like you, World Relief is poised and ready to meet the emerging needs of our world. Together, we will go far, go deep and go together in 2023, and I’m eager to tell you how.
Go Far: Ukraine, Chad and Ethiopia
Since February 2022, World Relief has partnered with local churches and Christian agencies in Ukraine, responding to the devastating war that continues to unfold. This summer, it became evident that a long-term presence in Ukraine was necessary to meet the immense needs that will extend for years to come.
World Relief has decades of experience working in current and post-conflict settings. Our team in Ukraine will build upon our technical experience to increase the capacity of local churches to meet the physical and spiritual needs of those impacted by the war.
In Chad, we’ve also found an opportunity to strengthen local churches to meet the needs of the most vulnerable.
The Southern portion of Chad is a Christian-majority region where population density is high and humanitarian actors are few. Existing local, faith-based NGOs are in need of capacity-building support from an international Christian NGO like World Relief to scale and expand impact.
We expect the Chad office to open in early 2023, and we will also be moving forward with plans to open an office in Ethiopia as well.
Go Deep: Mental Health Counseling and Disability Inclusion
While others might focus on one area of intervention or only provide immediate assistance, we remain committed to responding to needs holistically with proven solutions that last.
For refugees and other immigrants, this means addressing the profound physical and psychological trauma many endure when they are forced to leave their homes and rebuild their lives in an entirely new culture.
World Relief offices in Chicagoland and North Carolina have been providing mental health counseling to refugees for more than 20 years. In 2023, we’re expanding this service line to more offices to better meet the needs of those experiencing displacement.
Our commitment to thriving societies is also reflected in the depth of our disability-inclusive programming. People with disabilities represent some of the most marginalized, making up 20% of the world’s poorest in developing countries.
World Relief Malawi piloted disability-inclusive programming in 2019, reaching more than 400 people through church-led initiatives in the first two years. Since then, we have expanded disability-inclusive programming to church networks in Burundi and Rwanda, and are making plans to train churches in six more countries across the globe.
Go Together: Creating Lasting Change
At the heart of our commitment to going further and deeper is our commitment to going together, equipping the individual and collective expressions of the church to live out their call to serve in both word and deed.
Our newly formed Church and Community Engagement Team is working hard to engage more people and more congregations in creating welcoming communities for immigrants in the U.S.
Globally, our Outreach Group Initiative continues to equip volunteers to meet the spiritual and physical needs of their neighbors, while savings groups are bringing people together, providing support and friendship as communities are transformed economically.
And then there’s you — as you move forward this new year, my prayer is that you would see yourself as part of a global movement that is creating change across the globe. I pray you’d find ways to strengthen the relational connections in your own life so the ripple effects of lasting change can continue to expand.
The challenges we face are great. But, by the power of Jesus, hope is even greater when we go forward together.
Do you want to be a part of this global movement? You can make a difference in 2023 by joining World Relief. Learn more and give today.
Myal Greene has a deep desire to see churches worldwide equipped, empowered, and engaged in meeting the needs of vulnerable families in their communities. In 2021, he became President and CEO after serving for fourteen years with the organization. While living in Rwanda for eight years, he developed World Relief’s innovative church-based programming model that is currently used in nine countries. He also spent six years in leadership roles within the international programs division. He has previous experience working with the U.S. Government. He holds B.S. in Finance from Lehigh University and an M.A. from Fuller Theological Seminary in Global Leadership. He and his wife Sharon and have three children.
World Relief Urges Congress to Reject H.R. 29, Warns It Will Hinder Fight Against Human
Trafficking and Harm Vulnerable Children
January 31, 2022
CONTACT:
Pinkston Team
wr@pinkston.co
Baltimore, Md., January 31, 2022 – World Relief joined with other like-minded organizations to
send a letter today to members of Congress urging them to vote against H.R. 29, a bill recently
introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives. If signed into law in its current form, H.R. 29
would leave many vulnerable people fleeing persecution and violence shut out from protections
offered under current law, including unaccompanied children who are among the most
vulnerable to becoming victims of human trafficking.
“[H.R. 29] would effectively nullify several important provisions of the William Wilberforce
Trafficking Protection Reauthorization Act (TVPRA) of 2008 governing the treatment of certain
unaccompanied children. This bill, which was passed with broad bipartisan support and signed
into law by President George W. Bush, has been a vital tool in protecting children and others who
are uniquely vulnerable to human trafficking,” says the letter, which was signed by World Relief.
Other signatories include International Justice Mission U.S., World Vision U.S., the Ethics &
Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention, the National Association of
Evangelicals, the National Latino Evangelical Coalition, Bethany Christian Services and
Women of Welcome. “Our concerns are rooted in our Christian faith, believing that each person
is made in the image of God and is worthy of protection. In particular, a child unaccompanied by
his or her parent(s) is uniquely vulnerable.”
World Relief is deeply concerned that H.R. 29 would roll back significant anti-trafficking
protections by nullifying portions of the Trafficking Victims Protection Reauthorization Act
(TVPRA), which stipulates proper treatment to protect unaccompanied children. The TVPRA
requires that unaccompanied children from non-contiguous countries who are encountered at
the U.S. border be cared for in secure, child-appropriate settings until the U.S. government can
determine their eligibility to remain lawfully in the United States.
“Unaccompanied children seeking asylum at our borders are uniquely vulnerable and worthy of
our protection. Thankfully, current U.S. law ensures that these children are protected and are
legally allowed to remain safely in the United States if they meet the necessary criteria,” said
Jenny Yang, Senior Vice President of Advocacy and Policy at World Relief. “But if H.R. 29 is
signed into law in its current form, many children will be turned away, forced to return to
countries where they face increased risk of violence or trafficking. This bill would fail to treat
unaccompanied children seeking protection in our country with the compassion and due process
they deserve.”
As an organization grounded in Christian principles, World Relief believes that each person is
made in the image of God and is precious in his sight. We urge Congress to continue protecting
“the least of these” by voting against the H.R. 29 bill in its current form, and we urge Christians to
voice their concerns with their lawmakers.
To download a PDF version of this press release, click here.
To learn more about World Relief, visit worldrelief.org.