Refugee Ministry Welcome Center Opens April 23
April 10, 2024
First Church is hosting a Welcome Center on Tuesdays, April 23 & 30 and May 7, from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. to welcome migrant families living at the recently-opened MA Safety Net Family Shelter in East Cambridge. These families need to vacate the shelter every weekday, and we hope to provide a safe and welcoming space that includes a midday meal, ESOL classes, childcare for children aged 0-4 (who are not old enough for school), information on free City family resources, and time for relaxing and socializing. To make this happen – we need volunteers! We especially need:
- Two people for childcare
- Translators for Haitian Creole and Spanish
- People to manage the meal
- And volunteers for set-up and logistics
- In addition, there is an “off-site” need for someone to compile info on Cambridge family resources (playgrounds, waterparks, etc.) to share; much of this information is available on City websites.
If you would like to volunteer or learn more, please reach out to Martha Cook at: marthamuellercook@gmail.com
We look forward to hearing from you soon about getting involved!
refugee ministry: opportunities to help
March 26, 2024
We have some exciting news to share about a new initiative within our First Church Refugee Ministry (formerly known as Welcome Corps) – and we need your help!
We are collaborating with the recently-opened MA Safety Net Family Shelter located in the Registry of Deeds (RoD) Building in East Cambridge. This Shelter is already at capacity and is housing 200 people from 60 families, all new migrants to the US. You may recall that the Welcome Corps refugees with whom we were matched have been indefinitely delayed. Given this, we decided to shift our efforts to support migrants already in our community during the current crisis and to utilize our resources in a relevant and engaged way.
After meeting with the Shelter, City, and State staff, we have two projects that we are taking on right away. Please note that details may change as we continue to collaborate with the Shelter.
Teen Room
The Shelter has a space it would like to dedicate to its twenty kids aged 12 – 18. We plan to create a cool, cozy, and productive space for schoolwork, hang-out time, and fun. This will be an immediate and time-limited project. We need volunteers who are interested in:
- connecting with Shelter leadership to plan the space;
- brainstorm what should be there;
- source, purchase, and deliver items;
- and finally, set-up the space.
Welcome Center at FCC
The Shelter is closed from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. on weekdays, leaving guests to find places to go during the chilly days. We would like to welcome them to our church building by providing Margaret Jewett Hall as a multi-purpose space to meet some of their needs, starting with a few Tuesday mornings in April. We need volunteers who can provide:
- greeting and general support during our open hours
- meal support – sourcing, buying, serving and cleaning up lunch
- translation in Haitian-Creole, Spanish, and French
- tutoring for ESOL (English Speakers of Other Languages)
- job coaching
- childcare for little ones not enrolled in school
If you would like to volunteer or learn more, please reach out to Martha Mueller Cook at: marthamuellercook@gmail.com.
We look forward to hearing from you very soon about getting involved!
Welcome Corps Team Update
March 12, 2024
Formed almost one year ago, the First Church and Friends Welcome Corps Team has been preparing and waiting for our matched Welcome Corps refugees, Nuro and Idle, to arrive. The team recently learned that they are delayed indefinitely for unknown reasons. While we have little insight into the continued stalled status of Nuro and Idle, the context here in Massachusetts has greatly changed since we first started this effort, and even more so since we started waiting for a match in September.
As you know, the Commonwealth is experiencing an extreme migrant crisis, and the Governor has not only declared a State of Emergency, but has recently called on churches to aid in the resettling of migrants. There has been extensive coverage by local news of the role of area churches, and we would like to join that effort. We do not feel comfortable simply sitting on the sidelines with a wealth of financial and volunteer resources that can be mobilized now to help struggling migrants already here.
Our Welcome Corps Team has decided to put our match status “on hold” so that we can explore how First Church can use its resources in a relevant and engaged way to support migrants already in our community. We are actively researching connections in this sphere, with some ideas including:
- Joining other area churches who are currently supporting newly-arrived migrant families living in shelters;
- Working with the Somali Development Center (with which we had already connected);
- Partnering with MIRA, IFSI, or other local refugee agencies;
- Exploring how we could support the emergency shelter opened in the old East Cambridge Registry of Deeds building that needs assistance to remain open more hours.
We greatly welcome connections, ideas, or resources that any of you may have in this sphere. We also want to reassure everyone that Nuro and Idle will not be held up due to our change, but will likely be reassigned to a local refugee agency who is already slated to resettle another family member.
We know this is a big change for all of us, but we are looking forward with enthusiasm to helping with the migrant crisis currently unfolding here at home.
“First Church & Friends” is an official sponsor group for Welcome Corps, and we are preparing to welcome two refugees from Somalia. These newcomers will have Official Refugee Status and full access to government benefits; our team will support them in a 90-day resettlement effort. Our plan is to house them in Cambridge during this period, where they will have full access to our community and City benefits; they could then move elsewhere once more established.
Welcome Corps Newcomers arriving from Somalia!
November 29, 2023
You’ve heard the exciting news that a Somali mother and her adult son are traveling very soon to make their new home here. Our Welcome Corps team is working to greet them at the airport with open arms and companion them as they find their way into housing, health care, learning English, finding jobs and more!If you can join us in assisting and getting to know them, please complete this form as a first step. We have roles for time commitments small and large, even just a couple of hours here or there! In addition to volunteer time, we have three specific needs:
Gift Cards
We would like to empower the newcomers to begin shopping for clothing, housewares, and food on their own by providing them with gift cards. We need financial contributions for this. You can donate at this link – Please note “gift cards” in the memo field so that your donation will go specifically toward gift cards.
Social Media
To expand and amplify our work, we are still in need of Social Media efforts. If you have even a little time to help us out with this, we’d greatly appreciate it!
Warm Winter Clothing
We are still in need of some specific warm clothing items. Please bring in any items from the list below and place them in the plastic bin found near the Sextons’ office in Hastings Common.
Please bring in male or female adult sizes of:
- gloves
- mittens
- boots
See how a newcomer from Somalia has been welcomed in West Roxbury, MA
Sign up to volunteer in resettling the refugees!
There are tasks for a wide range of time commitments and skill levels. you can join our effort in any way, big or small. If you have questions about being a volunteer, please email us at: welcomecorps@firstchurchcambridge.org.