Lutherans have a long history of welcoming strangers among us as we have been called to do (Matthew 25:31-40). Our hearts break as we watch the unfolding crisis in Afghanistan. It’s anticipated that up to 1,000 Afghan refugees may be resettled in St. Louis. As St. Louis seeks to resettle refugees from Afghanistan and other parts of the globe, we hope to support our faith community’s response with its gifts and talents.
Christian Friends of New Americans (CFNA) is an outreach ministry to immigrants and refugees in the St. Louis area. Their mission is to be involved in relationships with New Americans who they can share the Gospel through caring words and actions. With your help, CFNA wants to welcome refugees to our community by pairing them with local St. Louis families, providing basic needs (e.g., welcome baskets, rental and utility assistance, etc.), and offering driver education and other needed supports. To learn about CFNA, please visit https://www.cfna-stl.org/.
Lutheran Foundation of St. Louis’ Board of Directors seeks to recognize the efforts of Lutheran congregations in rapidly responding to this need in our community with the establishment of a special one-time matching fund to increase the impact of your efforts. This fund will be administered as follows:
- Lutheran Foundation of St. Louis will match dollar-for-dollar financial donations raised by St. Louis Area Lutheran congregations in support of CFNA’s Refugee Outreach and Response efforts.
- Match period: September 1, 2021 through October 31, 2021.
- Eligible donations include church funds, special door offerings, and/or special fundraising efforts coordinated by the congregation. Non-cash donations (i.e., supplies, food, volunteers, etc.) will NOT be eligible for matching funds. For in-kind donations, congregations are encouraged to coordinate with CFNA prior to hosting a donation drive.
- The congregation must be able to document the funds raised.
- Only funds donated by the congregation to CFNA are eligible for the Foundation’s match. Congregations will be responsible for sending donations to CFNA. (Note: do NOT send donations to Lutheran Foundation.)
- Individual donations sent directly to CFNA and not coordinated through a congregation will NOT be eligible for the match.
In additional to matching funds, there are two other incentives available:
- For the congregation who raises the most funds, an additional $10,000 donation to CFNA will be made in their name.
- Each congregation that participates will be entered into a drawing and the church randomly picked will have $10,000 contributed to CFNA in their name.
To be eligible for this matching fund, please provide the following information to Lutheran Foundation by November 15, 2021:
- Name of your congregation
- Documentation of donations raised within the match period and sent to CFNA (e.g., copy of church check to CFNA, spreadsheet tracking donations or cover letter.) As a reminder, please do NOT send donations to Lutheran Foundation.
- Documentation can be either emailed to rebekah@lutheranfoundation.org or mailed to Lutheran Foundation of St. Louis, 8860 Ladue Road, Suite 200, St. Louis, MO 63124.
To help you communicate this opportunity quickly with your congregation, we have included a SAMPLE FLYER. Please feel free to use based on your individual church’s needs.
We hope you will join with Lutheran Foundation in showing Christian unity in responding to the foreign-born in our community. If you have any questions or would like additional information, please do not hesitate to contact Rebekah Miller, Senior Program Officer at (314) 231-2244 x110.