Six Star Refugee Partnership is made up of volunteers from Six Presbyterian churches.  We partner with International Rescue Committee to sponsor families who come to the United States as legal refugees.  Our mission is to provide supportive services for refugee families during their transition to self-reliance and to advocate for the refugee community.

Hear from Saint Luke’s member Laura Singley about Maji Mazuri:

How did you first get involved with this partner?

I was familiar with name Maji Mazuri from being a Saint Luke’s member for many years, but to be honest I really didn’t know much about it at all until the fall of 2019 when I learned that there was an outreach opportunity to go to Nairobi and help with projects at the school in Mathare.

What is your greatest joy from being a part of this mission partner?

My greatest joy is remembering the beautiful smiling faces of the children attending the Headstart School in Mathare.   While driving into Mathare I was preparing myself for a place that was hard to acknowledge people could live with so little when we have so much.  I was expecting a place with despair and hardship.  What I found was a place of incredible hope and people with a belief in themselves and faith in God’s love.  There was no despair, no pity for their current situation, only joy and gratitude for what little they had and the opportunity provided to them by Maji Mazuri.

What do you want others to know most about this mission partner?

I want others to know that Maji Mazuri is at its core not an emergency relief charity to help those in need of food or clothing.  It is a way for young people of the Mathare area to work their way out of poverty and into a profession.  Every year young people born in one of the poorest places in Kenya graduate from the Headstart school and take full time employment in professions they were trained in by Maji Mazuri staff.  Maji Mazuri offers a helping hand, not a handout.  I also want others to know that things which may not mean very much to us or feel significant in our lives can have a huge impact on others in an entirely different situation. The improvements that we were able to contribute at the Headstart School were very minor in cost and effort, but these changes made a significant difference to the school. Mainly showing other people that we care to help them is a huge emotional and motivational boost to the students.

Is there a person you have met through this mission you wish others could meet?

We met several amazing people on this trip but one in particular that made a big impact on me was Griffins. He serves as a role model and leader to the kids at the Headstart School and leads them in dramatic arts.  He has such a positive outlook and instilled confidence in every student that they could be anything they wanted to be if they worked hard enough for it.  When I think of why I will continue to support Maji Mazuri and hope that Saint Luke’s continues to support them it is because of people like Griffins who I have seen spreading God’s love with his own gifts and talents.

Saint Luke’s is getting back in the refugee resettlement mission and we have already been assigned a family (Mother, Father and two young boys, ages two and five)  to welcome next Wednesday!

We are partnering with the International Rescue Committee (IRC) and five other Presbyterian churches in our area to support an Afghan family who was forced to leave their country.  These families are already here in our country and many are still housed in temporary housing or on military bases.  Our current housing crunch is making the task of resettling these families very difficult, which makes our work even more vital.

Our first step in preparing to support a family is to collect the various household items which will help make their apartment a comfortable home.  To facilitate the donation process among the churches, we have developed a Sign-Up Genius with all of the required items listed.  Please look through the list of items and see if there are things that you can provide.  You can supply new items or used items that you may have that you no longer need or that you have replaced.  With all of us working together, we hope that this will go smoothly!

Click on the link here to access the Sign-Up Genius:

www.signupgenius.com/tabs/13574DE0FA4CDEAC5A09-ircinatlanta  

Note that the sign-up form has multiple tabs at the top of the page for the various groups of household items.  Please check them all to see how you might contribute!  Also note that for now we are assuming a family size of four persons;  that may change once we know more about the specific family assigned to us.  We’ll handle that if necessary when the time comes.

We will be in touch with you about how these items will be collected.  Dave Huffman (former Saint Luke’s member) will be the apartment setup coordinator.  If you have any questions you can contact Ellen Womack at 770-595-7057 [email protected] or  Dave Huffman of Pleasant Hill Presbyterian, at 770-378-4226 or email him at [email protected] .  

Thank you for your prayerful consideration in this mission as we work to help these vulnerable children of God.

We are thrilled to be gearing up to the 16^th Annual Tartan Trot scheduled for February 12, 2022. We are calling all youth to get involved in making race day one of the best ever by recruiting as many participants as possible. We are offering prizes to those that are able to get at least 10 to sign up and will raise the stakes as the numbers increase. Participants can include in-person as well as virtual. Details of the contest are below. Feel free to contact TJ McGoldrick ([email protected]) with any questions.

Requirements

Minimum 10 Runners Sign Up To Take Part In Contest

Awards

10+ Runners Receives Tartan Trot Beanie

20+ Runners Receives Tartan Trot Water Bottle

25+ Runners Receives Tartan Trot ¼ Zip Pullover

Youth with most runner sign-ups will receive discount on summer trip of their choice 

Youth that reached 10+ and Overall Winner will be recognized on Race Day

How To Participate

Youth to create team name and send to TJ McGoldrick

Participants signed up under Youth Team Name will count towards contest