We Are Welcoming a New Refugee Family!

Am Shalom is once again preparing to welcome a refugee family. The family is expected to arrive this spring.

Welcoming the stranger is part of the fabric of Am Shalom. In 1977, when the congregation consisted of 50 families who met in a small suburban home, our community came together to help the Sepulveda family escape from the brutal Pinochet dictatorship in Chile. And in 1979, Am Shalom sponsored the Lay family from Cambodia, who were forced into a Thai refugee camp by a murderous regime. Most recently, we helped to resettle two Syrian refugee families.

How You Can Help

While we are still waiting on specifics about the makeup of the new family, we can start gathering some supplies for their home.

Here is what is needed right now:

1. Household items via Amazon Wish List
Click here to shop the wish list. Please select "Am Shalom/Laura Horn's gift registry address" and your donation will be shipped directly to the temple. Shopping ONLY via the Amazon Wish List helps us to keep track of what we have and minimizes the chance of receiving multiples of items. If you prefer to purchase an item elsewhere, please email refugeewelcomeprogram@gmail.com to let us know so we can remove it from the Wish List. 

We will continue to update the list as the needs of the family become clearer. Thank you for your generous cooperation.

2. Volunteers

- Participate in the resettlement process as a Team Leader. Team Leaders will help organize from the ground up in several key areas, including coordinating tutors and mentors for the family. We anticipate this commitment to be about 3-6 months, with opportunities to work directly with the family and in partnership with fellow Team Leaders every week or so.

- There will be additional opportunities to volunteer, including helping to get their home ready, working with the family as a mentor or tutor, and more.

If you're interested in being a Team Leader, or volunteering in another capacity, please click here and we will be in touch when we have more information.

We will continue to update the congregation as we learn more about the family. In the meantime - thank you.