Since 2017, the Interfaith Refugee Family Support Initiative with a team of 80+ dedicated volunteers from BHPC, BJC, the MIIC, Idara, and ICCP has helped refugee families and individuals make their homes in Montgomery County. We have provided long-term financial, mentoring, tutoring, and other supports to four families and several individuals.

In 2021 and 2022, we furnished nine apartments for other refugee families with donated or purchased household items after Afghanistan fell to the Taliban. Several of us now partner with Homes not Borders (HNB) (https://www.homesnotborders.org) to continue to provide a first furnished home for newly arrived refugees from many countries.

A Critical Time for Refugees in Our Community

Are you willing and able to help with a renewed effort to welcome newcomers to our community?  Can you:

1. Donate Gently Used or New Household Items

We continue to collect household items for apartment set ups. If you would like to donate new or gently used household items, please email Brigitte Burgett. For larger furniture donations, please review the HNB website and contact HNB for pick up: www.homesnotborders.org/donate-items.

2. Volunteer to Set Up Apartments

Home set ups are usually on Mondays, Thursdays, and Saturdays.  Ten volunteers are needed per set up, starting either at 9:30 or 10:30 am and finished between 1:00 pm and 2:00 pm. Both adults and youth are welcome! If you are interested in volunteering for home set ups or have any questions, please contact Brigette Burgett. Expressing interest is not a commitment. HNB sends out a sign-up genius link to those interested.  If you sign up through the sign-up genius link for a specific day and time, we will count on you to show up. 

Interested in Helping?

If you are interested in exploring other ways to support refugees in our community who may need more help than the resettlement agencies can provide with their limited resources, please contact Brigitte Burgett (BHPC) bkburgett@gmail.com or Evelyn Ganzglass (BJC) eganzglass@gmail.com.

We welcome new volunteers, current volunteers and previous volunteers to a renewed interfaith refugee initiative.

This is the time to make a difference!