Circle of Welcome Team Commemorates Year Walking Alongside Refugee Family

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LCR Team on Sept 9.JPG

September 9th was God’s Work, Our Hands Sunday, a day of service for Evangelical Lutheran Church of America churches around the country.  One of our Circle of Welcome teams compromised of members Lutheran Church of the Resurrection in Marietta and First United Lutheran Church in Kennesaw took this opportunity to celebrate the refugee family they’ve been working with this past year.  The team gathered at Milam Park in Clarkston to celebrate and acknowledge the end of their year with their Circle of Welcome family.  They shared a feast from Jerusalem Bakery and then presented the family with a framed photo collage of favorite shared moments from the past year.  They then took turns presenting family members with symbolic items to bless their new home and shared a blessing (see below).  The group then enjoyed parachute games, corn hole, and time outdoors together.

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Here’s the blessing that was shared with the family:

BREAD so you never go hungry
SALT so you always have spice in your life
HONEY so you may enjoy the sweetness of life
CANDLE so you always have light
RICE so the love in your home may multiply
OLIVE OIL so that you may be blessed with health and well-being
CLOTH so that your home may be forever filled with warmth
PINEAPPLE so you may enjoy good cheer, warmth and celebration
HOUSEPLANT so your home may always have life
BROOM so your home may always be clean
WOOD so your home has stability, harmony and peace
COINS so that you may always have good fortune. 

One team member shared: “This was a wonderful team.  Each of us had gifts which were of value to the family and the team…I loved working with the family and watching them adapt to their new environment.”

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Thank you so much to the team members from Lutheran Church of the Resurrection and First United Lutheran Church for your dedication to the Rohingya family you walked alongside for the past year. Your support of the family and your support of each other were an inspiration to us at LSG!