While making room in their hearts for the Christ child this Advent, Greensboro parishioners are also creating space for refugee families entering the Triad area
Sharon and Steve Finger help sort and transfer angel tree gifts for refugee families at St. Benedict Church in Greensboro. They, along with about a dozen fellow parishioners and Father James Duc Duong, pastor, collect household items and help set up homes for refugees through World Relief Triad, a local Christian humanitarian organization. Lynne McGrath, secretary and faith formation coordinator, led the angel tree project. (Photos by Annie Ferguson | Catholic News Herald )GREENSBORO — The gifts under the angel tree at St. Benedict Church look a little different this year than in Advents past. Instead of brightly wrapped packages of toys, there are pots, pans, paper towels, sheets, comforters, toiletries and other household items piling up in the entrance to the historic 124-year-old Greensboro church. Although these gifts may look less festive, they are every bit as appreciated by those who will receive them – refugees fleeing persecution and war.
The items are part and parcel of the parish’s new “Welcome the Stranger” outreach ministry benefiting World Relief Triad, which welcomes government-vetted refugees to the region by setting up apartment homes and acclimating the new arrivals to life in the United States. Championing the efforts is Father James Duc Duong, pastor of St. Benedict and a former Vietnam refugee himself.
Parishioners Steve and Sharon Finger are spearheading St. Benedict’s volunteer efforts with World Relief Triad – a Christian humanitarian organization that helps settle 70 refugee families each year in the High Point, Greensboro and Winston-Salem area. The families come from countries such as Syria, Afghanistan and Ukraine.
“World Relief needs a lot of household goods for the refugees, so the parish decided that we would take the annual giving tree and instead of doing toys for kids, we would dedicate it to collecting household items for refugee families this year,” Steve Finger said.
RELIEVING A HUMANITARIAN CRISIS
Finger noted that the idea for the “Welcome the Stranger” parish ministry came from Father Duong, who fled to the U.S. from Vietnam almost 50 years ago. Father Duong spoke from the pulpit about the effort and his experience, inspiring Finger to take the lead. By the end of October, they had about a dozen volunteers, enough to get the ministry going.
“There is such a refugee crisis in this country, and it is one of Christ’s requests that we welcome the stranger,” said Finger. “It’s something that I didn’t have a lot of experience with before and wanted to learn more about, and this seemed like the way to do it.”
They’re off to a running start, volunteering regularly on weekends for home setups and taking in household donations during the Advent season. On Friday, Dec. 8, the Feast of the Immaculate Conception, the parish had already amassed loads of home goods at the start of the first collection weekend.
Father Duong was eager to transfer the items to a storage space on the church grounds, moving quickly and setting up tables where World Relief can pick up the items. He is on a mission to help those who are facing the same kind of hardships he endured for 16 years in Vietnam.
UNDERSTANDING THE PLIGHT OF REFUGEES
Beginning in 1975 with the fall of Saigon, Father Duong and his family suffered extreme persecution from the Communist government, including imprisonment and harsh conditions in labor camps, before they escaped to the United States. Father Duong and his brother, Father Tien Duong, knew they were called to the priesthood but could not fulfill their callings for political reasons.
After being split up, each of the 12-member Duong family made it to the United States by 1991. Unknown to the family at the time, the Diocese of Charlotte had sponsored them through a government program they qualified for due to their father’s work.
Through his priestly ministry, Father Duong has given back for decades to the country that helped his family break free from Communist Vietnam. Now, with the support of his parish, he has the chance to help others fleeing persecution.
“I am overwhelmed by the response from my parish family,” Father Duong said. “St. Benedict has a long history of outreach to those on the margins, and this is one more way we can do what Christ calls us to do in Matthew 25:35 – ‘I was a stranger and you welcomed me.’
“Words cannot express my gratitude for the chance my family had to come here all those years ago, and we as a parish are pleased to play that role in the lives of others facing similar situations today.”
TAKING THE FIRST STEPS
Father Duong said he has wanted the parish to get involved with helping refugees for years, and with the Finger couple’s involvement, the “Welcome the Stranger” program had the momentum it needed to get started.
St. Benedict parishioners help set up apartments with furniture, bedding, kitchen and bathroom supplies, and other household necessities for incoming refugee families.
Parishioner Carole Vaughan became interested after seeing a notice in the parish bulletin. Retired and wanting to get more involved in the community, she sought more information.
“When you think about refugees, the border comes to mind, and you may think, ‘I don’t know about this,’ but after I went to the interest meeting where they explained how all the refugees are vetted through the State Department, I thought it was a good program,” Vaughan said. “Father Duc came through something similar and had people help them, so this made sense to do.”
Parishioners plan to grow their support in coming months by developing friendships with the refugees through World Relief Triad’s “Good Neighbor” program, which gives refugees a network of support as they navigate life in the U.S.
Jon Musser, mission services director for World Relief Triad, said he looks forward to the St. Benedict parishioners’ continued involvement and hopes more churches will join their efforts.
“Some of the volunteers are really wanting to connect relationally and form friendships with incoming families,” Musser said. “That’s our hope: to see people meet other people and enter into mutually transformative relationships.”
Seven parishioners, including Vaughan volunteered for the first home setup in November. Vaughan noted that she enjoys the fellowship and that she gained a new skill at the second home setup: assembling a bed. The initial struggle to figure out the assembly was well worth the effort, she said.
“The refugees are flying in from very far away, and they’re picked up at the airport by strangers and dropped off at an apartment, but when they walk in, it’s some semblance of a home. It’s not just an empty space,” Vaughan said. “That’s what is so special about this, and we get to be a part of creating that space.”
— Annie Ferguson
What is World Relief?
World Relief is a global organization founded in the aftermath of World War II to respond to the urgent humanitarian needs of war-torn Europe. For more than 75 years, it has partnered with local churches and communities across the globe to develop solutions to mass displacement, natural disasters, extreme poverty and other major world problems.
The organization has 22 locations in the United States, which focus on serving refugee and immigrant families in partnership with the U.S. State Department. World Relief Triad, founded in 1989, is one of those locations.
More online
At www.catholicnewsherald.com: Read more about the harrowing journey of Father James Duc Duong and his brother Father Tien Duong.
At www.worldrelief.org/triad: Learn more about World Relief Triad.
