Hello everyone,  

Remember - Potluck lunch on Sunday – bring something to share and enjoy the fellowship!  

For the next few weeks, let’s fill the Food Bank basket with things that warm the insides – soup, stew, oatmeal, hot chocolate mix, etc.    

I received a call from Turning Point this week.  They are in need of more baskets, so I put together five baskets from what we had left over last time, plus a few more items, and they will be blessed this week.  We don’t currently have any money in our Turning Point account, so if you would like to make a donation that would be great.  We will need to start collecting for a new batch of baskets to be ready in a couple of months.  I will let you know later in a separate e-mail what is needed. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ The REST committee has two separate family re-unification projects that they would like to bring to our attention.  One is Bukhari’s brother Moses. This young man is 20 years old and has fled Somalia so that he would not be conscripted, and thus, most likely killed. He is now living in Kenya. Bukhari is hoping we will consider bringing him to Canada so that they can share an apartment, and his brother will help look after him. This would be a win-win for both young men and allow Bukhari to live without further ongoing support from us.    The other is Noor, a man from Somalia who came to Canada on a scholarship, completed a degree, and is now a government employee! He previously sponsored his parents and brother to come to Canada. He has asked us to consider bringing his 24 year old sister and her two children, aged 5 and 3. Her husband was killed by Al Shebab because he was working as a youth advocate against Al Shebab. They threatened her and so, she has moved from Kenya to Uganda. Her brother is desperate to get her and her young children out of danger. The family is eager and able to do the settlement work and do fundraising, but they do not have any money now. This young woman has English and work experience, and she has graduated from high school.    The catch is – the REST committee cannot take on any more refugees at present, so they are asking all the different churches if they will sponsor one of these people on their own.  If you have any thoughts about Gloria Dei possibly taking this on on our own or in conjunction with another church, please let me know as soon as possible.     See you Sunday!   Lin   .