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The sound of weeping and crying will be no more, lives will not be cut short, people will build houses and dwell in them, and plant fields and enjoy the harvest. — Isaiah 65
In 2008, Goreth was a wife and mother living in Goma, a city in Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). Her day began like any other day – she woke up, brushed her teeth, made some tea and headed to the market to sell clothes at her stand. It became a day she would never forget.
“[When] the fighting broke out, my daughters and I started running. We found a way to get past Goma to Burundi, and that’s when I started my life as a refugee,” said Goreth.
Today, the world is experiencing an unprecedented crisis.
Hundreds of millions of people have been driven from their homes — as a result of three growing and interconnected realities: violent conflict, climate change, and extreme poverty. These three forces are fueling an unprecedented migration crisis, the likes of which our world has never seen. Today, more people than ever in recorded history, and almost three times more than just a decade ago, have been forced to flee for their lives and desperately seek refuge in a country or community not of their own. Tragically, more than 40% of these are children.
Though their stories are different, each of these people, made in the image of God, share the anguishing experience of being uprooted from their homes, leaving behind all they’ve ever known, and beginning again. This is a catastrophic and tragic reality that cannot go unaddressed. And at World Relief, we’re committed to stepping into this crisis with a bold new vision.
A Vision for ‘Such a Time as This’
Amidst this global crisis, we believe we are uniquely positioned ‘for such a time as this’, to lead in engaging with and equipping local churches to respond to the global displacement crises with transformative solutions that bring hope, healing and restoration to the millions forced to flee their homes each year.
Our faith drives a fierce determination to work tirelessly towards a world in which thriving, welcoming communities allow families to flourish, and where people experience restorative relationships with God, their neighbors and all of creation.
So what does this work look like in reality?
As we step into our 81st year with a renewed sense of calling and commitment to step faithfully into the greatest humanitarian crises of our time, our programs will refocus to prioritize:
- Engaging communities in crisis: In the wake of disasters and crises like the war in Ukraine, we work through our global network of churches and local volunteers to respond to emergency humanitarian needs.
- Building Communities of Resilience: We want to work to bolster stability and create resiliency through programming in savings, agriculture, water & sanitation, and health, in those fragile communities at risk of displacement.
- Supporting Communities on the Move: We will provide ongoing support along the journey for those impacted by displacement, including host communities, helping to restore livelihoods and forge pathways to flourishing.
- Creating Communities of Welcome: We engage in the creation of welcoming communities and in the associated advocacy and public policy efforts that lead to a sense of belonging and restoration for all those forced to flee their homes.
Never before has this work been so important. Yet this is a mission and vision that requires all of us — united in purpose, faith and cause. Together, we imagine a world in which churches across the globe step into this calling hand in hand with us, and with one another, as a powerful and united body of believers joining together to restore stability, create resiliency, provide pathways to flourishing, and inspire action on behalf of all those suffering.
Will you join us?
Francesca Albano joined World Relief in 2016 and has played a variety of roles with progressively expanding responsibilities. She is a passionate storyteller and cross-cultural communicator, having spent much of her childhood in Kenya and the U.K., before immigrating to the U.S. as a teenager. She holds a B.A. in Anthropology and International Affairs from Colby College and an M.A in Strategic Marketing Communications from Georgetown University, and is also a Storybrand Certified Guide. Today, her passions and expertise converge to help us tell the story of what God is doing through World Relief and the local church all around the world. She is deeply committed to stewarding this story, and the stories of those we serve, with great care and dignity as we also seek to inform, inspire and invite others to come alongside the work of World Relief. She lives close to Boston with her husband, Joe, and son, Teddy.