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Volunteer Appreciation Month: Because Hope Moves Through People

Measuring the contribution of volunteering to progress and well-being is vital, not to convince but to confirm how much volunteers contribute to peace and development, and to document not just economic but also social benefits to communities – Flavia Pansieri, former executive coordinator of the UN Volunteers During National Volunteer Appreciation Week, World Relief Spokane…

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Change That Lasts Through Mutual Transformation

by Judy and Mike Palm // At World Relief SoCal, we often talk about mutual transformation as a central goal for relationships within our community: among churches, between volunteers and newcomers, between staff and neighbors. But what does it take to build the kind of authentic friendships that would lead to mutual transformation?  We interviewed…

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Falling Into God’s Plan

Barb & Bern Olker

An Interview with an English Language Volunteer Below is an interview with Barb Olker, a long-time volunteer with our English Language Learning program. How long have you been volunteering with World Relief Chicagoland, and specifically with English Language Learning classes? My husband and I have been doing this since the 90’s. It’s been a long…

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How to Lead from Where You Are

Leadership reflection from World Relief Chicagoland Executive Director Susan Sperry. At World Relief, we regularly say that we want to create communities of love and welcome. I believe that this is an important vision. In fact, it’s a guiding idea that has motivated much of my own decision-making and sense of calling in my life…

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Beautiful Things Follow Prayer

In tumultuous times it can be tempting to feel helpless. What can one person do against an onslaught of existential circumstances and fears? Sometimes, it simply requires asking God for direction and purpose. His plans may not be clear initially, but with a leap of faith, beautiful things can happen. This is true for our…

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Rodney: Responding to the Call to Love and Serve (Part 1)

 Being willing to change our perspectives and opinions is never easy, even when a person wants to be open to discerning God’s will. Human nature pushes against His pulling, yet it is possible for the callousness of our hearts to regain their softly supple state, showering others in compassion and love. In anticipation of Volunteer Appreciation…

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Rodney: Responding to the Call to Love and Serve (Part 2)

This is the second of a two-part installment. Read Part One of Rodney’s story HERE. Freshly immersed in Café English, Rodney quickly fostered friendships with our English as a Second Language (ESL) students. Shortly after this routine was established, he was approached by Mobilization Director Karen Spencer to potentially fill the need of Roadrunner: volunteer drivers who…

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