Making the holidays special for refugees

We are so grateful for everyone in our community who sent items from our Amazon wish list, purchased items from the Angel Trees at St. Louis Church, held collections, made handmade knit items and quilts, or donated money so we could purchase laundry detergent, lotion, candy, wish list items and more. Thank you, Mary Therese Friel of MTF LLC, for the 50 stockings! 

We had the pleasure of choosing hundreds of toys for our Angel Tree families and clothing closet clients thanks to the generosity and kindness of Deb Milne and The Kade Project.   Deb started The Kade project with her husband Ed, a former Marine, after the tragic death of their son Kade, who also served his country as a Marine.  One of the ways Deb and Ed give back in Kade’s memory is by collecting toys for Toys for Tots.  Thank you to Mary Therese Friel for connecting us and helping us choose amazing toys for our Angel Tree families!  Pictured at right are Mary Therese Friel and Deb Kade. 

Below are some of our donors.  We apologize to anyone we inadvertently omitted. Many of you quietly left your donation, and we didn’t get a chance to thank you. 

Knights of Columbus, Trinity Council #4618

Knights of Columbus, Saint John of Rochester

Knights of Columbus, Bishop McQuaid Council #7085

Penfield National Honor Society

Church of the Assumption Money for Beds for Ukrainian refugees

Redeemer Lutheran Church and Saint John’s Lutheran Church

Winslow Elementary School (Rush Henrietta)

Bomba Socks (3,000 pairs!!!)

Toys for Tots

Saint Louis School coat drive

Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Fairport

Saint Louis Church Youth Group

Jensen Hughes Company

So many talented knitters and crocheters

Amazon Wish List shoppers

Angel Tree Shoppers

Pirate Toys

Caldwell Manufacturing Co.

Queen of Peace knitted mittens

Pittsford Women’s Club knitted items

Mary Theresa Friel Modeling Agency

Paychex

The Highlands

Saint's Place has welcomed more than 350 Ukrainians to Rochester since July 1. It's going to be a tough Christmas for these people who are far from loved ones, including husbands fighting in the war in Ukraine. Click here to read the article on the Catholic Courier website. 

Are you helping the Ukrainians? What are their needs? How many are in Rochester? Are they staying here or returning home? Are more Ukrainians coming?

What can we do to help? 

These are very difficult questions to answer, due to many uncertainties. In fact, we don’t have the answer to most of the inquiries. Currently, Catholic Charities Family and Community Services tells us there are more than 300 Ukrainians in Rochester, and they are expecting 500 more in the next year. Most of the Ukrainians are living with family or friends. They have arrived in the United States under a sponsorship program, not under refugee status. 

What does that mean?  

Uniting for Ukraine, started by the Biden administration, provides a pathway for Ukrainian citizens and their immediate family members residing in Ukraine to come to the United States and stay temporarily in a two-year period of parole. Ukrainians participating in Uniting for Ukraine must have a supporter in the United States who agrees to provide them with financial support for the duration of their stay. Under this sponsorship program, they have a long wait to get a Social Security card, any public assistance, a job, etc.  A refugee that arrives is immediately eligible for a Social Security card and public assistance.  

Processing the Ukrainians and getting their Social Security card takes months.  So, they must stay with their sponsors until they can afford an apartment, get a job, etc. Most of the Ukrainians arrived with only one suitcase because of the cost of bringing luggage. They must pay their own airfare, so there is little money to bring possessions. 

At our Clothing Closet, we are helping 30 or more Ukrainians each week with clothing for all seasons. Recently, we started setting up apartments. Saint’s Place has already given out 45 new beds with pillows and bedding in the month of August and we set up 15 homes.  Our warehouse and clothing closet are well stocked at this time, but we have many real concerns about the upcoming months. Our biggest concern is having enough beds for all the Ukrainians that are here and those that are still to come.  Grant writing has become a full-time endeavor, and our Patron Saint’s campaign is scheduled for early October. 

And that is where you can help!

In a few weeks, we will have information about our Patron Saint’s Campaign, how you can donate, and how your donation will be used. Please consider becoming a Patron Saint and support people who were forced to leave their country because of war. It is so hard to imagine that in 2022, war can so cruelly displace people, separate them from their loved ones and the country they love. We can make a difference for them, let them know we care, and they are welcomed here in Rochester. Please keep them and their country in your prayers. 

Joyous reunion happens at Saint’s Place tutoring center  

Two Afghani women recently stopped by the Saint’s Place tutoring program at Guardian Angels Church in Henrietta.

Both of them had been tutored by Saint’s Place volunteers when they were children, and now in their 20s, they came bringing a new student with them — the husband of one of the women. He had just arrived from Afghanistan to begin a new life in Rochester.

“They went on and on about how wonderful (Saint’s Place Founder Colleen Knauf) and the program were, and how much it helped them,” says tutoring manager Geri Dolan. The Afghani family wanted the new arrival to have the same tutoring experience that they had had. 

“Their enthusiasm and gratefulness made our day,” Geri says. 

A week later, the family returned to the tutoring program, and this time, they were reunited with long-time volunteer Mary Ellen Capineri. Mary Ellen had tutored another daughter in the family for seven years, from the time she was in the fifth grade until she graduated from high school. That young woman went on to attend Monroe Community College, get married and relocated to Australia. “I remember the family fondly,” says Mary Ellen, especially one of the daughters who started the tutoring program as a five-year-old. 

“It was a joyous reunion with lots of hugs and catching up and exchanging of phone numbers,” Geri says. “It is always a gift to be able to see your former students and find out where their lives have taken them.” 

The tutoring program is an important aspect of Saint’s Place ministry. Refugees need to learn English so they can assimilate, get an education, and get jobs. The program has been in existence for 20 years. Tutoring takes place from 4:45 p.m. to 6 p.m. Mondays at Guardian Angels Church in Henrietta and Thursdays at the Greek Orthodox Church of the Holy Spirit in Rochester. 

If you are wondering about whether you are qualified to be a tutor, Geri says tutors come from a variety of backgrounds and ages and include high school and college students. Prospective tutors fill out paperwork and must take CASE (Creating a Safe Environment) online training as required by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Rochester. 

To learn more about volunteering, call Saint’s Place at (585) 358-6860 or fill out an online form here: https://saintsplace.org/contact-us