Friend a Family Update

Marlene Schroeder

The Friend a Family Community Support Groups are getting trained and meeting their newly arrived Afghan families. We are finding they have basic needs like clothing, jobs, transportation, medical care, furniture, assistance navigating government programs such as WIC, etc. They all have experienced the heartache of leaving family behind and worry for the health and safety of all who remain in Afghanistan. 

We currently have nine CFNA Friend a Family Support Groups in various stages of training and serving. It can feel a little overwhelming at first for some volunteers, but we know that we cannot be nearly as overwhelmed as the new families who have come here to this new culture. We also know that God will lead us to serve where most needed. God is at work among us.

I am the Interim Friend a Family Coordinator, filling this role until a permanent employee can be found, and I am a long-time member of the Lutheran Church of Webster Gardens. I retired in 2019 from Brentwood School District after spending 40 years working for various companies in Payroll, Benefits, and Human Resources. God has given me a lifetime of experiences that has made me feel equipped to attempt to assist those who have just arrived to navigate through our sometimes complex way of life.

If you are interested in forming a Friend a Family support group at your church, please feel free to contact either Rev. Stanish Stanley at sstanley@cfna-stl.org or me at mschroeder@cfna-stl.org.  Thank you for your continued support including especially your prayers.

Marlene Schroeder
Friend a Family Coordinator
Christian Friends of New Americans