SEATTLE – When parishioners at St. James Cathedral heard the United States would be welcoming refugees fleeing from Afghanistan, they knew they had to act.  

“This crisis seemed so urgent it drove me to action,” said parishioner Jura Litchfield. “The truth is I should have done this years ago. It was a clear case that we had to act and act now.” 

Litchfield and others formed a “sponsor circle,” a new pathway the federal government created to allow individuals or community groups to sponsor refugees. The St. James group welcomed one family of three in January and a second family of three a few weeks later. 

“It's been a leap of faith and practice of faith,” said Erica de Klerk, refugee welcome coordinator for St. James Immigrant Assistance. 

St. James volunteers have been helping the families enroll in health care and benefits, find affordable housing, learn English, connect to places of worship and get to know the area. One of the first challenges when settling families into temporary housing was showing them how to use the appliances, said Jeannine Sielinski, one of the circle’s lead volunteers. 

“It’s been humbling to see everything they’ve had to endure and learn,” she said. 

These families are among the more than 75,000 Afghans who have been brought to the U.S. since August 2021. Those participating in sponsor circles commit to supporting a family for three months, but St. James is pledging a year of support, de Klerk said.  

The St. James circle includes some 20 volunteers committed to working with the families weekly or monthly, de Klerk said. Other people have donated home furnishings, collected clothing or responded to specific needs that come up. 

Members of the sponsor circle at St. James Cathedral help set up an apartment for a family of refugees from Afghanistan. (Courtesy St. James Immigrant Assistance) 

It has been a whirlwind of activity, marked by much joy and gratitude, as well as a deep learning curve, de Klerk said.  

For the St. James team, God’s call to welcome the stranger has been the message underlying all they do. 

“This is indeed the work of the Church,” Litchfield said. “It’s important that we recognize that we in the U.S. are a small minority of the world population not living in fear and hunger.” 

In a country of immigrants and refugees, she said, “I’m hopeful Catholic leaders will continue to spread that message of welcoming the stranger.” 

‘A stunning task’ 

Cultural barriers have been among the biggest challenges for the team, Litchfield said. 

“There’s a tension between the way things were and the way things are here,” she said. “It’s a stunning task.” 

For the family who came from a more provincial area of Afghanistan, life in Seattle is like “living on the moon,” said team member Sarah Riggio, who — along with her husband and five children — hosted the first arriving family in their home for six weeks. 

In addition to adapting to their new environment, the families have been dealing with their trauma.  

As the Riggio family gained the trust of their sponsored family, the husband opened up more about his painful experience, expressing fear for friends and family still living there.  

“It’s hard to think about the real danger people are still in,” Riggio said. (Because of security concerns, the identities of families being assisted here are confidential, de Klerk explained.) 

Communication was another challenge facing all those involved.  

At the airport to meet their first Afghan family, the St. James team was grateful to meet Ghulam Mohmand, an airport employee who offered to interpret, de Klerk said. Mohmand, who immigrated to the United States from Afghanistan seven years ago, has since joined the sponsor circle and helped connect the group to their second family, she said. 

“I offer translation, housing, connect people, cook food, drop off at doctor’s appointments. I help with anything,” said Mohmand. “These families don’t have relatives or friends. I am everything to them,” he added.  

Sielinski said it has really helped to have a group that is flexible with a wealth of different resources and gifts to share.  

“It really takes a village,” Sielinski said. “I’ve developed so many new relationships not just with the refugee families, but within the parish.” 

The Spirit ‘alive and at work’ 

This journey of accompaniment has had its challenges, but has been marked with joyful milestones as well, team members said.

An Afghan refugee family, being assisted by St. James Cathedral parishioners, checks out their new apartment. (Courtesy St. James Immigrant Assistance) 

It was exciting to see the first family settle into their own apartment, Litchfield said. Residents of the complex came to welcome the family, bringing them food.  

“They now have a place to put their roots down,” Litchfield said. “They have a few new English words every time I see them, and they are forging connections with a mosque community.” 

All this would not have been possible without the support of the parish, Litchfield added.  

“It’s just surprising how much time it takes,” she said. “It’s about finding a balance between offering our support and not being too invasive.” 

For Riggio, hosting an Afghan family during Ramadan, a holy month of fasting for Muslims, taught her a lot.  

“We were deeply humbled to witness the rhythm of their prayer throughout the day,” she said.  

Even though hosting others in their homes has required some sacrifice on the part of her kids, she said they have continued to say yes. They recently welcomed another man from Afghanistan to stay with them.  

“This is how we live out our faith,” she said. “We have been blessed by the experience.”  

Despite all the barriers, the St. James team formed close relationships with the families they are accompanying.  

“Even though we did not speak the same language, we completely bonded,” Riggio said. “I give all the credit to the Holy Spirit. The Pentecostal spirit was alive and at work.”

Learn more about forming a sponsor circle. Visit Welcome.US, the national coalition to help Afghan and Ukrainian refugees, and learn what’s next for Afghan refugees in the U.S.