We have been approached by a colleague of Alissa's whose friend, Asif, recently moved to Kent.  Asif is from Afghanistan and is trying to safely get his family over to the United States.  His brother, Hamid, is finishing college in India, but his student visa is set to expire in the spring.  Asif is trying to get Hamid a visa to come to the United States upon his graduation.  

Asif believes it will significantly increase Hamid's chances of getting his visa approved if he can have a letter from a non-profit with a monthly financial pledge to Hamid up to one year. That is where St. Columba's comes in.  Currently, we are gathering interest to see if we can offer a monthly amount that would be helpful to Asif. 

If you are interested in committing a monthly amount for up to one year to an Afghan refugee please click here to let us know the monthly amount.   No amount is too big or too small!  All we can do is see what our community has to give and see if it would be helpful. Please fill out the form by Nov. 7th. 

Two things to note:  1. This amount would not go towards your financial contribution to the church and would not be eligible for any tax write off.  2. You would not start paying the amount that you pledged until the visa is approved and Hamid arrives to the United States.  This could be awhile.