The Off Ramp

When Zeke and Sarah walked out of the airport with their two daughters, a group of us was waiting with welcome signs. Zeke looked around and said, "I never expected this. This is like in my country, when all the family comes to greet your arrival. Thank you."

They had less than a day's notice before they landed. A sponsorship program had just been shut down, and their family, who had been waiting in Germany, suddenly had nowhere to go. We said yes, and by the next afternoon we had a hotel room, meals, and the beginning of a plan.

That is what "still here" means to us. Plans change overnight, but showing up doesn't have to.

One week into this campaign, we've crossed $5,000 toward our $7,000 goal raised in July. We're grateful for everyone who has helped us get here, and for anyone who is able to help us close the rest of the way.

You can give here: https://app.aplos.com/aws/give/TheOffRamp/donate

Every Wednesday morning, one of us logs onto Zoom and before we can even say hello, we hear it. "How are you, Mum? I am glad to see you, Mum!" That greeting has carried us through a hard year of closed doors and changed plans, and it is still carrying us now.

We have not made a public ask since early spring of last year. We have stretched what we have and leaned on the generosity of our monthly givers. But we need to raise $7,000 to keep the commitments we have already made to the families and programs who count on us.

Bernard is still waiting on a visa that could change everything. A seamstress we work with has been displaced twice and picked her needle back up both times. The need has not paused, and neither have we.

We are calling this season Still Here. Over the next four weeks we will be sharing more of these stories and what it takes to keep showing up. The full story of the family behind that Wednesday Zoom call along with a way to give is on our blog today.

Still Here: We need to raise $7,000 in July. Every Wednesday morning, Nell logs onto Zoom and before she can even say hello, she hears it. "How are you, Mum? I am glad to see you, Mum!" It doesn't matter how hard the week has been. That greeting resets something in her every time.That conversation has continued for over a year now. We hoped to...

Islamabad. New Zealand. The United States.

The Off Ramp has been working to secure safe shelter for Afghan refugee families still waiting in Islamabad, helped one family successfully resettle in New Zealand, and helped another family resettle here in the United States.

It's quiet work, and it doesn't always make for a tidy story. But there are families who are safe and building new lives because a small group of people stayed with it.