Gathering Our People – July 2023
July is here, and that means that next month our Regional Refugee Roundtable is happening! Wait a second, this isn’t just a regular conference with polished speakers and professional puffery. This is a gathering of people, OUR people, to connect, learn and grow together in the work of seeing refugees flourish.
Have you ever met a group of people that share your unique passions, foundational mindsets and that just get you, no explanation needed? THOSE are your people. When our staff has attended similar national gatherings put on by RHPNA, we walk away from those spaces feeling like we were with OUR people. People in the refugee and immigrant realm who are like-minded, pursuing similar things in a myriad of creative ways. It’s powerful. Encouraging. Challenging. And most of all, integral to longevity. That’s exactly what we are trying to cultivate in our region. Lone rangers are overrated, prone to burnout, and just plain lonely. Let’s build a community of people that equip one another, share ideas together, and press on in this often isolating work.
If you serve refugees, work with refugees, or are in a ministry connected to refugees, we would LOVE to have you join us. If you are a leader of a ministry or organization that engages with refugees in our city, region or state, PLEASE consider sending your staff and volunteers to attend. We have several breakout session facilitators already lined up and are still accepting proposals for other topics. Breakout presenters have a discounted rate, and this is the first LOCAL event like this in the area. Don’t miss out! Keep scrolling through the newsletter for more info, or register now!
Schedule
This is the tentative schedule for the Roundtable. Each Breakout will allow for participants to attend a session from one of five categories: Adult Education & ESL, Culture, Faith & Evangelism, Health (Physical, Mental and Spiritual) and Other (for anything else that doesn’t fit the previous categories). With 5 different breakout sessions throughout the conference, there will be plenty of opportunities to join in discussions with others in your areas of interest. There will also be the opportunity to participate in site visits to The PLACE and Cactus Nazarene Ministry Center on Thursday evening. Large group time of encouragement and prayer as well as small group breakouts focused on relevant topics, there is something for everyone!
Breakout Topics
We are currently filling slots for breakout sessions. If you are interested in presenting under any of the following topics, please read the Breakout Session Facilitation Guide and submit a proposal.
- Adult Education/ ESL
- Culture
- Faith & Evangelism
- Health: Physical, Mental or Spiritual
- Other – relevant topics that don’t fit into a category
To give you a taste of some of the breakout sessions you can attend, here are a few presentations already on the schedule:
English with Newcomers: Helping refugees grow their ability to understand and speak English
Pam Echerd (SIL International)
Generational Issues of Refugees
Sunny Hong (SIL)
How to Relate to People from Honor-Shame Cultures
Sunny Hong (SIL)
Facilitating Discovery Bible Studies with Refugees
Jeremy Harrison (Pioneer Bible Translators)
Enhancing Refugees’ Disaster Resilience
Li Chen & Ming Xie (WTAMU)
Resettlement 101
Samantha Moreno & Ashlee Pallares (CCTxP)
New RLP Offices and Address
We’ve moved a few times over the years, but hopefully this will be the last one for a long while! Our entire staff will now be located next door to The PLACE, but still connected through the back hallway. We will no longer be at the Polk Street address, where we have been graciously hosted by Crossroads Church since 2021. Please update your records to our NEW address:
Refugee Language Project
3107 Plains Blvd
Suite 200
Amarillo, Texas 79102
Come Hang out with Us!
Hey RLP fam! The past few months have left us feeling disconnected from many of you that we used to see regularly at Table Talk. We want to reconnect and touch base in a very unstructured social time. In that spirit, we would love to invite you to come hang out at West Hills Park on Saturday nights for the remainder of the summer. We’ll have a game of ultimate frisbee for those that want to play, and everyone is welcome to bring chairs or blankets and just chat and enjoy time together. There is a large field on the North end of the park perfect for frisbee, so plan to meet there. See you Saturday!
Snapshots
