This message was originally sent to the staff of Lutheran Community Services Northwest by President and CEO David Duea. We want to share it with our larger community.
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine is on all of our minds. We have several team members who are formerly from Ukraine and Russia. Over the years, we have resettled thousands of Ukrainian refugees here in the Pacific Northwest – over 2,100 over the last five years, in Tacoma, Portland and Vancouver.
Our prayers go out to our Ukrainian friends, as well as to our Russian staff and the people of Russia who do not support this aggression and who feel helpless. Our call, locally, is to show compassion to all. Please be extra kind to those you are working with and serving. If you can, when appropriate, reach out with words of support and comfort.
It is also our mission to continue welcoming those who face repression in foreign lands. We expect to receive more Ukrainian refugees over the coming months and years. Our Vancouver district received 32 individuals from Ukraine in the first week of February alone. We will be prepared to welcome and serve.
If you are a member of the media and would like to speak with someone from LCS Northwest, please contact our Director of Communications, Matt Misterek, [email protected], 253.678.9092.
