Christmas for Refugees – Donations Doubled!

DONATIONS DOUBLED: Right now, every gift to Christmas for Refugees is being doubled by the Matching Gift Fund set up by the Leadership Circle. The Leadership Circle is a group of very generous supporters of the Religious Freedom Coalition.

This year the Leadership Circle provided a matching gift fund of $140,000!

We must raise $140,000 in smaller donations to receive the entire matching gift fund. That would give us $280,000 toward the budget to provide a real Christmas for 12,500 displaced Christian children, many of them from war torn Syria.

Lebanon is in a state of crisis and literally bankrupt as a nation as it deals with 40% of its population being refugees from Iraq and Syria. The Lebanese currency is worthless, having lost 90% of its value against the U.S. dollar in the last two years. The country cannot even afford to buy fuel for power plants.

Lebanon, despite its current problems, is a key part of our Christmas for Refugees program. Our ministry partners in Lebanon coordinate the Christmas program not only in Lebanon but in Syria as well.

In Lebanon about 4,000 children and their refugee families will participate in the program. In Syria 5,550 Christian children and their families who have been displaced by the ten-year conflict will be part of the program.         

In all, our Lebanese partners are coordinating the programs for 9,550 of the 12,500 children our Christmas programs will reach this year.

In Lebanon and Syria, each program is held by a different church. There will be dozens of programs, and I don’t want to see even one of them cancelled. Matching the $140,000 Matching Gift Fund this year is critical.

The need is urgent for Christmas. If possible, rather than sending a check to help with the Christmas program, please donate online at www.2021ChristmasMatchingGift.org.

Bethlehem: We face rising costs in our West Bank ministries, not only for the Christmas program there but for the Diaper program as well. Our big hurdle is double taxation. Israel imposes a tax on everything coming across its border even if the products are destined for the Palestinian area. Then the Palestinian Authority adds a tax as well.

Everything we buy that is imported, such as gifts for the children or for diapers, is more expensive than anywhere else we work. Yet we can’t leave! This is the birthplace of our Lord, and the Christians here need our help.            

We are trying to make a difference for the few Christians remaining in the Holy Land.