Lipscomb’s Intercultural Development Office calls on students to donate to “Shoes for Syrians,” a fundraiser helping the thousands of refugees fleeing Syria.
“Sometimes I think when we see something that’s that big of a problem, we think that we can’t do anything because it’s just too much,” Director of Intercultural Development Lisa Steele said. “I was trying to think of how we can narrow it down, so that’s where I came up with the idea.”
The Syrian refugee crisis comes as the result of the Syrian Civil War, which has taken place since 2011. The situation has become more drastic this year as countries all over Europe are receiving thousands of Syrian refugees and are struggling to manage levels of massive immigration.
“I have a friend, the Meleritos family, who are missionaries in Greece and so I knew that they would be able to distribute some shoes; that’s something my friend said that the refugees need,” Steele said.
Steele said that Jesus’ instructions of feeding the hungry and clothing the poor in Matthew 25 help her and those working on the project to remember why they have committed to the cause.
Steele attributed the biblical analogy of planting a seed to the fundraiser.
She said that Lipscomb is planting the seed by collecting the shoes; the missionaries in Greece will water the seed by handing out the shoes, and God will make it grow.
“That’s all He calls us to do, the little things that are in front of us,” Steele said.
“Shoes for Syrians” ends Sept. 17 and students can bring shoes to the Intercultural Development Office to donate.