Deut 10: 18. 19 [God] ensures that orphans and widows receive justice. He shows love to the foreigners living among you and gives them food and clothing. So you, too, must show love to foreigners, for you yourselves were once foreigners in the land of Egypt.

Hi! My name is Erica Morrison and I became associate staff with International Student Ministries Canada in 2018.  I have always loved getting to know people of other cultures and working with ISMC fills me with so much joy.  As a certified English as a Second Language teacher and a certified Professional Life Coach, I’m so grateful that over the years, God has equipped me to reach out and serve international students—something I was not expecting. What a privilege!

We would love to have you come join us as a volunteer in befriending and blessing the students who come to our country’s door!

In the past few decades, the number of international students coming to Canada—including London and area– has increased astronomically. 

International students have so many practical, social and spiritual needs. We, as Christian Canadians, can help meet so many of these needs simply by being a good friend to international students. Your care, connections, prayers, and knowledge about how things work in our culture can be such a blessing to them. 

One student told me, “Just the fact that you care is so helpful!”  It doesn’t take much to bless an international student, and we are sure that when you befriend a student, you will find that he or she is such a gift in your life as well.

HERE ARE SOME WAYS YOU COULD HELP

Attend FOCUS Dinners—these enjoyable potluck dinners happen once a month in a church gym. FOCUS stands for “Friends of Overseas College and University Students” and at these events Canadians bring the food and sit and chat with International Students, making friends. Between dinner and dessert, a speaker gives a talk on a topic that is helpful to international students. Some of you might love helping in the kitchen, as well, making sure the food is served well and cleaning up afterwards. 

Attend or help out with one of our London International Students events—We try to run an event once a month in addition to the FOCUS dinners. This could be a maple sugar shack visit in the spring, a beach day in the summer, a hike in the woods in the fall, and sledding in the winter.  These events are great ways to have fun and get to know international students, helping them enjoy their time in Canada.

Sign up for Friends for Dinner—F4D is another great program that matches international students with friendly Canadians.  Canadians sign up to host a few interested international students for a holiday meal in their homes, which could be Easter, Thanksgiving or Christmas… or maybe even a Canada Day BBQ.

Would you like to be a Homestay to an International Student? Spaces Shared is a program that matches international students looking for safe, affordable housing with hosts who have spare bedrooms. Good housing is such a need for international students today. It’s a win-win! 

There’s a place for many gifts and talents to serve international students, including:

• preparing snacks
• driving students
• English as a Second language/conversation help
• assisting in leadership training/career mentoring
• speaking at FOCUS dinners on a helpful topic for students, such as how to find a job 
• and more–let us know your ideas.

Financial Contributions—would you like to bless my ministry with ISMC financially? Whatever you give will pay for ministry expenses such as training materials for students, gas, snacks, etc and perhaps a monthly stipend for me. Thank you so much!

Erica
erica.morrison@ismc.ca
www.londoninternationalstudents.com

PS. Would you like me to come speak to your church/group about the amazing opportunities right now to be a blessing to people from around the world? Let me know and I will be happy to do so.

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