by Clem Boyd
When social work alumna Leah Harper headed to Romania as a social worker in 2021, she combined a lifelong dream to serve in missions in conjunction with using her professional degree.
By 2022, God was using her in a bigger way than she imagined, helping Ukrainian refugees escape a war zone.
Leah's primary role has her serving vulnerable populations in the city of Cluj-Napoca, Romania. But since late February, more than 3 million Ukrainian people have fled their home country since the invasion by Russia.
Refugees have flooded the community center where Leah serves. They are being housed and fed without cost.
Some of the Ukrainians are using the community center for temporary shelter on their way to family and friends, while others are turning to the center for help finding a host family or an apartment.
Leah helps in any way she can, serving meals, doing dishes, and cleaning rooms. She's also using her social work skills to listen well to people who are struggling to make sense of the tragedy that has entered their lives.
You can support the work that Leah is doing
to help refugees by visiting worldmethodist.org/donate/Ukraine.
“Most of these refugees are scared, hoping for this conflict to end soon, but scared of what they will go back to if they return to their homes,” Leah shared with Cedarville public relations. “These people are not directly involved in this conflict apart from where they live, yet their lives have been uprooted or ended.”
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More to the Story
Leah’s support of the Ukrainian refugees was featured by Cedarville PR shortly after the war began.
More to the Story
Leah’s support of the Ukrainian refugees was featured by Cedarville PR shortly after the war began.