‘We see the need’: New Life ministry working on houses for Ukrainians | Metro

ST. LOUIS COUNTY — As the country began to brace for the arrival of Ukrainians fleeing the Russian invasion, a local nonprofit spent the weekend working on St. Louis’ welcome mat.

Volunteers with the New Life Evangelistic Center kicked off their Saturday clearing out part of a donated house in north St. Louis County, as pastors told reporters they hope to have 100 houses for Ukrainian newcomers over the next few years.

“We see the need,” said Pastor Chris Aaron Rice, “and we want to help any way we can.”

The region will need all the help it can get as it prepares for another surge in refugees fleeing war around the globe.

President Joe Biden announced Thursday that the U.S. will accept 100,000 Ukrainians through a variety of programs. And a top leader at the International Institute of St. Louis, the region’s largest resettlement agency, said he expects to see some of them here.

“We’re gearing up,” said Arrey Obenson, the institute’s president and CEO. “We have the capacity.”

The institute will also continue to resettle refugees from Afghanistan, who were evacuated from that country in the fall after the American-backed government fell, said Arindam Kar, chairman of the institute’s board.

Upwards of 700 have arrived here so far, Kar said, and the institute is starting to hear from Afghans resettled elsewhere who might want to relocate.

It will take some time for the number of Ukrainian arrivals to catch up. The Biden administration is still working out the details of bringing so many people to the United States. But the State Department soon will begin reaching out to resettlement agencies to see what they can handle, and Obenson said his organization could welcome 1,000 of them this year.

Rice, the New Life pastor, said he has a meeting scheduled with the institute this week to talk about complementing those efforts.

New Life has already prepared a two-bedroom house in North County. Workers cleaned the floors, changed out the stove and fixed issues with the basement and the roof. “Now it’s ready for a family,” Rice said.

The center still needs to do some plumbing and carpentry work at the one-bedroom house that volunteers were cleaning Saturday, but Rice said it will eventually be suitable for a couple or a mother with children.

The plan is to offer the homes to refugees rent-free for six months, to give them time to get jobs and start saving money. If they like the houses and want to stay, New Life will ask them to make small monthly payments to reimburse the cost of the renovations, said the Rev. Larry Rice, Chris Aaron Rice’s grandfather and New Life’s founder.

Larry Rice said he hopes the effort will yield 10 houses in its first year. His organization could use more volunteers, especially skilled laborers, to help prepare the homes and will need donations of furniture and food when refugees arrive, too.

New Life is also looking for more people to donate homes. Larry Rice said he already has a couple people “very much considering” the idea.