Nearly 300,000 refugees and asylum seekers are living in the Republic of Georgia, according to 2021 data from the UN Refugee Agency. Many of them come from Iraq, Iran, Russia, Egypt and, especially in recent years, Ukraine. Uprooted from their homeland, these people need a safe environment and support to cope with the traumas of their past and move forward in their future.
In partnership with the Evangelical Baptist Church of Georgia and Bishop Malkhaz Songulashvili, Mercerians will work with refugees displaced from the war in Ukraine and elsewhere. They will provide educational programming for children, including English and STEM lessons; assist the refugees in making pottery that they sell to support themselves; and get to know the refugees and hear their stories while sharing lodging with them at the Beteli Refugee Center.
On weekends, the participants may have the opportunity to spend time with Georgian university students, hike in the Caucasus Mountains, and explore the modern and ancient corners of Tbilisi.
