Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

I am a retired Chaplain living and working voluntarily in Germany.

An English speaking Pakistani refugee family have come into contact with me seeking help. They have been living under the auspices of the UNHCR in Baku, Azerbaijan, having been persecuted in Pakistan and due to their stateless predicament and inability to gain employment in the country they are totally reliant on charity. They receive food parcels from a local church community, but are reliant on money gifts from people like us to meet accommodation and living expenses.

They are a family of 6: 2 parents (both English teachers) and 4 children. The mother was raised as Christian in the Salvation Army in Pakistan and the husband a convert from Islam who amongst other things experienced being kidnapped and tortured for his faith.

Both UNHCR and the International Committee of the Red Cross have now ceased their activities in Azerjbaijan making the future of such refugees uncertain. They do not have right of residency in Azerbaijan and although deportation back to Pakistan seems unlikely at present their Pakistani passports have expired and they fear the consequences if they try to renew them. They have no right to work and no access to banking, only limited access to healthcare and education.

Several kind individuals have helped them in the past, but are no longer able to do so. I have made contact with them in order to verify the authenticity of this family's case and further more spoken through a translator with a Russian speaking pastor from the Vineyard church in Baku which has been assisting the family in any way they can. The Pastor in Baku assures me from multiple visits to their home that their case is genuine and they are a family in great need.

Ideally the family want to relocate to an English speaking country where they can begin a new life, but for the present this seems impossible unless outside sponsorship is obtained from a foreign country outside Azerbaijan like USA or Canada willing to take them.

How you can help?

a. Pray for them.

b. Give a gift ( We need to raise a minimum of 770.00 AZN / 397.00 € / 336.00 GBP per month to help the family.

If in addition you have advice on possible eventual resettlement in a friendly country as a permanent solution, or online teaching opportunities for the parents to gain some meaningful paid employment (bearing in mind they have no bank account) that would be helpful.

As a retired volunteer chaplain I do not have church funds to help provide resources for the family. Although I supported them financially myself. Your gift, however, big or small will make a big difference.

I would be grateful if you could reach out to this family by giving to this Gofundme campaign in the meantime I will continue to provide what material, pastoral and spiritual assistance I can.

May God bless your generosity

With grateful thanks.