Growing up in rural Faulkton, South Dakota, Kate Reuer Welton’s parents didn’t have a lot of extra money. In a world pre-internet, she wasn’t constantly bombarded with issues of suffering all over the world, but Kate had a clear-eyed view of who could use an extra hand in her community. Her parents showed up for families in need mostly with their time and taught their daughter what it meant to be faithful and generous.
She started to understand how her own life was enriched by being around people with different resources, and after a volunteer stint with Lutheran World Relief in the Kakuma refugee camp in Northwestern Kenya during college, she felt called to do her part in building a world where people could live with dignity and hope. In the camp, she worked closely with some of the 20,000 boys who were displaced or orphaned during the Second Sudanese Civil War, often called the Lost Boys of Sudan. The boys showed her how “God shows up in all kinds of place and in all kinds of people.”
Teaching compassion and generosity through service to others
Now a campus pastor at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities, Kate and her husband Jim want to raise their children Ben, 8 and Eleanor 5, with the same sense of compassion and generosity that comes from serving others. Indeed, after living in Minneapolis, Minnesota over the last 2.5 years, she and Jim have had lots of opportunities to have complicated conversations about God’s calling to compassion and service with the kids. Much like many people in their city, and around the country, the Reuer Welton's were marked by the uprising following the murder of George Floyd. "We couldn’t not talk about it,” Kate said. “We had to engage pretty deeply. It served as a chance to talk about the world as God intended versus the world we stand in now, and how our call is in that gap. We can be a bridge.”
Becoming a Faithful Neighbor
Often the kids brought their piggy banks to church after hearing about someone in need. But Kate and Jim wanted them to be more intentional in their giving, not only reactive, so they suggested finding an organization that they could each donate to monthly.
Because of Ben’s interest in East Africa, particular the Democratic Republic of Congo, he ended up choosing Lutheran World Relief, and became a Faithful Neighbor at the beginning of the year.
“I personally love Lutheran World Relief; they are doing great work,” Kate said. “I really want the kids to feel connected to the organization they picked and the work they are doing.”
Something bigger than ourselves
Ben said when he donates to Lutheran World Relief, he feels “happy” because he knows so many people need a helping hand.
"Because of monthly giving, Ben and Eleanor now understand that they might not always get the biggest, shiniest toys and things,” said Kate. “But we can all be part of something much bigger than ourselves.”
Do you want your love to reach further, stay longer and help sustain families in need all year long? Become a Faithful Neighbor. While your frequent one-time gifts provide a family meal, a visit to a doctor, or seeds and tools for a rural farmer — as a Faithful Neighbor, your gift each month will ensure your love reaches every neighbor, everywhere, every day of the year.
