The arrival date for Afghan refugees moving to Wausau has been pushed back from October to April of next year.
First United Methodist Church now has six months to prepare for their arrival. They're using that time to set up support services for the families, and they need the public's help to do that.
Right now, they're looking for community members to help the families with anything they may need, from finding an apartment, to writing a resume, to enrolling children in school.
Kids can also get involved by becoming a buddy for a refugee child at their school.
"We want them to know that they are loved, that we care for them, that we know they have been through incredible anguish and difficulties in their lives and we want to be gentle and sensitive to all that they have been through," said Pastor Rebecca Voss.
First United Methodist will also be holding a virtual information session October 7th to answer questions the public might have.
"Will this affect our taxes, what will this do to our local jobs, will this affect our economy, how are they vetted? All of those questions are understandable," Voss said.
They're asking the public to hold off on itemized donations right now, as they don't have anywhere to store them, but if you would like to get involved, you can call the church office at 715-842-2201.
