The public is invited to join in “Extending the Table” of hospitality and friendship in support for Cazenovia Welcomes Refugees — a community based initiative dedicated to working directly with newly resettled refugees as they integrate into American life, and with the residents of Cazenovia to create a welcoming place for refugees to live, work, go to school, and recreate.
This summer CWR celebrated the resettlement of an Iraqi family who came to the United States on a special immigration visa for refugees who assisted the U.S. military.
The Extending the Table fundraising feast will be held Oct. 20 at St. Peter’s Episcopal Church and will allow for continued and future support for resettlement opportunities in Cazenovia.
“The recent government restrictions on the number of refugees allowed into the country only reinforces our need to stay focused on the plight of the people affected,” said Rev. Jeanne Hansknecht, rector of St. Peter’s Episcopal Church and member of the CWR Steering Committee. “It has been my experience that sharing a meal together, sharing the company of friends old and new, has the potential to break down all kinds of barriers.”
In Extending the Table, Hansknecht said, CWR hopes to “not just humanize the worldwide refugee crisis but we also hope to encourage our dinner guests to help alleviate the suffering of our neighbors both globally and locally. There is never a bad time to be a good neighbor.”
The menu for the fundraising feast features homestyle Middle Eastern food catered by Chef Nujoud Makhlouf. Makhlouf is the resident chef at Onondaga Community College’s teaching restaurant “With Love, Palestine” which is located on N. Salina Street in Syracuse. She also owns Small Mountain Za’atar a food stand at the Syracuse Farmers Market which sells her signature flatbreads.
“I am a child of refugee Palestinian parents, and when we grew up here in Syracuse I always remember back to the people who helped us assimilate to America, and I am forever grateful to those friends,” Makhlouf said.
St. Peter’s Episcopal Church, located at 10 Mill St. in Cazenovia, is hosting the Oct. 20 event. There will be seatings at 5, 6 and 7 p.m.
Tickets are $45 for adults and $10 for children 10 years and under. Tickets go on sale October 1. Purchases can be made online at stpeterscaz.org or at The Key, 66 Albany St., during store hours.
