Della Lamb invites to practice welcome
Community·Wednesday, September 9, 2026
Della Lamb Community Services is inviting churches across Missouri to learn, pray, give and build relationships with newcomers during Welcoming Week, Sept. 10-19.
The observance coincides with Della Lamb’s Walk for Welcome, a more than 300-mile journey across Missouri intended to raise awareness and support for refugees and immigrant families. The walk began Sept. 3 in Kansas City and is scheduled to conclude Sept. 25 at the Gateway Arch in St. Louis.
Churches do not need to be located along the route or participate in every activity to take part. Della Lamb has created a free church toolkit with resources congregations may adapt for worship services, Sunday school classes, small groups, youth programs and family activities.
“There is no single right way to participate,” the organization said in its guide. “Choose one or choose several.”
The toolkit includes a three-week Bible study focused on welcome and hospitality. Each session combines Scripture, teaching, discussion and practical application. The study is designed for groups of different ages and levels of familiarity with the subject. Della Lamb recommends allowing at least 60 minutes for each session, or 90 minutes for larger groups that want additional discussion time.
Churches may also participate in a 10-day prayer journey. An expanded guide can accompany the Bible study, while a condensed Welcoming Week version is designed for congregation-wide use. Each day includes Scripture, reflection and prayer, as well as a QR code connecting participants with additional material.
Congregations may incorporate the prayers into worship services, distribute them to families or invite members to follow the daily readings individually.
The toolkit also includes a forced displacement simulation intended to help participants consider the decisions people face when they must suddenly leave their homes.
The five-station experience begins with a question: If you had 10 minutes to flee, what would you take?
Participants then move through a fictional journey based on experiences shared by people resettled through Della Lamb. The exercise may be completed individually or as a group using a facilitator’s guide and participant cards.
Della Lamb notes that no simulation can fully reproduce the experience of forced displacement. Instead, the activity is intended to provide a starting point for empathy, reflection and greater understanding.
Churches may also create Walk for Welcome fundraising teams for their congregations, Sunday school classes, youth groups or other ministries. Money raised will support services that help refugees and immigrant families pursue employment and education, navigate unfamiliar systems and establish stable lives in their new communities.
Participation does not have to involve a formal church program. Della Lamb encourages congregations to learn about immigrant and refugee communities in their own areas, visit immigrant-owned businesses, attend cultural events and become familiar with organizations serving newcomers.
“Sometimes hospitality starts by simply getting to know the people who already call your community home,” the guide states.
Della Lamb has served refugees in the Kansas City area for decades and became a formal refugee resettlement agency in 2014. The organization is a national mission institution of the United Methodist Church and United Women in Faith.
Churches may obtain the free toolkit, join part of the walk, volunteer or create a fundraising team at dellalamb.org/walk.