Who We Are

 

Athens County Sponsor Circle (ACSC) is a volunteer, charitable organization that assists refugees in relocating to Athens County, Ohio. We operate under new rules from the United States State Department that allow small groups of ordinary citizens to sponsor refugees, assist them in traveling to the United States, and support them in relocating (either permanently or temporarily) in our country. ACSC believes that what we do is in keeping with the inscription on the Statue of Liberty:

Not like the brazen giant of Greek fame,
With conquering limbs astride from land to land;
Here at our sea-washed, sunset gates shall stand
A mighty woman with a torch, whose flame
Is the imprisoned lightning, and her name
Mother of Exiles. From her beacon-hand
Glows world-wide welcome; her mild eyes command
The air-bridged harbor that twin cities frame.
"Keep, ancient lands, your storied pomp!" cries she
With silent lips. "Give me your tired, your poor,
Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,
The wretched refuse of your teeming shore.
Send these, the homeless, tempest-tost to me,
I lift my lamp beside the golden door!"
-Emma Lazarus, 1883

ASCS is incorporated in the State of Ohio and recognized by the IRS as a tax-exempt, charitable organization under section 501c3 of the US Tax Code. We have no employees and all funds donated are devoted to the support of refugee families.

We hope you can join us in this small effort to make the world a kinder, safer, and more welcoming place. America has always been a beacon of hope and freedom to the world. Athens County and ACSC is just one small ray of light in that beacon.

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