EN
The «Surety in Christ» program
Take free Bible courses and find friends in Christ in the US.
Recently in the US or just planning to come?
Are you planning to come to the U.S. as a refugee?
Entry by legal means (including through CBP one) often requires a guarantor.
The guarantor must be a person whom you know personally, as well as someone with whom you have communicated of other issues - not related to crossing the US border. Although the collection of payment by a guarantor is illegal, we often hear of situations where refugees are charged money for such a surety.
We - as U.S. citizens and Christians of Bethany SBC (WA) - believe that this is wrong. We are ready to offer our friendship in Christ, be free guarantors for anyone who is willing to share our principles, and help adapting to life here in Washington State.
The guarantor must be a person whom you know personally, as well as someone with whom you have communicated of other issues - not related to crossing the US border. Although the collection of payment by a guarantor is illegal, we often hear of situations where refugees are charged money for such a surety.
We - as U.S. citizens and Christians of Bethany SBC (WA) - believe that this is wrong. We are ready to offer our friendship in Christ, be free guarantors for anyone who is willing to share our principles, and help adapting to life here in Washington State.
Why Washington State?
A democratic state with the best refugee programs in the United States
An evergreen state. Innumerable parks and forests. High level of ecology. The winters are mild, fall and summer - pronounced. A half hour’s drive will lead you to the ocean; you’ll find a multitude of various beaches scattered throughout. An hour away are snowy ski resorts
The state is home to the head offices of some of the world’s largest corporations – that includes Microsoft, Boeing, Starbucks, and Amazon
High income - the highest minimum hourly wage for hired work in the country – and no state tax on personal income
Free medical insurance for people with low income
How else can our church help you?
- Spiritual Help and Support
- Benefits from the state*
- Adaptation
- Medical Insurance*
- Help with food/groceries*
View full list
*This aid/assistance is carried out by authorized state and other bodies, and may have separate requirements for the applicants. You can find the details by following this link: www.dshs.wa.gov
*This aid/assistance is carried out by authorized state and other bodies, and may have separate requirements for the applicants. You can find the details by following this link: www.dshs.wa.gov
Mentors
- Anatoly N. IvanovSenior Pastor of Bethany S.B.C.
Biography
Born in 1936 in the Soviet Union, Daniil Chueshkov was sentenced and served 3 years for preaching the Bible. In 1967, he was ordained a minister for the Caucasus region. About him was written a chapter in the book "The Feat of Faith" by Konstantin Prokhorov.
If you are a U.S. citizen and Christian who wants to participate in this project as a mentor, please fill out this questionnaire
«Surety in Christ»
to get free Bible courses and find friends in Christ in the US!
Join the program
Partnership and Support
If you are a foundation, organization, or individual who wants to offer a partnership or would like to make a donation to our project – send an email to suretyinchrist@gmail.com with the subject «Partnership and support»
Host churches
Are you a representative of any Christian church from the USA or Mexico and are ready to host refugees and help them?
Email us at suretyinchrist@gmail.com with the subject «Host churches.» We will add you to the network of host churches
Q&A
?
An individual who needs a surety to cross the US border participates in our Bible Zoom lessons for a month. After he arrives to Washington state, our church helps him adapt and get the maximum amount of help and support from the government.
Participation in the program is completely free, requiring no expenses from the participants.
The program will take a total of 4 weeks, including 8 online meetings.
The courses in the program will be in Russian. If you would like to volunteer to translate Russian into other languages – please leave a request in this form and we will contact you as soon as there is an appropriate language group.
No, you must know the guarantor personally. A guarantor is the mentor who will teach the program’s Bible lessons. In order for the guarantor to be able to truly say that he knows you, you must attend the meetings.
It is possible to discuss urgent individual questions/issues (for free). As long as you are already in Mexico and have the border crossing date set within the next 1-3 weeks.
It is possible to discuss urgent individual questions/issues (for free). As long as you are already in Mexico and have the border crossing date set within the next 1-3 weeks.
We will be happy to see you no matter who you are or what religion you follow.
There is no fee for participating in this program. If you wish to donate, you can do so by reaching out to us at suretyinchrist@gmail.com
You must understand that the donation will not affect the speed of your promotion in the program, nor will it give you any preferences in relation to other participants.
You must understand that the donation will not affect the speed of your promotion in the program, nor will it give you any preferences in relation to other participants.
Guarantors who vouch for a large number of people are often subjected to additional checks by the US authorities, who are familiar with the illegal practice of collecting payment for surety. Since we are not asking for any payment, we are not afraid of getting questioned by them – especially since we are being honest in saying that we get to know you via out Bible courses. Because of that, we can have one guarantor vouch for over 20 people.
We do this completely free of charge because it is our calling as Christians. If you plan on getting to the US, you'll end up in the US either way. The United States is a mostly Christian country, so it will be easier for you to settle if you know the basics of the religion, and have a church to which you can always come for help and support.
Yes, you need to participate in this program even if you are a member of the church - even a pastor.
- Actively participate in the scheduled Zoom calls (2-3 times a week)
- Complete small homework assignments
- Complete the final test
- Come to the surety in Washington State
- Complete small homework assignments
- Complete the final test
- Come to the surety in Washington State
Meetings are held in via Zoom. Each meeting lasts for 40min - 1.5 hours. Meetings are held in the morning or evening (Moscow time), 7-9am or 6-10pm.
During the meeting, the mentor will teach a Bible lesson to a group of students and teach you the basics of Christian faith.
During the meeting, the mentor will teach a Bible lesson to a group of students and teach you the basics of Christian faith.
A sponsor is a person who is financially responsible for whom they are sponsoring. A guarantor is a person who will teach you the basics of living in the United States and help you settle in the country without taking financial obligations upon yourself.
Unfortunately, we don’t know you well enough to offer sponsorship.
Unfortunately, we don’t know you well enough to offer sponsorship.
This is entirely on your conscience, but according to the law – you must live in the place that you have indicated. We will not deny you participation in the program if you plan to reside in a different state.
Yes - we will certainly be more excited about those who plan to reside in Washington State.
The church can help you do the following free of charge:
- obtaining benefits (food stamps, cash, travel tickets, gas money) - if you have the right to do so
- filling out the necessary forms (work permit, obtaining a social security number)
- obtaining free health insurance (if you are entitled to it)
- Russian Saturday school for your children
- Opening a bank account
- Getting a phone number
- Buying a car
- Additional aid with groceries (food banks)
- Making copies of any documents
- Getting a driver’s license and IDs for children and adults
Unfortunately, at the moment the church can not to provide or somehow assist you in obtaining housing, so you need to work on it independently and in advance. We are, however, working on being able to providing housing in the future.
It is important to understand that certain things listed may not be available to citizens of particular countries, and the church does not guarantee that everything listed can be provided for you. Certain types of assistance are carried out by authorized state bodies or other organizations, and may have separate requirements for the applicant. You can find the details here: www.dshs.wa.gov
- obtaining benefits (food stamps, cash, travel tickets, gas money) - if you have the right to do so
- filling out the necessary forms (work permit, obtaining a social security number)
- obtaining free health insurance (if you are entitled to it)
- Russian Saturday school for your children
- Opening a bank account
- Getting a phone number
- Buying a car
- Additional aid with groceries (food banks)
- Making copies of any documents
- Getting a driver’s license and IDs for children and adults
Unfortunately, at the moment the church can not to provide or somehow assist you in obtaining housing, so you need to work on it independently and in advance. We are, however, working on being able to providing housing in the future.
It is important to understand that certain things listed may not be available to citizens of particular countries, and the church does not guarantee that everything listed can be provided for you. Certain types of assistance are carried out by authorized state bodies or other organizations, and may have separate requirements for the applicant. You can find the details here: www.dshs.wa.gov
We are ready to help all refugees – including Ukrainians, Russians, or people from other countries. At the moment, the only requirement knowing the Russian language.
Of course, we will be glad to have you. The main goal of this program is to teach people about Jesus Christ and his love for us. The immigration plans of the participants are secondary.
Yes, we are ready to help everyone, but for the most assistance you need to either live in the state of Washington or ask us whether there is a partner church in your state.
We take up to 7 days to respond, please be patient.
