Catholics continue to rally around Afghan refugee families in St. Louis

Jonah McKeown | December 30, 2023

Despite dominating the news cycle for months in 2021, the fall of Afghanistan to the Taliban and the plight of the thousands of people who fled the embattled country has largely exited the public consciousness. But all across the country, exhausted Afghan men, women, and children continue to arrive — and in many places, Christians are the ones doing the most to welcome them to their communities.

One such community is St. Louis, which welcomed the “largest single influx in our more than 100-year history” with the arrival of more than 1,000 Afghan refugees during 2022, according to the International Institute, the city’s official resettlement agency. More than 700 more are expected by the end of 2023, the organization said. Many are destitute families with children.

Among the many people who have stepped up to help, one St. Louis Catholic has provided for the newcomers in ways she never could have imagined.

Ann Wittman — a stay-at-home mother of three sons — and her husband bought one Afghan family a house. She’s given other families donations of large items such as washers, dryers, furniture, and vehicles. She’s befriended dozens of families and has seen many of those families go from penniless and friendless to thriving.