Nest a Home - Angie Riches Shares Her Family's Love for Welcoming ACC Families

The Nest a Home program at ACC provides a one-time service opportunity to supporters interested in both volunteering their time and donating items. Through Nest a Home, a group collects all the needed items to furnish and stock a refugee family’s apartment. This is an amazing way for school groups, groups of friends, co-workers, or faith communities to have a huge impact.

We sat down with Angie Riches, who has completed 9 (!!) Nest a Home set-ups on behalf of ACC families.

Q: How did you first find out about ACC & when did you first start working with ACC?

“A few years ago, after being encouraged to help refugees by our church leaders, I found and signed up for an ACC volunteer orientation. At the time, my children were small and I didn't find any volunteer opportunities that worked for me and my family. But I learned a lot about what ACC offers for refugees and volunteers including "Nesting a Home". I felt very strongly that we had been very blessed and wanted to find ways to help others. I realized that I really wanted to do a project that would include my whole family. I also thought about how my whole community was concerned for the Afghan refugees and just needed a way to get involved. So I contacted Kate Weatherbee, ACC’s Volunteer Manager, about the details of "Nesting a Home". We set-up our first apartment the week before Christmas. It seemed like more than a coincidence when Kate told us we were setting up for a family of 9 in a three bedroom apartment and someone had donated two bunkbeds. We pulled our kids from school and headed up to Northglenn. We did that first set-up with Oliver (ACC’s Driver), me, my husband, our 5 kids, and 4 Afghan men who lived nearby. The Afghan women made us a traditional Afghan meal for lunch and all the kids played together. We left with our hearts full and a desire to keep helping these vulnerable and wonderful people.”

Q: How many “Nest a Home” set-ups have you done? How do you recruit others to help out?

“We have now set-up 9 apartments and are currently gathering items for the next set-up. We usually buy most of the household items new, and then I solicit furniture donations on our neighborhood Facebook page. There have been multiple times where we have received enough furniture for a set-up in 24 hours. People are so excited to help, and we are just giving them a pathway to do it. I use my teenage boys and our minivan to gather up the furniture. We have yet to find something that doesn't fit! We store everything in our garage and once we have everything we need, I let Kate know we’re ready (ACC’s Volunteer Manager). When ACC has a family ready for a move-in, we rent a U-Haul, my husband gets work off, and we bring our 5 kids along, too. I have also asked church friends and people who have donated to come help.”

Q: What do you like most about the "Nest a Home" volunteer opportunity?

“My favorite part about “nesting homes” are the people we have met. ACC’s Driver, Oliver, always greets us with a smile and knows my kids by name. Being able to meet the refugee community members is amazing, too. The last few years have been very hard for our family for a variety of reasons- Nest a Home has brought us a new sense of hope and fulfillment that can't be bought.”

Q: What would you say to others who are considering this service opportunity?

“Doing apartment set-ups is very fulfilling. Prepare to get addicted! It's kind of the "cherry on top" of everything ACC has already done for these refugee families. I think it's important to have a plan for who you want to involve in your project and how you are going to transport the furniture. It's also important to communicate clearly what kind of furniture you are looking for. It can get very expensive if you need to get rid of anything that is broken, smelly or worn out. I usually ask for furniture that people could sell but would rather donate. It's also important to consider the best use of your time. We choose to buy most of the household items because it saves so much time. We have recruited our church youth kids to help us shop and receive donations. It typically costs between $700-$900 for all of the items on the list.”

Are you interested? Please click above and read the entire information sheet before reaching out, thank you for your interest!

Disclaimer: ACC’s Nest a Home service project typically does not involve meeting refugee community members. Often times ACC secures an apartment prior to a family’s arrival in the U.S. and requests a Nest a Home team to complete the set-up before the family may have arrived in Colorado. If you are interested in volunteer opportunities where you can directly work with refugee community members, attend a General Volunteer Orientation with ACC to learn more.