Profile: Cyril Loum

One of the first outsiders to reach out to the Syrian refugees, Cyril Loum, through his organization Caring Ministries Inc. has done much for the Syrian community.

“Caring Ministries was created in order to help refugees. We understood that the Bosnians came to St. Louis in the early 90’s and they received so much aid. Then the next group to come were the Africans and now the Syrians and they do not receive the same aid.” Loum said.

First notified about the Syrian refugees through the Charlie Brennan show in November 2016, Loum reached out to several Syrian families.

“Our first goal was to connect with the International Institute, who is one of our partners, and to determine what we could do to help them,” Loum said. “After we talked to them, we held a work day in order to clean up the area around the apartments. We also went into their homes to clean up their houses and build relationships with them. This relationship continued through Thanksgiving and we ended up providing all the families with American style Thanksgiving dinners.”

Over several months, Loum and Caring Ministries strengthened their friendships with the refugee population.

“Every week we would create new programs that would help them. This included partnering with schools such as Clayton High School, Ursuline Girls Academy and several churches around the area. Together we brought in clothes, shoes, and new items to the community. I especially enjoyed when we worked with Clayton High School because the students were able to eat a meal with the families, talk with them, and understand what they had gone through,” Loum said.

In August, Loum attended a Global Leadership conference and formed a vision for the neighborhood with residents. “The neighborhood they live in is a food desert. They are used to eating healthy fresh produce. Our goal is to get a couple pieces of land and to start urban farming,” Loum said.
Not only would this allow them to eat healthier for less money, but they would also be able to sell their goods at a local farmer’s market.

Loum is encouraged by the support of St. Louis in helping the Syrians. “I want people to realize the refugees are just people like us,” Loum said.