Stronger Together: How Christ-Centered Partnerships Help TeachBeyond Reach More Learners

The fragrant aroma of freshly brewed tea wafts across the room. Raindrops tap on the roof and drip down the windows, but inside the Katafygio (ka-ta-FEE-yoh) Center in Malakasa, Greece, there is shelter and warmth. With their clothing still wet from the walk from the nearby refugee camp, a group of women laugh and smile at one another as they settle in to learn English through TeachBeyond’s Beyond Borders ministry. They have found a place of belonging, but it’s not because of TeachBeyond alone. This place only exists because of a partnership between multiple organizations who desire to see God’s love poured out to all people.

From Parking Lot Gatherings to a Place of Refuge

It wasn’t long ago that members of these organizations were meeting refugees in a parking lot. They would gather for tea and conversations while trying to meet the needs of people adapting to life in an unfamiliar country. It was a beautiful picture of God’s people coming together to support the least of these, but the intense heat of summer and frigid cold of winter made these gatherings difficult.

It was clear that a building was needed, a space where each of the participating organizations could provide support in a distinct way, meeting the various needs of families who walk through the doors.

A Shared Vision Takes Shape

Through pooled resources and a shared commitment to serving the needs of refugees, Katafygio sta Pefka, which means “refuge in the pine trees,” opened its doors in the spring of 2025. Here, refugees may share a meal, receive clothing, get haircuts and spa treatments, and fellowship together in multiple languages. Through TeachBeyond, they receive a Biblically centered education as well as English and German language classes.

“Our hope is that they would experience the love of Christ from the moment that they come in,” said Justin Georgeff, who has been helping Middle Eastern and African refugees in Greece for the past three years, “that they would recognize that we care for them as a whole human being, not just as an object to be converted, but as someone who has needs that we want to meet. We want to provide anything that we can to make their time here more comfortable, to make their time here more enjoyable, and to provide as much care and comfort as we can. But ultimately, we would like to see them find their ultimate care and comfort in Christ, not just in the food or clothing that we might provide.”

The Power of Partnership: A Witness of Unity in Christ

It is difficult for any single organization to possess the necessary funds and volunteers to run a center like Katafygio. With each organization contributing to the monthly cost of rent and building expenses, the doors can stay open.

“We recognize that we can’t do this on our own,” said Carmen Gunderson, a TeachBeyond member and teacher at the Katafygio Center. “We have to work together, and it really is our witness as a body of Christ, that we’re working together, all these organizations, to provide a safe place, a place of refuge at Katafygio for the refugee community.”

Partnerships are at the heart of TeachBeyond’s mission. The center at Katafygio is just one powerful example of what can happen when people come together with a shared vision: transformation through the love of Christ. But partnership doesn’t only look like organizations working side by side. It can be a church offering faithful support. It can be one person praying consistently. It can be someone giving generously so a ministry can continue reaching those on the margins. Through TeachBeyond’s Each One Matters campaign, we’re inviting partnerships of every kind, because every act of faith, every prayer, and every gift helps change a life.