BIO is a ministry of Briarwood Presbyterian Church. For over 40 years, Briarwood has been involved in outreach to international students and scholars in the Birmingham area. We are a Christian ministry and provide a broad range of programs and services for international students and scholars at local universities. 

We love internationals and look forward to the opportunity to get to know you and for you to learn more about our work here. Over the years we have had the privilege of encountering, ministering to and learning from internationals from a rather wide variety of cultural backgrounds, countries of origin, religious beliefs, lengths of stay in the U.S., English language capability, and interests!

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We have a tremendous group of volunteers and staff who work with us, and we anticipate our future opportunities with you!

PROGRAMS AND SERVICES

visiting an american home

Would you like to visit an American home? We want to welcome you to a one-time dinner in an American home, where we would be honored to meet you and get to know you. Click here to sign up and to get more information.

Friendship Partner

Would you like to get to know an American who you can spend time with consistently? We would love to match you with a family or individual who you can spend time with and get to know. Click here to sign up and get more information.

Special Events

We love to organize trips to in-state and out-of-state attractions. We organize picnics with free food, games, and fun. We organize hikes, game nights, retreats, sporting events, and just about anything that will help internationals build relationships.

Shopping trips to walmart

We provide rides for international students and scholars at UAB to go to Walmart on the 2nd and 4th Saturday of every month. Click here for more information.

Airport Pickup

If you are an international student/scholar arriving to the Birmingham airport and need a free ride to where you are staying, we would love to pick you up. Click here to sign up.

esl

We offer free ESL classes on Monday mornings and Wednesday nights. Click here for more information.

friday night dinner, fellowship, and bible discussions

Hosted at a family's home every Friday from 6:30pm-9:00

Rides are provided from UAB.

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International sunday fellowship

Join us on Sunday mornings at Briarwood Church for fellowship and worship.