Thank you for your continued support of this ministry. You are making a tangible difference to those in need… some in dire circumstance.
Last week, Mr. Jewell got an email from a mom whose family is in a very difficult situation without income and transportation. He said they have never reached out asking for help until last week. They have a new baby and are being evicted. Mr. Jewell was able to purchase diapers and a few things to help with the baby.
We had an elementary family with 2 students that were home sick last week. We were able to provide them with a Crest card to get medicine for the kids.
We had a family move back into Bethany after being in another school district for a year. All of their children were in The Village program while they were here, and we had built a great relationship with the mom. I happened to be walking by the office on Monday when they came for their first day back. Mom and Dad were both with the kids and talked about how excited they were to be back in Bethany because of the community they had here. I was able to walk them to class and introduce the parents to the kids’ teachers, and you could tell how relieved they were to be back. Each of the kids Villagers were able to track the kids down one of the first days they were here to welcome them back!
There is another family that has been very resistant to any assistance in the past. There was a recent situation that involved Officer Holcomb going over to the house for a visit. As he looked around, he found that their fridge only had a few slices of ham in it- no other food. Our elementary counselor was able to provide giftcards to the family, and the mom was very receptive and appreciative.
You probably remember my own student that you assisted in getting glasses for in the fall. She got sick at school yesterday, and we weren’t able to reach her mom to come get her. Officer Holcomb and I took her home, and the living conditions broke my heart. It was one of those situations where you feel so helpless because you can’t “fix” it all for the kids, but knowing that she’s in our care during the day makes a huge impact. We have been able to put some accountability in place that has helped with her attendance. The little girl wants to be at school, and she is happy and has friends when she is here. While we were at her apartment yesterday, I was able to get a field trip permission form signed for her and we have been able to pay for her to get to go to a baseball game with her class.
Many of our elementary teachers used giftcards to buy Valentine cards and candy for their students to get to pass out to their classes during the parties. I know there are so many other families that are being assisted that I don’t know the details of. Several times a week I get a text or email from a teacher asking for a giftcard to be able to help either their Villager or another student in their class. What a blessing that we don’t have to stop and problem solve each situation- they see a need and we are able to immediately hand them a card to meet that need.
In a high school community group that I help with on Sundays, we were talking about the importance of community involvement as members of the church. I was able to share a little bit about this program and how cool it is that God uses us to be an extension of his grace to these families. It was also incredible to hear from some of the students in our group share about ways that they are able to be the hands and feet of Christ at school. Your generosity is a gift to the families, but this has certainly been one of those months where I have been able to really step back and see how much it is blessing US by giving us opportunities to pour into families that we wouldn’t be able to reach otherwise. We are so grateful for how have given so graciously to our school community!