October ‘21 Update
“If you pour out yourself for the hungry & satisfy the desire of the afflicted, then shall your light rise in the darkness and your gloom be as the noonday.”
This month we made some big strides for Garden 58 including planning out our budget for the next two years! It was exciting to think about the couple we plan to hire to live at the transition home, the counselor(s) we will be able to connect people to, the Pinwheel extensions that could get started & the More Than Enough central hub where people will gather to pray or strategize with their Care Community. For more good news & prayer needs from this month, please read on!
Pinwheel
What a great month at Pinwheel!
On the fun side of things, we had a blast at our laser tag night early in the month. As our beautiful mountains started changing colors later in the month, we enjoyed dinners for different grade groups at our leaders’ homes. These times help us build relationships with kids & their families, plus the kids love the chance to hang out & play outside of school!
Firefly Group Dinner
Our middle school kids enjoyed sloppy joe’s & s’mores with their tutors before a group game of kickball at the rec park.
One of Pinwheel’s goals is to provide a safe place where students & their parents can be vulnerable and seek advice, empathy or help. Quite a few kids & adults opened up this month about struggles in their lives, which we never want to take for granted! As a result, we were blessed with the opportunity to help out in practical ways that make a difference in these families’ lives!
Pinwheel Work Support
We are so excited to report that our Pinwheel after-school childcare program has been growing! This group is having a great time together on Thursdays!
One last piece of great news for Pinwheel is that we are closer than ever to starting a Pinwheel extension in Murphy! Several pieces are already in place. We have at least two churches in Murphy who have expressed interest in participating in or helping start another branch of Pinwheel, plus support from the Murphy Elementary principal, & a great lead on a director who is praying about the opportunity.
Prayer needs:
We would love to offer the after-school program to working parents on Mondays, Thursdays & Fridays next semester so please pray for God to provide the volunteers.
Be praying for the director & assistant director for our future Murphy branch!
More Than Enough
Ready to learn!
Volunteers gather to learn about Care Communities.
More Than Enough held its first Care Community meeting and dinner this month. We enjoyed a delicious meal planned & prepared by Gloria Corbin’s family & Kimberly Sims.
Blair Bailey presented the layout of what a Care Community looks like & introduced the group of prospective volunteers from Red Oak Church to some of the structure Promise 686 provides. He and his wife Shannon are in the process of being trained as lead advocates who can help get Care Communities started in any church in our county!
We are so excited to utilize this support structure (one example is below) on behalf of vulnerable kids & families. This will unite many willing volunteers in a strategic way that utilizes their unique personalities, gifts & resources.
An example of what a Care Community could be comprised of- all built on a foundation of encouragement & prayer!
Prayer needs:
Please pray that everyone who should be involved will get on board, and that God will guide both in appointing roles to volunteers & connecting the group with the family who needs them most. We can also pray for the upcoming volunteer orientation & the right timing for trainings needed before a Care Community gets rolling!
We have already heard from multiple other churches who are interested in starting their own Care Communities, so please be praying for the foundation & preparation of this network to be laid well for others to follow!
Revolving Door
Revolving Door saw some answers to prayer this month in the lives of ladies we have known for years. The battle is long and difficult for many of these ladies who have suffered so much trauma & spiritual adversity. They have tremendous obstacles to overcome in order to walk in Christ’s freedom. It is an honor & joy to labor with Him in setting captives free, whether that labor be prayer, paper work for the transition home, or connecting them with much-needed resources.
Endless Paperwork!
We are so thankful for Pastor Michael Herrington, our board member who has steadily & patiently plugged away at the paperwork necessary to become a 501c3 non-profit.
For the past three years we have wanted to get certified to offer a course in our area called Faith & Finances. This course is targeted towards those who need healing in multiple areas… their relationship with God, their relationship with others, their relationship towards self & their stewardship of creation. We are so thankful for your donations that allowed us to register for the training & certification! We will use F&F inside the jail, at the transition home program, & hopefully with parents connected to Pinwheel or More Than Enough.
Prayer Needs:
Tragically, more lives were lost this month to drug overdoses- people dear to friends of ours, including one of our board members, Stacie Ledford. Please pray for the families of those who lost a loved one & for Stacie & Rock Bottom Recovery as they minister with those fighting addiction both inside & outside the jail. Pray that God can use these tragic deaths to bring others to Him.
Pray protection & blessing on our new volunteers at the jail & for the F&F training starting Nov.3.
Garden 58
From Garden 58 as a whole, we are so grateful for people’s prayers & support from all around the country! We know God is honored each time members of His family work together to meet other’s needs.
We covet your prayers as we seek to be faithful with both the people who are serving & those being served. We don’t want to be so busy, selfish, or undisciplined that individuals drop through the cracks.
Thanks again for your support,
your prayers,
your participation.
We hope that many priceless people will learn more of God’s love through our humble, united efforts. Without Him we would have no love to give, so we thank & praise Him most of all!