Ministry Day was another success! With fall break we were really short on volunteers but I shouldn't have been worried.
A couple who heard about what we do were inspired to drive from Dunlap to help. It's a 2.5 hour drive each way. They did a great job at the registration table!
A dad with two teenage sons came to help unload the Angel Food truck. They were assisted by another dad with a teenage daughter. Who's better? The guys or the girl? The truck was unloaded and the items reassembled for distribution in record time!
Many thanks to them and to the woman who came to help. She has volunteered before but told us she was busy this Saturday - until God nudged her to come.
A total of 49 units were distributed yesterday. Way to go!
But that's not all...
The big suprise came later.
On Ministry Day we serve as a Restorative Justice worksite for teens who are serving court ordered community service hours. Saturday was the final day for one of our teens. She's been coming for months. We've tried to talk with her, support her and plant seeds that will help turn her future around. She's a junior in high school with almost no credits. She's been a very hard nut to crack.
When I asked about her I grades I expected her to shrug and look away like she did last time. But, she didn't. She says for the first time she is passing 2 of her four classes this semester.
We talked about how not passing previous classes makes it hard to know what's going on in current ones. We also talked about how not getting a GED and more education makes it more likely she'll wind up at a place like ours needing help.
She was struck by a woman with 2 kids who told me that without the Angel Food box she and her kids wouldn't eat that night. Previously, she helped a woman in our clothing closet select school clothes for her children because she couldn't afford them.
Now, the girl says she has been thinking. She thinks she wants to get her GED and maybe would like to try going to a community college. She and her boyfriend will be getting married when he graduates from High School but instead of having kids soon maybe they could wait awhile. And by the way, can she come back and help some? It's been "kinda cool".
I reassured her that we would be here and would love to have her come back to help. I also offered to help her fill out her college application if she needs it and told her we are here to encourage her anytime she needs it. She smiled and gave me a bear hug.
The odds are stacked against her. I don't know if she will - or won't - go to college. What I do know is that for that moment in her life we (myself, our volunteers and even our clients) came together to make hope happen for that young girl. She saw a glimpse of hope in the darkness and decided to try for it.
Who knows what the end result is going to be? I for one, can't wait to find out!
Until next time,
Gayle
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