OUTREACH ADVENT DRIVE
This year our Outreach Advent Drive will support Mobile Hope. This organization provides support and emergency shelter to youth up to age 24 who are at-risk, precariously housed or homeless and empowers them to become self-sufficient.
Their list of needs includes:
- Toys for babies and little kids
- Hygiene products and
- Gift cards for Uber and Lyft (transportation services)
For more information go to their website. They are also on Facebook. The drive started the first Sunday of Advent, November 29, You can shop online and drop off donations in the drop boxes outside church. They also have an Amazon Wish List that you can use and have donations delivered directly to them in time for their Drive Through Christmas Event on December 12.
Please checkout this story from their website.
Homeless to Marine Recruit
Adam came through our doors in April, shortly after his 18th birthday. He grew up bouncing between foster care placements and the youth shelter…until his 18th birthday. Still a senior in high school, he “aged out” of the youth system. Between graduation planning, final papers, and long commutes to his base school, he would become a resident of the adult shelter, living with men and women more than twice his age.
Imagine if this young man spent his days on the streets, hungry, lonely and desperate. Tragically, some young people do and are coerced into gangs, drug dealing or sex trafficking rings.
But Adam found Mobile Hope, and things began to change. Mobile Hope became his refuge and his family. He would come in the morning, fix a bowl of cereal, and talk with staff and other young people. He began to volunteer for Listen for the Honk, our bus outreach program. He worked alongside community leaders, peers, and cultural role models, feeding families in need. He developed strong connections, laying the foundation for healthy future relationships. He got his first job.
We listened without judgment. We guided, supported, and encouraged. We fed him, clothed him, provided stable housing in a safe neighborhood, transported him, and talked through the next steps. We celebrated his graduation and his acceptance as a Marine recruit. We will be by his side as he leaves in August for Paris Island.