Good Morning! Chuck and I are here this morning to share with you how your
support of the Ready-Set-Go Program has made a difference. Back at Christmas
I came before you with an opportunity St. Stephen had to adopt a family through
this program run by the Akron Area Assn. of Churches helping families get off
the welfare rolls. At that time, however, I did not have our family. We got
their name the next day! Nine children and a Mom and Dad! YES, YOUR EYES ARE
AS BIG AS MINE WHEN I GOT THE NEWS! I began to panic. I needed 11 of our families
to participate and I only had 6. However, in your grand supportive and enthusiastic
response to the request, my concern was relieved! In fact it took two cars to
drive the "bounty" to my house to sort.
When we began sorting it all, we realized that this family would not have a
place to keep all the food products, so we stored them in shopping bags to give
throughout the year. All the presents for each family member were so beautifully
decorated and wrapped! Homemade cookies, a 15 pound ham and fresh produce filled
the shopping bags of food! Everyone who stopped by that day were amazed!
Later that day I received a call from the church office. A "desperation" call
had been left on the answering machine at noon. I called the number that was
left, identified myself and the reason for my call. A weeping female voice shared
the sad details. Their refrigerator had died two weeks before and the food,
now stored on the porch was either frozen from the extreme cold we were having
or it was rotten. They had no food. Her husband just lost his job, the rent
was due, the utilities were due, her mother was in the hospital, one of her
young boys had a birthday the next day and Christmas was only one more day away.
She was scared! She wanted to be sure her four boys were taken care of. She
apologized for her husband for his hurt pride. A friend she worked with had
begun calling area churches requesting help for them but was told that all their
resources were used up for the year.
I calmed her by listening to her and told her that we would not leave her plea
unanswered. We would be there for her. A few phone calls later I was able to
get agency assistance for her rent and her utilities and with a closer look
at our "left over" bounty was able to pack 6 large shopping sacks of nonperishable
food, plus give them grocery certificates for perishable foods. Believe it or
not, in our bounty were some unwrapped gifts. They were all things for boys
and for between the ages of 1 and 6. Just what we needed! We even had enough
for birthday gifts for the 3 year old, Christmas gifts for the entire family,
bags of food AND still have food left to share throughout the year! It reminds
you of the Bible story of the loaves of bread and fish to feed the 5000!
Now Chuck will share with you his personal feelings about the experience.
{Chuck's Story}
Like most of you I have always given to worthy causes. But representing St.
Stephen I along with three others was going to distribute the gifts of love
given by congregation members. We four were going to be up front and personal!
We drove two cars loads of gifts and groceries and arrived at our first stop
on north hill. I knocked on the door and a young man answered. I told him we
were delivering gifts and groceries for St. Stephen. He stepped back and his
wife came forward and introduced herself. We in turn gave her our first names.
I could not help notice that the man held his head down and looked at the porch
floor. No eye contact was made with us. I could tell he was a little uncomfortable.
Maybe he did not know how to receive these strangers bearing gifts of love.
Each of us made four or five trips to the car. I carried mostly bags of groceries
and placed them near the dining area. The young man would pick them up and take
them to the kitchen, still no eye contact. The last bag I carried was a bag
containing a 15# whole ham. I handed this to him and finally eye contact and
a smile came to his face.
When we all finished bringing in our gifts we stopped a moment to acknowledge
the children. Mom introduced us to the children.
Picture this: An older home, front door opens into a stairway and the front
room. Behind the front room a dining room with large archway and a kitchen to
the back right of the dining room. Like most homes at this time of year, a Christmas
tree in the corner forces all the furniture to be side by side on the other
walls. Seven young children sat along the furniture, bright eyed, smiling, legs
dangling over the edges in constant motion. All showing excitement over the
gifts in front of them on the floor.
I noticed movement under a pillow on the sofa and out popped a little face of
a smiling three year old girl. We bid them a happy Christmas and they in turn
thanked us for the gifts. Guess who led us to the door? The young man, head
up, eyes in full contact with us. In the ten steps to the door I heard him thank
us many times. He followed us out on the porch in his stocking feet, grabbing
my hand and shaking it one more time with his final thank you. Thanks to the
congregation of St. Stephen these people just witnessed the real spirit of Christmas.
It wasn't long before we arrived at our second destination. And again the young
mother with an infant in her arms greeting us saying, "You did come. You did
come. Just like you said you would!" Dad shrank into the background as we carried
the Christmas bounty to their hearth. Three other little boys wiggled and giggled
and squirmed as we brought it all in. No lights were on their tree, only homemade
ornaments. Mom softly cried with gentle tears running down her cheeks and Dad
kept saying in almost a whisper, "Thank you. Thank you so very much!" You could
tell he was very taken with the generosity to his plight. He, like the other
dad took his position as head of his household and walked us to the door.
All four of us had lumps in our throats. We were the ones to see the joy and
the thankful eyes of moms and dads, raising children and needing a little help.
This whole experience evoked memories in us:
some of personal pain and struggle when a helping hand had reached out to rescue
us.
some of thankfulness for the opportunity to answer a call of need.
some of making the spirit of Christmas come alive
some of remembering that good things happen on starlit nights
OR
is it that we take time to look up to the heavens with a prayer when good things
happen. The stars are always there. And when we look up it is a reminder that
we should always be there too.
Keep our adopted family in your prayers this year as we mentor them. The "desperation"
call has a happy ending. The father found a new job, they are getting some assistance
for the rent and utilities, mom has taken a new job with less stress, her mother
is out of the hospital and they have a working refrigerator. When I last spoke
with them, it was mom's day off and she was taking time to snuggle with her
boys on the sofa.