New Directions Shelter
This month, donations to Missions will go to support the New Directions Shelter, which is the emergency 30-day housing shelter offered through Families Forward. (Families Forward is what we used to know as Bidwell and Hawthorn Hill.) They "help families get a new start through professional case management, counseling, and advocacy" while providing "the emotional and physical space necessary to make responsible, informed decisions for securing housing for their families". This is one of only two homeless family shelters available in our area, with private bedrooms, balanced meals, and laundry facilities.
In addition to a place to stay, the shelter provides clients support and assistance in finding and getting jobs, obtaining
training, acquiring affordable child care, obtaining needed documentation, getting government assistance for which they
qualify, and other help they need to get on their feet.
We plan to purchase gift cards (groceries and gas), and June 1 we will prepare a meal for the families staying in the shelter. Sign up here to help with the meal.
A representative from New Directions Shelter will be speaking at the church service May 4.
Good Samaritan Food Pantry in Adel
Personal Item of the Month
This month's personal item is deodorant.
Please place your donation in the marked tub in the church entryway, or note "food pantry"
on your donation check and we will use the money to buy this for the pantry.
Learn more about the food pantry here and here.
Bags for Bidwell
The Bidwell Pantry needs used grocery bags to help pantry guests carry their groceries.
The bags can be paper, cloth, or the usual plastic. Since the pantry serves an average
of 5,000 individuals a month and each shopper uses 2-3 bags, they need a lot of bags.
There's a tub in the church entryway where you can put your donated bags. We plan to
continue collecting these throughout the year, so please keep bringing them in.
