Glen Cary Lutheran Church

Week Ending May 6

Happy Friday! What a beautiful day. It reminded me of a favorite childhood song…It’s a beautiful day in the neighborhood. It’s a beautiful day for a neighbor…! by none other than Mr. Rogers himself. Okay, enough of going down memory lane. Here is my weekly update for all of the happening things with FPAC.

•  A big THANK YOU to Jeannie Hellmann and her team of volunteers at Grace Lutheran-Andover for hosting this week. It was a fairly quiet week. Jeannie will pass the baton to Kathy Lund and her team of volunteers at St. Timothy Church.
•  We have a full house right now at FPAC. We have 4 families with 12 guests and the children range in age from 3 months old-12 years old. We have one mom that is working almost full time each week, another mom that just secured a job and started training this week. Another mother that patiently cares for her 3 month old baby and 4 year old daughter and another mother that is exploring employment opportunities. We have a great community and all four families seem to support each other very well.
• Well, from my perspective this week felt like Christmas in July (or May). First, Jill Disher stopped by the day center for a quick video shoot and offered to recruit a carpet cleaner to spruce up our winter worn carpet at the day center. Thanks Jill. I can’t wait! Then I received a call from Jeannie at Grace. She happens to have a volunteer on her team that offered to change the oil in the FPAC van. I graciously accepted. After he changed the oil, filled the van with gas and checked/topped off all other fluids, he offered to be the official FPAC van mechanic. How awesome is that. So now, whenever the oil needs to be changed or if I have questions about the van, I can call Steve P. Thank you so much Jeannie for making that resource available to us.
•  FPAC is participating in the North Suburban Youth Connection Fair and we need your help. This fair is an opportunity to highlight all of the support services available in this community for families that may be experiencing homelessness. The fair will be an open resource fair filled with over 30 agencies in attendance. The fair is scheduled to take place on Wednesday, May 18^th from 4-7p. I am looking for 1-2 volunteers that would be willing to serve as a table host for this event. If you are interested, please feel free to give me a call or send me an email.
•  Also, a thank you to everyone that includes FPAC in your weekly bulletin. This is an important tool that helps us get the word out about FPAC and the issue of homelessness in our community. This past week, I received three calls from individuals that read about FPAC in their church bulletin or newsletter. One of the individuals wants to coordinate an opportunity for FPAC to come out and speak at a community meeting. These inquiries would not happen without your assistance. Thank you so much.
•  Summer is upon us and we are looking for free or reduced cost activities for FPAC guests to participate in. Thank you to those of you that passed along your VBS schedules, we will make sure we spread the word. If there are any other activities that you are aware of, please let us know, we would love to be able to provide those resources to the families we serve. Thank you to Sandy Forrest for extending an opportunity for one of our preteen guests to attend a week of camp. The family is definitely interested in pursuing this and wouldn’t be able to make it possible without that generous consideration.

A few reminders…

•  Here is a brief announcement to include in your bulletin to help us recruit volunteers to share the FPAC story. FPAC is looking for volunteers that are interested in being a part of our Speaker’s Bureau. If you enjoy sharing the FPAC story to groups, clubs, congregations and other organizations throughout the year we NEED you. If you are interested in this opportunity, call Junita Cathey at 763-568-7349. Family Promise will host a training on Monday, May 23rd from 6-8p at the day center. We would love to have you join us.
•  You’re invited to Laughter, Love and Lattes, an event for women sponsored by Thrivent North Central Community. This event will be held on Friday, May 13^th from 7-9:00p at the Bunker Hills Activity Center. I have attached the flyer to this email for more info. Thrivent North Central Community is a big supporter of FPAC and will be collecting items to support women in our program the evening of the event. I will also be there to share info about FPAC.

 Important dates

Junita 

Week Ending May 13

 Good Morning! Here is my weekly update for all of the happening things with FPAC from last week.

•  A big THANK YOU to Kathy Lund and her team of volunteers at St. Timothy’s Catholic church for hosting last week. Another great week of hosting! Kathy passed the baton to Amy Chavez and her team of volunteers at New Life in Ramsey.
•  We are very grateful for the care and support that each congregation and volunteer shares with the families residing in the FPAC shelter network. Please keep in mind, that this can be a very stressful time for families and especially parents. Living in a shelter, moving every week and transitioning daily can be stressful. Moms in the program have been feeling discouraged lately about all of the uncertainty they are facing on a daily basis and some of the rejection that they encounter when looking for housing and employment. Just keep that in mind as your congregation is hosting each week.
•  We generally have a coordinators meeting every quarter, and our last scheduled date was supposed to be May 9^th at 6:00p, but I had a Volunteer Training scheduled on that date. I would like to get a new date on the calendar. Please respond and let me know if Monday, June 13^th at 6:00-8:00p will work for you. If the majority of us can attend, then I will go ahead and confirm the new meeting date.
•  Summer is upon us and we are looking for free or reduced cost activities for FPAC guests to participate in. Thank you to those of you that passed along your VBS schedules, we will make sure we spread the word. If there are any other activities that you are aware of, please let us know, we would love to be able to provide those resources to the families we serve. Thank you to Sandy Forrest for extending an opportunity for one of our preteen guests to attend a week of camp. The family is definitely interested in pursuing this and wouldn’t be able to make it possible without that generous consideration.
•  I have attached a copy of the FPAC annual report, that summarizes our activity through 2010. Let me know if you have any questions. FPAC ANNUAL REPORT

 A few reminders…

•  Here is a brief announcement to include in your bulletin to help us recruit volunteers to share the FPAC story. FPAC is looking for volunteers that are interested in being a part of our Speaker’s Bureau. If you enjoy sharing the FPAC story to groups, clubs, congregations and other organizations throughout the year we NEED you. If you are interested in this opportunity, call Junita Cathey at 763-568-7349. Family Promise will host a training on Monday, May 23rd from 6-8p at the day center. We would love to have you join us.

 Important dates

 Until next week…happy graduation season!!!

 Junita L. Cathey

Week Ending June 20

Here is my weekly update for all of the happening things with FPAC this week.

•  A big THANK YOU to Amy Chavez and her team of volunteers at New Life Church in Ramsey for hosting last week. Another great week of hosting! New Life had a cool craft activity where the guests made key chains out of beads. They looked like butterflies, penguins, a duck, etc. The families had fun making the craft, but they are also using the keychain. Great craft idea! Amy passed the baton to Annette and Greg Olson and their team of volunteers at Zion Lutheran-Anoka.
•  I received a call from Good Shepard Church. They are not currently a partner or support congregation, but they want to support FPAC. They receive donated goods from Caribou weekly and they have offered to provide those baked goods to FPAC. If you are interested in receiving these baked goods during your host week for breakfast or snack, you can call Bonnie at Good Shepard. Her phone number is 763-229-6296. Bonnie is willing to deliver the baked goods in some cases. They always have plenty of delicious fresh baked goodies.
•  We have two families that will be leaving us this month. Martha, who has been at FPAC since February will be moving into her own apartment this week. She and her family are very excited for this next move. Dominique has only been with us since April and she and her family will be moving out on Tuesday. She was very motivated and found housing very quickly. In spite of all of the obstacles, both families managed to have a positive attitude all of the time and they have been a joy to have around. We are excited for them, but we will miss them.
•  April and May have been very busy months for families in need of immediate shelter. Families have lost their homes for many reasons, but for families that have had financial hardships and struggled to pay their utility bills in the winter months no longer receive a grace period after April. Many families ended up losing their homes because their utilities were disconnected so they could no longer live in their home or apartment, thus increasing the number of calls we received daily. The good news is FPAC exists to support families and we are able to make the load lighter…4 families with up to 14 individuals at a time.
•  As I watch the devastating news that unfolds from the tornado this weekend, I am reminded of how important our work is. Families that were going about their daily schedules and routines, woke up to life as usual, but went to bed without shelter, without clothes, without the basic daily necessities. Losing your home can happen to anyone, at any time, for any reason. Please keep all of the families that live in the areas that were impacted by the tornado in your thoughts and prayers. And thank you for all you do to be that rainbow after the storm and rain.
•  Our next coordinator’s meeting is scheduled for Monday, June 13^th at 6:00-8:00p at the Salvation Army. I will send the agenda prior to the meeting. If you are unable to attend, just let me know and be sure to send any FAQs or concerns and I will be sure to discuss them during the meeting.
•  Thank you to the many congregations that have sent their summer programming schedules. This information will be very useful as new families join us during the summer months. If you come across any additional summer programming opportunities, please let Allisen or I know about it and we will make sure to pass the information along to the families.
•  So far, it seems that our new air mattresses are working out very well. Mattresses can be picked up anytime during the week before you are scheduled to host and can be returned by Monday the week after you host. Mattresses and pack ‘n plays are stored at the day center in the hallway closet. Please notify your church representative that they should be able to pick up the beds from the hallway closet inside the day center.

 A few reminders…  

 Important dates

 Until next week…happy graduation season!!!

 Junita L. Cathey