Food for Thought

“Want to have a tour of our new facility and Choice Pantry? We would love to give you one! Below is the winter/spring schedule for our Food For Thought Tours. Call us today to arrange a tour and come out to see all of the great new and exciting things LCS is doing for the community.”

News You Can Use

For Your Church Newsletter

From Lutheran Community Services    September 2015

Editors: This information is prepared for church newsletter editors, secretaries and pastors. Your help in getting the word out is appreciated and will help LCS achieve its mission of “Sharing God’s blessings by helping others in need.” Comments about timing or content are welcome. Contact Steve Tindall (stindall@lcsde.org). 302 654 8886.

Gov. Markell Visits LCS

Gov. Markell with LCS staff and volunteers during his July 31 visit to
LCS’s new headquarters at 2809 Baynard Boulevard, in Wilmington.

 LCS Volunteer Coordinator Cher Frampton participated in a volunteer fair at Bethel AME Church recently and caught the attention of Gov. Markell.  He liked what he heard about LCS and suggested a visit, which LCS was only too happy to take him up on. He arrived promptly at 11 a.m. as planned on Friday July 31.


Jean Warren gave him the royal tour of the new building and explained LCS’s focus on helping low income people with food, homelessness prevention and other important services. A short meeting followed, and the governor offered some helpful advice on completing the financing of the new building and insights about where our services are needed most.

Executive Director Jean Warren takes Governor
Jack Markell on a tour of the new facility.

     Before he left, the governor gave an inspiring talk to the staff and volunteers about how agencies like LCS are pitching in to help answer the critical need for social services in our community.

Volunteer Spencer Hoernes explains to Gov. Markell about
LCS’s community pantry garden funded by Speer Trust.

    

Walk Run Against Hunger September 19, 2015! Register or download forms online at www.lcsde.org. For 

information, call 302 654 8886 x109. 

Or click HERE to go straight to our online registration page...

Coordinator for the Zion Pantry Richard Porto tells his
story to the Governor with Volunteer Coordinator Cher Frampton.

News You Can Use

For Your Church Newsletter    - by Steve Tindall

From Lutheran Community Services            April 2015

Editors: This information is prepared for church newsletter editors, secretaries and pastors. Your help in getting the word out is appreciated and will help LCS achieve its mission of “Sharing God’s blessings by helping others in need.” Comments about timing or content are welcome. Contact Steve Tindall (stindall@lcsde.org). 302 654 8886.

Building Almost Complete

Progress has been steady on the renovation of the new LCS headquarters building on Baynard Boulevard in Wilmington.  According to contractors, it should be completed April 1

Homelessness Prevented

Linda had been homeless for quite some time.  She stayed at relatives’ houses, on friends’ couches, in motels, in short- and long-term shelters.  Not having a mailing address and a working phone made it difficult for people to reach her, so she often used the phone at Lutheran Community Services to talk to 211 – the information helpline – for screening and the next temporary housing placement.  Linda is 63. Her husband, a veteran, passed away. Linda receives his VA pension so is able to pay a subsidized rent in an ongoing manner …if she were able to work out the logistics involved in finding a place to move in to and communicating with them.  With LCS’s help, Linda was able to meet these challenges. LCS was able to provide her with the security deposit she needed for Sacred Heart Village, a low income apartment community, where she lives today in her own place.

Capital Campaign Donors May Be Eligible for Tax Credit

Larger donations to the LCS Capital Campaign may be eligible for Delaware’s Neighborhood Assistance Act Program. Under the program, individual and business donors with an income tax liability in Delaware (and who reside in Delaware) can get a 50% tax credit for campaign donations made during calendar year 2015. Application should be made as soon as possible on or after July 1, 2015. This is not a deduction but a direct credit taken off the bottom line of your tax bill to Delaware. The NAA tax credit equals 50% of the qualified contribution up to a maximum eligible contribution of $100,000 annually per taxpayer, resulting in a maximum annual tax credit of $50,000 per taxpayer. The minimum contribution by an individual or family is $2,500 for a tax credit of $1,250. The minimum contribution by a business is $10,000 for a tax credit of $5,000. Contact Steve Tindall (302 654 8886 x105 or stindall@lcsde.org) for assistance.

St. Stephen's 12 Days Magi Project with Video

 Check out the St. Stephen's 12 Days of Christmas Magi Project Video featuring volunteers and staff from Lutheran Community Services and staff and church members from St. Stephen's Church. Enjoy!

St. Stephen’s Lutheran Church is partnering with other Wilmington area churches on a Magi Project.

They have rewritten the lyrics to The Twelve Days of Christmas replacing the gifts with food items.  On Christmas Eve participating churches will pass out brown paper bags and invite people to gather these food items over the 12 days of Christmas and bring them to worship on Sunday, January 5^th, the day we celebrate the Epiphany. 

Churches who have their own food pantry are welcome to keep the food. St. Stephen’s will collect other food and restock the shelves of the LCS food pantry at St. Stephen’s.

We believe this is a meaningful spiritual exercise for the season of Christmas – giving to those who hunger, spending less on ourselves and more on those in need, marking the days of the Christmas season rather than stopping with the 25^th of December, learning more about this holy day of Epiphany that is celebrated by so many Christian communities here in our midst and around the world.

Here are the lyrics to the song....On the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me....

1.     A box of Rice Krispies®   
 

2.     Two green beans

3.     Three beef stews

4.     Four apple sauces

5.     Five raviolis


 

6.     Six jars of jelly

7.     Seven ramen noodles

8.     Eight cans of tuna

 

1








9. Nine Rolls of Charmin

10.   Ten peanut butters
 

11.   Eleven cans of peaches
 

12.   Twelve macaronis
 

Greater Power

Come, Lord Jesus, quickly come.  Come into our world bringing light and life.  Come into our world bringing hope and peace.  Come into our hearts with joy and compassion.  Bless our tables as we gather together, that we may be filled with your loving spirit.  Come, Lord Jesus, quickly come.  Amen.

Pastor Kathy Ierien

Lutheran Church of the Good Shepherd [12/13]

Welcome Ariana Wakeman

 Lutheran Volunteer Corp Leader September Newsletter Highlights Wilmington and Lutheran Community Services and placement Ariana Wakeman!

Wilmington Commissioning Service

The Wilmington LSC welcomed the new LVC Volunteers this month.  The commissioning was held at the home of Bill and Nancy Fuson and was a delightful event!  We blessed the Volunteers with a sending blessing that encourages them to begin their year with grace, hope, trust, peace and love.

The Volunteers also had an opportunity to meet their Host Families. LSC members, congregational supporters, host families and a placement supervisor were in attendance.  Thank you to everyone who came out to support the Volunteers as they begin their year!

Wilmington Volunteers: Back row, left to right:  Ben Arbeiter, Kristan VanDomelen, Sascha Beilert, Ariana Wakeman, Daniel Guntermann. Front row, left to right:  Tamara Siburg, Maren Hopkins, Karrah Johnston, Ngozi Edeh

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Volunteer and Placement Site Spotlight 
Ariana Wakeman and Lutheran Community Services in Wilmington 

Ariana : "I joined LVC because I believed it would provide me with valuable experience to further my career, an opportunity to give back and help others, and a chance to grow through my work and LVC's core practices.

I appreciate the opportunity to work directly with those who are affected by issues of social justice. Each person I have met has something valuable to offer the world, yet unfortunately they often do not have a voice. I really enjoy meeting a variety of people and learning from each of them.

My only expectation was that I would be put to good use at Lutheran Community Services (LCS) and that I would be able to truly serve others.  I am lucky to work with such wonderful staff and volunteers. I enjoy the work I do every day, and am looking forward to continuing to learn about the program and my role at LCS.

My time at LCS has confirmed for me that I am indeed passionate about this field.  Daily interactions with clients helps me to build people skills which will be important in any other social work job I may pursue. I have also been able to learn some about the ins and outs of a non-profit and have begun to establish some helpful connections.

Sandy Betley from Lutheran Community Services: LCS has been blessed to have an LVC volunteer since 1996…that’s 17 years! The LVC volunteer provides a very needed additional pair of hands to assist with our food and housing programs.  This assistance

requires both physical and emotional stamina as situations exacerbating needs are often heartbreaking and because the  people in need just keep coming and coming.   We have often noticed that the LVCr is able to provide a fresh perspective and some rather “outside the box” solutions to problems that we have been too busy to figure out how to address, so we highly value their input.

LCS Mission Statement of Sharing God’s Blessings by Helping Others In Need, resonates with the core LVC principles of social justice, intentional living, and sustainability in that we are all in this world together and it is our responsibility to reach out to and care for one another and all of God’s creatures and creation if we hope for the world to continue.

Welcome aboard Ari...we look forward to working with you over the next year, and we hope you look the same. We know this is going to be a great time for us both with you here!