From
Lutheran Community Services July
2014
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.
A
Journey Back From Homelessness
Irene first came to
LCS in July of 2009. At that time, she was homeless, confused, and
unkempt. Her speech was difficult to
understand and often did not make sense. She had been homeless for awhile,
living in shelters here and there, and she was clutching a folded piece of
paper from WHA indicating that she was eligible, but that the wait would be a
year and a half. In the years that followed, she came back many times for
food, clothing, and blankets. Referrals
were written for her at both the St. Stephen’s pantry and at the Zion
pantry. She often used the phones at the Women’s Friendship House Drop in
Center to contact us and the coordinators there seemed to genuinely care for
her. She seemed worried about her safety and we encouraged her to look
into Luther Towers. Then, recently, Irene returned to LCS and asked for
furniture – for her new home in Luther Towers! Now, Irene has a table and
chairs, sofa, and nightstand from us and the New Life Furnishings Program of
Westminster. It is uplifting to see the
new glow in Irene’s eyes and the quiet comfort of her new home. At 67, she
finally seems to be genuinely happy and at peace. Helping the homeless,
those who are already “on the street,” like Irene, is challenging, which is why
LCS housing assistance generally focuses on those who are trying to prevent homelessness,
before they lose everything.
Sign
Up for the Hunger Walk Run Online
On June 16, visitors
to www.lcsde.org noticed that you can now sign up online for the annual
LCS Hunger Walk Run (September 20). In addition to convenience, this tool allows
you to track your fundraising for the Walk Run and use social media to help
you. For example, Janice Reissig of Hope said, “Using the online tool
for Walk-Run donations was easy, and broadened my access to potential
donors. I was surprised when I posted a
link in Facebook individuals I hadn't thought to personally solicit donated --
and several of my sponsors were out of state, too. It helped me to
reach a personal best for the LCS Hunger Walk Run -- an amount that was
over 60% higher than I'd ever raised!”
The online donations tool can make your fundraising easy and give you an
edge in the competition to see who can raise the most to help support LCS’s
pantries for low income people who come to us for help with food and nutrition.
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