MMN Meeting for May 16th at Liberty UMC.
We first opened with prayer.
Then we got an update on the Summer Food Bags from Blair Routh. This is our 8th year doing the Summer Food Bags program. Note the dates as it’s delivery time; June 14th is delivery day. We will need help at Cooleemee Elementary School (the time to be announced). Our first feeding day is June 15th. Please call Blair at 336-403-9586, or email Don at drouth46@roadrunner.com, or call him at 336-403-9586, or at home at 336-936-9178.
- We will need people to unpack the truck
- We will need people at Mocksville to get the food ready for the next day
- Volunteers and money is still needed, please get with Blair ASAP!
Next we learned about Partners in Learning from it’s Development Director Amy Vestal.
PIL is a non profit whose physical location is in Rowan County but serves many counties in our area including Davie. It is also an accredited 5 Star center. It specializes in helping children who have special needs, are low-income, foster families, and no child is turned away. In it’s community services it organizes in-home visits with therapists to help children in the home who have developmental delays or other troubles and help them and their caregivers. At it’s physical locations it provides childcare and PreK learning up to 5 years old with after school programs for kids up to 5th grade.
Amy shared with the group the stories of 3 alumni;
- Jacob, a young boy with special needs who passed away recently at the age of 7. A memorial garden is planted in his honor
- Alisha, a staff member who came to intern at PIL when she was a teen and an expectant mother. She worked hard, got her degree while working at PIL, and now plans to open a childcare center of her own.
- Megan, who came to PIL as a foster child in the summer program. Megan was then adopted by the director Norma Honeycutt and now is grown with a family of her own.
PIL needs volunteers to help with various needs. Examples; books for its free book program (kids - adults), toys for the in-home visits. Also volunteers to help in the classroom, even reading to the kids is a huge deal for them. Chad Shoaf was able to visit PIL and was impressed by the quality of care and the diversity of the kids.
- Some other stats; PIL at it’s childcare centers run from 6am - 6pm.
- Current enrollment is over 200 children.
With Brad Cunningham moving, Rev. John Erwin agreed to serve as the new chairperson. Tony Owens will serve as secretary. Thank you, we love you both!
Here’s a Family Promise update;
- They are currently doing interviews for a director, may have one soon.
- The projected start date is still June 1st, which will be kept or changed after the Board of Trustees meet next week.
- Once Family Promise starts, it will likely be 8-10 weeks before it begins serving families.
- Over 21 churches are helping including at least 15 host churches.
- The Day Center located at Liberty UMC is still being worked on.
The next meeting will be held on Aug. 15 at 7pm at Concord UMC.
