The Journey Home July 2018 Quarterly Newsletter

We are thrilled to announce that The Journey Home (TJH) will have a Ground Breaking Ceremony on Friday, August 3rd, at 7pm at the building site (near the intersection of Lee St. & Albemarle Ave. in Mineral). This will be followed by a dessert reception at Mineral Baptist Church Fellowship Hall (51 Louisa Ave. in Mineral). Everyone is welcome to attend and we sincerely hope that you can join us!

Praise God for His awesome provision for His vision for this home. Thank you so much for your prayers and your support of TJH. What a joy it has been to walk this journey of faith steps with you and watch God do what only He can do!

So much has happened since our April newsletter that we want to catch you up on. Several answers to prayer include grants that TJH has received. In May, the Mary Morton Parsons Foundation awarded us a $150,000 challenge grant. In other words, we receive that grant when we raise $150,000 in new money to match it. So, now would be a great time to make a donation if you have been considering doing so. Thank you! Also, the Louisa County Community Foundation gifted us with a $15,000 grant and Bama Works (Dave Matthews Band) gave us $10,000. Even more encouraging to TJH, were the very generous donations we received from individuals and churches that show they are invested in this project and support the mission and vision of TJH. Wow…we are overwhelmed with the hearts of so many who want to help others in need.

We are all “broken” and need the hope and healing only God can bring. What a joy it is to come alongside other “broken” people and be Jesus’ hands and feet as we point them to Him. Presentations are continuing to be made to area churches and organizations to inform them about TJH. We have spoken to Louisa Baptist Church, committees from Louisa Presbyterian Church and Church of the Incarnation, The Goshen Baptist Assoc. Spring Meeting, The Ruritan Club, The Lions Club, The Community Extravaganza, and numerous community organizations including The Reentry Council and The Louisa County Interagency Council. It is so encouraging to hear the responses from individuals who see the great need in our area and how TJH can help to meet the need.

Many people worked together to make our May 12th Auction a great success. Nadine Garvin worked tirelessly to obtain many items for the auction. Our local businesses and churches were very generous in donating items. Col. Bill Billingsley was the amazing auctioneer. He attended several committee meetings and graciously volunteered his time even though he is a busy, nationally known, auctioneer. Irene Luck helped get the word out through the local newspaper and assisted with logistics. Many people decorated, baked, and grilled (thank you, Ken, for the yummy chicken) to make a festive dinner. We all worked together and God blessed the event in many ways including a great attendance and a profit of $20,000!

The next fundraising event is Saturday, August 18th. It will be our second annual Money Give-Away and dinner with a chance to win $10,000. This event is from 6-9 pm at Mineral Baptist Church Family Life Center. It is a fun evening with dinner and a “bingo ball” elimination that is quite exciting. Tickets are $100 that includes your dinner and a chance to win the cash prize. This year we are selling an additional meal for $25 if a couple wants a meal but not an additional chance to win the cash prize. Of course, you can buy two tickets for 2 meals and 2 chances to win if you both want to participate in the opportunity to win. You won’t want to miss this event, so get your tickets from us ([email protected]) while they last…only 200 will be sold. You do not need to be present to win.

Robi Keyes, an interior decorator, has been a great blessing in sorting and inspecting furniture donations to see what can be used at the home. We are continuing to collect gently used donations of beds, dressers, small tables and kitchen items. Those items that we will not need for the home will go to the Yard Sale Fundraiser on October 5 & 6 at Louisa Baptist Church. Thank you for donating items. In addition, there will be a day of painting and repairing some of the donated furniture. Please let us know if you would like to help with this project that we will likely do in September.

Many details for the building are underway, so we greatly appreciate your prayers for the process, the general contractor (Howard Loudin, and his crew), and wisdom for the multitude of decisions that need to be made for the interior and exterior of the building. We especially appreciate your prayers for discernment as we finalize the paperwork and begin the process of identifying those individuals that God wants to live at the home. How exciting it is to picture how the long awaited opportunity for TJH to minister to people will be happening this time next year, Lord willing!

Please let us know if you believe God is leading you to be involved in TJH in some specific way. The next update and planning meeting will be Saturday, July 7th from 9-11 am at Mineral Baptist Church Fellowship Hall. We hope you can join us!

Thank you so much for your faithful prayers and financial support that God has used to get TJH to this point. It is a huge step to be in the construction phase and we really appreciate your continued prayers as this vision from God becomes reality. How we all look forward to seeing God transform lives through this home. You have been a huge part of this process and we are so grateful for your partnership. It takes many committed laborers serving God to make TJH happen and we are so blessed to have the opportunity to accomplish so much more as we work together.

Blessings,
Ed and Debby
On Behalf of TJH Board