Our 3rd and final story from Safe Families for Children this week.

A Story of Love:
Eight year old Michael says that the best part of his summer is seeing his Safe Family.  He was originally placed with Safe Families when his mother was emergently hospitalized.   With disabilities, his mother is rarely able to take him out of their small apartment.  Michael’s Safe Family continues to spend time with him, even though he is back home with his mother.   When he is with his Safe Family, they go to ball games and parks.  They sit down to pray and eat dinner together and he is learning new things about the world, and what it has to offer.

Consider Joining Safe Families for Children at their annual Benefit.  It is September 17, 2010.  

I went last year and it was an awesome event.  The hope for the evening is to join together to highlight the great work of the past and unite in support for the future.

Here are the details:

9/17/10 at 6:30 PM at The Mansion at Oak Hill
Appetizers, Dinner, Silent Auction, Cash Bar

1 Ticket = 60.00    2 Tickets= 100.00   Table of Ten = 500.00

To Register Online: Click Here

To Register by Email: Click Here

To Register by Phone: Call Kristen Kelley at 317-258-8917 or mail check to:
556 Ironwood Drive  Carmel, IN 46033 attn: Kristen

Here is our second story from Safe Families for Children for this week.

A Story of Hope:

Lareena and her husband Jonathan have 3 children, age 6 month, 1 year and 2 years.  They were living with Lareena’s mother and step-father, and Jonathan was working in construction.   The breakup of Lareena’s mother and stepfather left them homeless and on the street.  Jonathan lost his job as he missed work several days in a row, while seeking shelter for his family.   In desperation, he called Safe Families.  We were able to place the 3 children into 3 Safe Family Homes.  Lareena has found a fast food job, and Jonathan some temporary work.  They are saving and working towards renting their own apartment, and securing child care

Every weekday at 11:45 AM you will find the staff of Grace Community Church gathering for daily prayer.  Someone will usually give us a thought or need to guide our prayers, and then we will break into small groups to pray.  It has become a beautiful, meaningful, well spent 15 minutes in the course of the day.

Today Krista Davis from Safe Families for Children was present for prayer, and she brought their Intern Laura to pray with us.  Laura has tons of passion and energy for what is happening with Safe Families, and it’s a good thing considering her first day they placed 11 children!  She is going to need that passion to keep her serving the growing needs.

It got me thinking about the amazing things that are taking place in Safe Families right now, and so we decided to share 3 short stories of the kinds of things GOD is doing through normal people like you reading this blog.

A Story of Faith:

18 year old Renee grew up in a chaotic home.  Her mother has lots of parties, and many male friends.   When Renee became pregnant at 16, she decided she wanted more for her child.  She has been struggling to raise her daughter, now 1 year old and to complete school.  Desperately seeking a safe and healthy environment for her little girl, she asked Safe Families for help.  Both she and her daughter have moved into a safe family home.  They are helping Renee learn positive parenting skills, and are assisting her to finish High School.

I finally finished reading, There is No Me Without You, a gripping book about HIV-AIDS devastation in Ethiopia particularly on the most vulnerable people in society, the children who have been orphaned.  Melissa Fay Greene tells the story of Haregewoin Teferra who ends up unwittingly being at the forefront and center of orphan care and international adoption in this country being decimated by AIDS.  Here is one poignant excerpt as Greene recounts a conversation between Mikki, an American mother, and Mekdes, her adopted daughter from Ethiopia.

“On another day, she began a story and stopped: ‘When I was with my mo—I mean Mulu.’ (her birth mom)
‘Baby, you can say Momma,’ Mikki said.
‘Do you like Mulu, Mommy?’
‘I love Mulu!’ said Mikki, and Mekdes embraced her.
Mekdes soon told her mother about the day her aunts took her to Haregewoin’s house. (to give her up) ‘Yabsira (her young baby brother) cry a little.  I am scream.’
‘Why did you cry, baby?’ asked Mikki.
‘I don’t know this Ethiopia.  I want my Ethiopia with Goshay (Grandfather) and Fasika (her aunt).  I don’t want new Ethiopia.’
‘You were sad,’ said Mikki.
‘No hope, Mommy.  I have no hope.’
‘Oh, honey . . . ‘
‘Because no one told me, Mommy.’
‘Told you what?’
‘That you are here in America.  I will not feel so sad if I know you are here.’
‘Yeah, I was here getting ready, getting your rooms ready.  I was here, me and your daddy, waiting and getting ready.’
”I am cry because I don’t know you will coming.’

Of course, for most of Africa’s ten million, fifteen million, twenty million orphans, no one is getting a room ready.  No one will come.”

Pastor Oscar Muriu from Nairobi Chapel one time challenged us to take a second look at all of our empty guest rooms in our homes and fill them with children who need a home.  And it’s happening!  Now when we have child dedications, we see African, and Asian, and Latin American children sprinkled among our other children.  An incredible organization called Safe Families has started placing children from families in distress into temporary homes of our church families.  Hands of Hope is making it easier for families at our church to pursue international adoption.

Let’s give orphans around the world a reason to hope.

The following comes to us from Christine Raymond, the Communications Volunteer for Safe Families for Children here in Indianapolis.  She can be reached at ChristineRaymond@sbcglobal.net

For those of you not familiar with Safe Families, it is a Frontline Ministry of Grace Community Church.  Safe Families is an inredible ministry opportunity for families of all types, and it is about to grow really quickly.  See the press release below.

August 4, 2009 – On July 17, Safe Families for Children (SFFC) hosted their first fundraiser at The Mansion at Oak Hill in Carmel, raising nearly $40,000. These additional funds will enable SFFC to address escalating demands, which are expected to soon skyrocket. On September 1, 2009, the Indiana Department of Children’s Services (DCS) will begin referring unsubstantiated or closing cases to SFFC, a child abuse prevention program that provides a support system for families in crisis.

“This is an agreement we have been working on for over a year,” said Safe Families for Children – Indiana executive director, Krista Davis. “We’ll be able to help so many more families in crisis by giving them the opportunity to have their children in safe and loving homes so they can focus on their immediate crisis.”

Safe Families for Children (SFFC) is a program of Lydia Home Association, a national 501(c)(3) child welfare organization. The SFFC program was designed to extend and strengthen the community safety net for at-risk families. Started in Chicago in 2003 and initiated in Indiana as well as six other states in 2008, SFFC provides a loving, temporary home for children whose parents are in a crisis situation. This alternative to the state child welfare system allows parents to work out their problems without risk of losing custody of their children. The program’s goal is to reunite children with their biological parent(s) in a home that is more stable and healthy, in part because of the contribution of the SFFC intervention.

To learn more about potentially becoming a volunteer host family or to donate to Safe Families for Children, please contact Krista Davis at (317) 519.7131, or go to  Safe Families.

The call to Safe Families came in a panic. Janae is the mother of 4 children ages 6, 2, and 3 month old twins…and she just watched her abusive boyfriend leave by police escort. Fearing for her life and the lives of her children should her boyfriend return, Janae called Safe Families.

 Safe Families for Children is a network of Christian families that extends the community safety net for children by providing parents in need a loving sanctuary where they can safely place their children in times of crisis.  Whereas the Foster care system can only get involved if there has been abuse or neglect, Safe Families is able to get involved BEFORE there is harm to children. They are also a Frontline Ministry of Grace Community Church.

What would happen if the Christian Community, motivated by compassion and a thirst for justice, began to offer biblical hospitality and reach out to those in Janae’s situation?

Well, it may look something like the following…

Within 2 hours of making the call to Safe Families, a team arrived at her house and placed her 4 children with 3 volunteer host families that evening. Janae stayed with a friend for a few days until she was able to file a restraining order.