THE 1000-FAMILIES INITIATIVE

The United Way has a vision to see 1000 families from Bannerman and its adjacent neighbourhoods lifted out of poverty for good. They are inviting our church to get in on the ground floor of this initiative. 
 
When I first heard The 1000-Families Initiative presented some months ago at a “Bannerman Partners” meeting (a gathering of community leaders that meets at our church), I immediately felt it was an answer to prayer. Bethel chose to locate in Bannerman because the church believed God was calling us to invest in this neighbourhood.
 
Over the years we have prayed earnestly that we could shine Christ’s light here by being good neighborhood partners. In recent months, God has been marvelously opening doors for community involvement in ways we had not imagined. This  initiative is just the latest example. It dovetails beautifully with our dreams for Bannerman, and to some extent is being made possible because of work we are already doing here. (For example, the Abundant Communities initiative we support, the Bannerman Partners group we launched, and the WECAN food basket ministry we recently started, all have, or will, play a part in making the United Way’s plan successful).
 
Anna Bubel, the main organizer for the initiative, wants many different people and groups to be involved, because lifting families out of poverty requires more than a financial handout. For families to stay out of poverty for good, they need an array of supports that provide the “hand up” that can make their upward steps permanent. 
 
All interested people from Bethel are invited to a meeting on Saturday, June 4, from 1-4 p.m. to be held in Multipurpose Room #4 of the Clareview Community Rec. Center. The meeting’s aim is to introduce some of the many partners who have already committed to supporting the initiative, to gather more partners, and then to envision how the 1000 families will be selected and then involved into the program. 
 
If you feel moved to take part, contact Anna Bubel ( 780-425-4122 / azbubel@telus.net) and Ryan Pedde (ryan@discoverbethel.com) to let them know you will be there.
 
                                                                                                         –Pastor Tom

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