VOTE FOR US

For the month of December Baptist Friendship House is in running for the $250K grant from Pepsi. Each Month Pepsi accepts 1000 entries and we were picked! If we remain in the top 100 we will continue for the next month, however, if we get in the top 1 or 2 spot then we receive the grant. Us receiving the grant totally depends on YOU and your daily support through voting.


You can vote via this link: http://www.refresheverything.com/baptistfriendshiphouse
You can also text your vote: text 104857 to 73774 (Standard text messaging rates apply)

Recently, we joined an alliance of other organizations in Louisiana. The idea is that we share supporters in the hopes that we all be able to place in the top 2 places of our categories and thus we all getting the grant we are applying for. Please consider these as well. The link to view them is as follows:
http://www.vote4pepsimonroe.com/main.html?src=%2F
Once on the page you can click on the blue box and a list of all the organizations in the alliance will come up on the Pepsi Refresh Project page ready to be viewed and/or voted on.

Thank you in advance for your prayers, support, and votes. Please consider voting for us daily in order that we may receive this grant. This grant will enable us to expand our ministry.

Fall Fest 2010

Who Dat?!!! That was the theme for our fall fest this year, which we celebrated on Saturday, October 30, 2010. It was a fun filled day with lots of food, games, and a whole bunch of candy!!! How else can you celebrate Fall and Halloween? We opened our gate and invited everyone into our yard to just relax and enjoy themselves. We even got to top it off with a parade that started right down the street from the center.

The pictures show our wonderful time together better than words- be sure to check more out on our facebook page at

http://www.facebook.com/pages/New-Orleans-LA/Baptist-Friendship-House/122754057261

Little girl dressed as Cinderella

Volunteer and girl at the lollipop tree

Kids playing at the fishing pond at Fall Fest

We are Human

If we will treat everyone as a human then a lot of the
issues in the world will cease to exist. It is basic human
right to be treated as a human.

If you can just think about this:

Imagine...
You are homeless
You have no where to go and no one to see
All you have is what you are wearing
Your clothes are dirty
A shirt with holes
Pants that don’t fit
Shoes that are too small
Socks that are worn
You walk the streets the whole day
You have no form of ID
You can’t get a job to get back on your own without an ID
To America, there is no proof of your existence
As you walk the streets your feet blister
That’s what happens when your shoes don’t fit
Your toes are in so much pain you can barely take a step by the end of the day
It slowly begins to rain, then pour, as it does in New Orleans
You get out of the rain only after your clothes are soaked
Your shoes are filled with water due to the puddles
Your socks are drenched
You must keep walking because you are not allowed to sit anywhere
Constantly you are run off from places when you just stop for a rest
Now you walk the streets with wet clothes and shoes
The blisters become worse and you get more of them
Most of them are infected
You hurt
Not only physically
People constantly look down on you because you don’t have a home
They don’t even give you a chance
You didn’t have control over the situation that made you homeless
You are trying to get your life back together but no one wants to help
You have no where to go and no one to see
You are constantly walking the streets
Looking for help everywhere
You find a place that helps the homeless
You take a chance, so many times you are turned away
You ring the bell
You are greeted with a smile
The first time someone has smiled at you all week
You see a light in their eyes
You know they care
They feed you, clothe you, and give you hygiene items
They help you clean up your wounds
They look past that you are homeless and see you for you
You are helped
You now have hope and you now have strength
When you walk back down the street
Your chin will be lifted
There will be a light in your eyes
Because they were Jesus to you
It’s simple… Be Jesus to people.

Which way do you look when you see someone who doesn’t have a home? Do you smile at them or frown? Have you ever given a homeless person a chance? A homeless person is just like me and you except for the fact that they don’t have a home. They don’t have shoes that fit their feet or clothes that fit their body. They don’t have a closet to put them in either. They have a heart that does the same function as ours. They hurt just like we do; the only difference is we have a house to hide in.

There are so many stereotypes about homeless people that are untrue. The National Coalition for the Homeless talks about the reasons that people have become homeless over the past few decades. As most people assume, they are all strung out on drugs, unwilling to work, and trying to take advantage of the system. These assumptions are false. Foreclosures, poverty, eroding work opportunities, decline in public assistance, and lack of affordable housing are a few of the main reasons for homelessness in society today. Much of which, cannot be controlled by people.

Other key factors in homelessness include: lack of affordable healthcare, domestic violence, and mental illness. Statistics show that 1 in 3 Americans are uninsured. A single illness can put a person in poverty on the streets. Battered women who live in poverty are often forced to choose between the abusive relationship and becoming homeless. 16% of the single adult homeless population suffers from severe mental illness, of which they have no control. Addiction is rarely a cause of a person becoming homeless; however, once on the street there is an increased risk of turning to drugs.

Homelessness results from a complex set of circumstances and cannot be identified as a result of a single cause.

So, will you choose to be Jesus to the next homeless person you see?

³⁵For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, ³⁶I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.'

³⁷"Then the righteous will answer him, 'Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to drink? ³⁸When did we see you a stranger and invite you in, or needing clothes and clothe you? ³⁹When did we see you sick or in prison and go to visit you?'

⁴⁰"The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me.'

Matthew 25:35-40

http://www.nationalhomeless.org/factsheets/Why.pdf

A Week of Opportunities

We have had a very busy last few weeks at Friendship House, that have included two awesome opportunities that we are so excited to share. On September 7, 2010 several of the staff members were able to assist with a Feed the Children drop that was here in New Orleans. The NFL Players Association sponsored this drop along with the Teamsters Union. Two truckloads filled with boxes of food were handed out to people in the community. Thankfully, we had plenty of people to help because we lacked a fork lift to unload the trucks. With assembly lines stretching across the parking lot, we were able to successfully unload the trucks as cars began to line up.

Based on the number of people in the household, each family received a food box, a household goods box, and a case of water. The food boxes include canned goods, cereal, rice, and spaghetti and will feed a family of four for ten days. The household goods box provides the family with hygiene and toiletry items, along with other things that are needed in a house.


One of the trucks filled with Feed the Children Boxes and a few boxes unloaded


One of the posters along with boxes of food stacked ready to be handed out

We had an awesome time getting to spend time with several NFL players, both current and retirees. We got to visit with John Stinchcomb, Deuce McAllister, Mike McKenzie, Chuck Commiskey, and several other players. Many of these guys have helped Baptist Friendship House food pantry through fundraisers for Feed the Children.


The NFL Players Association bus


Dr. Kay Bennett with John Stinchcomb


Kendall Wolz with Deuce McAllister

As you know, the week leading up to the NFL Kickoff was a busy time for New Orleans as we prepared to cheer our Saints to a victory on Thursday September 9. We were invited by Cherry Blackwell with Lagniappe Ministries to volunteer and help prepare the floats that were in the NFL Parade. We were also invited to attend the concerts that took place prior to the game. We are very thankful that Cherry allowed us to be a part of this experience.


Dr. Kay helping load coolers filled with cold drinks on to the floats


DeShannan helping on top of one of the NFL Parade floats


Michelle working on top of another float

Back to School Bash = Success!

We had our annual back to school bash on Saturday August 28, 2010. Despite rainy weather, forcing us to do everything inside, we had a great turnout of people coming to the event. We opened the doors and allowed people to come in and dig through tons of clothing that we had received through donations. We set out food that had been donated and allowed everyone to pack a bag full to carry home with them. The kids had games to play. We also prepared food to eat at the bash. On Saturday alone, we gave out 65 bags full of school supplies to students in need. We gave out several bags in the weeks prior to the bash and we are continuing to give out the school supplies we have left as people come to the door. It was wonderful seeing all the kids just warming up to each other and playing together while their mom’s did all the digging through clothes. We met a lot of new people and saw several familiar faces. This was also a chance for us to see some of our Up 2 Hope girls that we hadn’t seen since graduation. We are so thankful for all the donations we received to make this ministry opportunity possible.

Be sure to check out our website for all of our upcoming events and to check out our needs and prayer request lists.

http://bfh.lifewaylink.com/templates/System/default.asp?id=25232

Please continue to pray for all the ministries at Baptist Friendship House.



Some of the girls drawing during our back to school bash



Backpacks and school supplies we gave away



Some of our Up 2 Hope girls with their new backpacks




All the clothing we were able to give away

Back to School Bash

Our annual Back to School Bash has been scheduled for Saturday August 28, 2010. It will take place from 11 am until 1 pm at the Baptist Friendship House- 813 Elysian Fields Ave. There will be tons of free food, fun games, and a school supply give away. Everyone is welcome and we hope you will join us.

If you would like to support this event thru giving (school supplies, financially, etc), please contact us at 504-949-4469 or email Dr. Kay Bennett at kbennettbfh@aol.com

Items that will be needed to make this event a success include:

• Composition Notebooks (spiral-less)
• Backpacks
• Pens
• Blunt Tip Scissors
• Rulers

Up 2 Hope 2010

Up 2 Hope is our eight week summer camp for girls ages 9 and up. Our theme verse was Luke 10:27- “love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind….” The fifty-six girls we had registered were an absolute joy to work with and teach. We had seven summer missionaries who with the guidance of the staff helped make this summer a huge success. We are thrilled to share that four girls made the decision to accept Christ over the course of the summer.

As a preventative program, the activities completed during Up 2 Hope are designed to teach the girls life skills that will help them become successful women. During craft, the girls learned to sew and make aprons using old t-shirts. The purpose in teaching this skill is that they don’t have to buy expensive fabric to make things they can wear. They also learned about recycling with this craft, by reusing t-shirts. The girls also learned different types of stitching for hand-sewing and how to crochet. These are all skills they will be able to carry with them for years.

Using old t-shirts to make new aprons

Other activities the girls participated in are: devotion, dance, small group time (where we talked more in depth about different topics), games, and tae-kwon-do. We also provided nutrition education, health education, and cultural education to the girls over the summer. As most of the girls have never seen outside the city, much less their own block, we used Fridays as a day to help them see that there are so many places to go and see in the world. We took several field trips over the summer to places such as the Auduobon Zoo and the Stennis Space Center.

Please continue to pray for the girls involved with Up 2 Hope. Pray that they can take what they have learned over the summer and apply it to their lives daily and that they can hopefully share the skills with others.

Up2HOPE 2009 Reunion

We had a cookout for the girls and their families two Saturdays ago. It was a special time to get together and relive memories from last summer of Up2HOPE. We look forward to the amazing summer God has planned this year!

Love in Action: Our Annual Health Fair

Last Saturday was our annual Health Fair at Baptist Friendship House. It is always a great event where we have various stations where people in the community can get health related information and services. We had vision and hearing testing, glucose testing, blood pressure and BMI (Body Mass Index) readings, childcare and nutrition information, first aid kits, hygiene items, food boxes from Feed the Children (where each box feeds a family of four for a week), and other information and fun activities.

We also had a volunteer come and give free haircuts and we had a foot care station where volunteers soaked, cleaned and massaged people's feet. Its always amazing to see a simple act, like washing one's feet or cutting their hair, can light up their face and make them feel special and loved.

That is our goal for the health fair, to not only take care of the physical needs that many people do not have the resources or information to take care of, but to show LOVE to people and to treat them with respect and dignity. Love in ACTION. Sharing Jesus' love in action and truth.

A special thanks to Get Real Ministries, LSU Nursing students and professors, LSU Agricultural Nutrition Educator, Phyllis and Amy for their service.

Moving Day

Moments like these are what we live for at Baptist Friendship House! One of our families transitioned in her own housing this week. What a celebration!

It is very difficult for single mothers to save up enough money to find their own housing. Often people ask us how long it takes a family to transition to their own housing, but every situation is different. Each family comes in with a different story. What is so great about our transitional housing program is that we individualize their case plans and help them to create goals that works best for their situation. Very rarely is this an easy process. There are many obstacles they must get through in order to reach self-sufficiency. Therefore, "success" is different for every individual.

Our recent family that transitioned to their own housing had their own issues and barriers to overcome. However, with the help of Christ, and the staff at BFH, she has been able to secure housing and move into her very first home. Please continue to pray for her as she continues to learn valuable life skills and provide for her family.

If you want to know more about her story, the Times-Picayune featured her story and Baptist Friendship House here.