Bethlehem Connect August/September 2019 | Page 9

outreach Hosting Families Moving Forward at Both Campuses! For families experiencing homelessness, the Families Moving Forward (FMF) program from Beacon Interfaith offers hospitality, emergency shelter and a path to home with support for stability. The Minnetonka campus has been hosting families for many years and now the Minneapolis campus is planning to do the same! A team of enthusiastic volunteers is hard at work planning for this important step. Each campus will be hosting families for two weeks: • September 8-22 in Minnetonka • December 22 - January 5 in Minneapolis Why this is important? • More than 10,000 Minnesotans experienced homelessness in 2018, according to a Wilder Research study. •Nearly half are youth: 32% of homeless Minnesotans are children ages 17 and younger with their parents; another 15% are unaccompanied youth. •The number of people experiencing homelessness has increased 10% from 2015. How the program works Families in the program spend their days at work, school and building skills at one of the FMF program centers. In the evenings, congregations provide families with a safe place to sleep, hot meals, activities and friendship. How you can get involved Volunteers are needed now to help with planning and gathering supplie s. During the hosting period, it takes many hands to prepare and serve meals, make families feel welcome and lead activities. The Minneapolis campus will be hosting families during the busy weeks around Christmas and New Years – an opportunity to live up to our namesake (Bethlehem providing shelter to those who need it around the time of Jesus’ birth). Please plan to join in making this outreach effort a huge success! Learn more · For details about volunteering with FMF at the Minnetonka campus, contact Sue at [email protected] · To learn more or volunteer at the Minneapolis campus, contact Steph at [email protected] or Cathy at [email protected] · To learn more about the program, visit the Beacon Interfaith Housing Collaborative web site: www.beaconinterfaith.org/what-we-do/families-moving- forward Global Health Ministries believes that every person, in every village, should have access to a whole and healthy life. GHM shares resources with Lutheran Church partners in countries like Madagascar, Tanzania, Ethiopia, and Central African Republic to support and enhance their health systems and mission hospitals. These health programs serve some of the world’s most vulnerable people. Every month GHM sends a 40-foot container full of medical supplies and equipment overseas to an international partner. Most mission hospitals and clinics lack even the most basic supplies. GHM Newborn and Hospice Kits are assembled and bandages rolled by congregations and groups across the US, including at Bethlehem. GHM is a volunteer-powered organization. Most of the supplies and even medical equipment are donated, and processed by volunteers. Volunteer at GHM Every third Thursday of the month, 10:30 am - 2:30 pm Carpool leaves from the Bethlehem Minneapolis parking lot at 10:30 am. We help out from 11 - 2 (bring your lunch if you’d like). Join us to help receive, sort and prepare donated medical supplies and equipment for shipment overseas. All ages welcome ... no medical experience needed. For more information contact Dean Albrecht, [email protected], or 612.922.4172. 9