Sharing the love and hope of Christ while empowering our neighbors with education, employment, and crisis support.

Like many of you, I had planned to set measurable goals for myself in the new year. However, I learned that only 9% of Americans who make resolutions achieve them. Research also shows that 23% of people give up on their resolutions by the end of the first week, and 43% quit by the end of January. This made me rethink my approach, and instead of resolving to do anything specific in 2024, I've chosen a single-word theme to guide my behavior choices during the year: intentional.

On a personal note, some of you have noticed my recent appearance change and asked about it. I want to assure you that everything is fine. My husband and I celebrated our wedding anniversary last June by embarking on a long-awaited journey to improve our lives and ensure many years of quality time with our grandchildren. We are now experiencing the measurable results of a healthier lifestyle, and it has been such a blessing. I love you, Kevin Bridges, and I'm so proud of us.

Professionally, there is much joy and fruitful outcomes to report from 2023! So much so that our team has collaborated to collect the Annual Summary metrics (shown above) and make them available earlier than usual. We hope you will praise God's work through our mission along with us and see the results as we do - tangible evidence of His undeniable love for the neighbors and communities we serve.

I'm eagerly looking forward to 2024, if you haven't already guessed. So much so that I finally agreed to an interview with our podcast team this month. It was a delightful and efficient way to express my thoughts, aspirations, and hopes for the future of our cause. I would be honored if you would listen by clicking HERE.

Happy New Year!

Andrea Bridges

Executive Director

The CARE Center

abridges@thecare-center.org

We express our sincere gratitude towards IronMountain Solutions for their recent grant support. Their generosity has enabled us to transform their $5,883 gift into tangible forms of love, hope, and crisis services, which our community will experience through our food pantry, financial assistance, and case management programs.

The CARE Center Thrift Store is hiring at our Gurley and New Hope locations! If you know any hard-working and dependable individuals looking to support a great cause, please share this opportunity with them. We welcome applicants with diverse levels of experience, whether they are just starting their career path or have years of expertise. We offer personal growth, empowerment, and a welcoming family-like atmosphere. Thank you for helping us spread the word.

We are excited to announce that Fantasy Playhouse Children's Theater and Academy is returning to work with the students at our 21st Century Community Learning Center in New Hope this semester. They will be performing 'Junie B. Jones, The Musical JR.' The students will go through the entire process, from auditioning to rehearsing and finally performing on stage for their families and friends. It's going to be an excellent experience for everyone involved!

Hospice Family Care held a six-week canned food drive over the holidays to give back to their community. Their highly generous team donated 882 items (equivalent to four shopping carts) to our food pantry. We are fortunate to have such fantastic partners who deeply care about our community and go the extra mile to help those in need!

Resources & Opportunities

The "Hand Up" Podcast

Straight from the horse's mouth.

January 2024

Our Executive Director, Andrea Bridges, shares her story and a picture of The CARE Center's potential future that fuels her passion for the work at hand.