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Dear Friends,
Thanks for braving the heat this week for the betterment of our neighbors. Our crew felt every bit of the heat index blanketing our bodies. Volunteers sprayed each other with water, sat in front of fans, and wrapped a cold towel around the neck. We rose to each other while weak, weary, and worn out. There were endless greetings of gratitude for our presence that echoed the sentiments of our Leadership Team on Wednesday: “Clients say this is the place to come to. ‘You are the best people. No one serves us like you do.’” That goes for the Korean woman telling of produce from the Share and Learn Garden being used for kimchi. Ditto for the Cuban guy from Miami telling of his recovery from a hit-and-run while at a dead stop on a motorcycle. And the first timers who showed up in a truck, leaving with two neighbors in the back as they embarked on a journey home.
If you have ever heard me talk to kindergartners about the pantry, you have heard me bring up how people (and my cat) use hands to help others in a variety of ways. It’s something I borrowed from Rev. Seth Stearns. Along those lines, I attended a 5-hour summer solstice workshop about therapeutic touch. The massage that I received sparked visions of a father doing the same for his son. Afterwards came a discussion of fatherhood, healthy masculinity, and wondering what the world would look like if more children were able to receive nurturing touch from fathers beyond infancy. That night I received a text about someone going to a baseball game and seeing a “dad bonding with his daughter, thinking about it, and how in that moment touch with them looked easy”. That’s the story of Jesus, which is a Father dwelling bodily to provide a healing touch to His children who are missing the mark, as the original not-so-scary word for sin means (hamartia). God closes the distance by moving the bullseye within our reach. The Gospels are about not getting hung up on the finger pointing to the moon. That’s always asking, “Is this sinful?” We see the heavenly glory when instead we ask, “Is this loving?” That love is felt in shared fashion throughout those stories in the form of children being held, feet being washed, a leper being hugged, healing through hands, and the language of touch being used for parables and principles.
The same goes for our hearts. On Tuesday, I began feeling like the sweaty-toothed madman that was Uncle Walt in Dead Poets Society. My mind drifted to detecting the presence of a heartbeat muffled by the searing shroud, before taking some deep breaths to cool the nerves. A woman from the Dominican Republic turned her car’s air conditioning vent towards me, the cold air striking skin to soul and nearly reducing me to tears. My heart was touched by a mere act of loving-kindness. A dead poet says that salvation is in our hands. “And still we sleep.” Yet in our verse, we rise to be the cool breeze on a summer’s day. I become your heartbeat, and you become mine, bassline entwined as it beckons beat to beat in a pulsing call of home.
This Week in Service
- 78 families in Drive-Thru on 6/24
- 35 families through Pop-Up Pantry on 6/25
- 64 families in Drive-Thru on 6/26
- 35 new families
- 569 individuals
- 3,938 YTD visits
- 13,467 YTD individuals
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Leadership Team Update
Due to overlapping vacations and other commitments, we had a small group for this Wednesday's meeting of the leadership team. Those present discussed volunteer appreciation efforts at Heart to Heart, both formal and informal. They reflected on their own experiences, relayed ideas, provided feedback on past and current efforts from staff, and discussed appreciation shown between one another as volunteers. Perhaps the most poignant expressions of appreciation are those that come directly from those we serve! As one team member put it, “Clients say this is the place to come to. ‘You are the best people. No one serves us like you do.’” While the overall consensus was positive, we look forward to using the information learned as we continue to improve in this regard!
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Friday, July 4
Independence Day
There will be no volunteer shifts while we are closed for the holiday. Click here for a complete list of our closings.
Reminder: We cannot accept donations while we are closed. Please hold donations until we reopen on Monday, July 7.
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The next monthly collection for Heart to Heart is Sunday, July 13. Before and during all worship services, we will be collecting donations for the food pantry. This month’s focus is jelly! PB&J is a lunchtime staple, especially in homes with children. While we typically have no problem stocking peanut butter, jelly is often difficult to obtain from our vendor.
We are trying something new this month in hopes to make donating easier. Beginning this Sunday, June 29, you can pick up a Heart to Heart reusable shopping bag near the sanctuary at either church location. Fill the bag with jelly and bring it with you to worship on Sunday, July 13, and our volunteers will be waiting to accept your donations outside worship spaces!
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You can now make material donations by shopping online! Amazon.com allows you to purchase and deliver directly to Heart to Heart with the click of a few buttons. Using your smart phone camera, hover over the QR code and tap the link to open our Amazon Wish List. Scroll through the items and add them to your shopping cart as you would at any online retailer. When you checkout, choose to have items sent directly to us! Amazon already has the delivery instructions associated with our account, including days and hours that we accept deliveries. Click links below for more info!
Flyer Webpage Wish List
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The food pantry is low or out of the following items.
- PB&J
- Spaghetti & Sauce
- Mac & Cheese
- Canned Chicken & Tuna
- Snacks
Please consider making a material donation to supplement our inventory until our next order is received. Take donations for Heart to Heart to FC South.
Please leave them on the red cart marked for this purpose, which is in the alley across from the dumpsters, beneath the overhang, near the kitchen doors. This is the only area we can accept donations outside the building. Donations left elsewhere may not be received.
For more information on making monetary or material donations, click here.
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from First Community
Darkness to Light
Adult volunteers are required to complete the nationally recognized Darkness to Light “Stewards Of Children” sexual abuse prevention training, either online for $16, or by attending the next available free in-person training offered at the church. Proof of completion is required to volunteer.
Online training is available at anytime for $16 directly from Darkness to Light. The next free, in-person training at First Community will be led by Rev. John Girard:
Tuesday, August 19, 6 - 8:30 pm
FC North in Wing Grace Hall
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MOFC Announcement
Pause on Shop-Thru June 27 – July 31
On Monday, we received word from Mid-Ohio Food Collective that from now through July 31, there will be no Shop-Thru. Shop Thru is our main source of produce and other perishable items for the food pantry, so you will notice our supply is limited.
Click to read the email, which cites budget issues as the reason for the pause, "due to state and federal funding cuts, we had to scale back on fresh produce in July." The organization remains hopeful this is a temporary cut and the service will resume in August.
This unfortunate news comes at a time when cuts are already expected to create increased need among Ohioans. The State budget passed on Wednesday, and it includes cuts to food assistance programs. Gov. DeWine must sign by June 30, to ensure the budget takes effect July 1, the start of the next fiscal year. Between now and Monday, the governor still has the power to veto line items in the budget. As we await news of the budget being signed into law, you can read more about the effect of the budget cuts:
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