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Writer's pictureTim Crawford

A Legacy of Serving & Feeding - "Sweet Dreams" Backpacks

The Friday Finish – July 26, 2024

A Legacy of Serving


“Building on a Legacy of Faith” was incorporated into the Red Bird Mission logo during the 90th anniversary of the mission’s founding. God showed up this week to remind us that it’s not just a catchy phrase, but it’s a thread woven into the story of Red Bird that sustains this century old mission. The first two stories represent prior service being passed along from one generation or previous experience to a new generation of Christian servants.


Work Camp Legacy – a Teacher, a Coordinator and an Intern Inspire

There were three Work Camp teams this week that were present because of former staff service – River Valley Christian Fellowship of Bourbonnais, IL; Franconia United Methodist Church of Alexandria VA; and St. Mark’s Lutheran Church of Springfield, VA.

Martha Meyer served as the music teacher at Red Bird Mission School over 40 years ago, but it was the first time that her twin daughters, Alice and Mary, had been to Red Bird. Alice, staff at St. Mark’s Lutheran, led the group to honor her mom’s service.


Red Bird Mission Work Camp has been known by River Valley Christian Fellowship for decades, too, because Dennis and June Sparenberg came from that church to serve in Work Camp at Red Bird. They continued to send teams after Dennis and June left Red Bird, but COVID and the loss of leadership through death and transfer broke the cycle of continual service.


Sarah Sweeney came to Red Bird through as a Children and Poverty Intern to lead the Summer Youth Program over a decade age. As a native Kentuckian, Sarah loves coming back “home” with the youth and adults in her new home of Virginia so that they can engage in mission and relationship building in the mountains she discovered at Red Bird.


While all three groups came from three different faith communities, it was clear that all were inspired to do more mission by their shared service at Red Bird this week. Leadership from River Valley were excited because they hope their experience will inspire more short term service in their church for return trips to Red Bird and restart mission teams to the Dominican Republic. While their churches are only 10 minutes apart, Alice and Sarah met for the first time and began talking of ways they could bring their youth together for shared mission once they return home.


 

A Legacy of Feeding - “Pioneers” Pass the Torch to “All Things New”

The Pioneer Class at Christ Church UM in Louisville, Kentucky heard about hunger and the need for food at Red Bird Mission over a decade ago. Unfortunately, hunger and food insecurity continue, and the members of the Pioneer Class are unable to continue due to their aging. Last week, a service of “passing the torch” of the Red Bird Food Ministry at Christ Church was held as Gwyn Morton and Dick Swope representing the Pioneer Class passed the responsibility to Leah Walton and Sarah Covington, representatives of the All Things New Class.


All Things New members have already been assisting Pioneer members with collection, packing and delivery. Today, a joint team delivered needed food and supplies purchased by the Pioneer Class and a church wide collection.


“Sweet Dreams” Volunteers Drop Off Backpacks

Last week, 100 backpacks with school supplies were picked up by children in need at Red Bird’s Summer Family Fun Event. This week, backpacks for a different purpose were dropped at Community Outreach on Tuesday afternoon.

Two members of “Sweet Dreams,” a group based in Bullitt County, Kentucky, dropped off backpacks for Red Bird Community Outreach, Benchmark Family Services, and Clay County Department of Community Based Services (DCBS). “Sweet Dreams” is a few friends getting together, making backpacks with a travel pillow and pillow case, stuffed toys/fidgets, a throw, and toothbrush and toothpaste for children in the foster system.

The representatives for Benchmark expressed appreciation directly at the pick up Tuesday. Later, Helen at DCBS thankied Tracy Nolan, Red Bird Community Outreach Director, for assisting with the donation of the backpacks they picked up. Backpacks received at Community Outreach will be used for children in families coming to Red Bird who are homeless or are in precarious living conditions.




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