Delivery

I made a delivery yesterday afternoon.  Thank you to everyone for your donations.  The need is still great, and I learned we are even now supplying the boys who escape polygamy with kits.  So many people are blessed by our donations.  Check out the totals on the side of this blog to see what our neighborhood has contributed so far this year.

Workshop

Please come to a Workshop at Heidi's house on Monday, October 24th at 11:00 for an hour or so. Projects will be available for you to work on, or you can bring your own. This is also a great time to deliver your donations from the Supply List.

Project Update

Linda recently emailed me with the following information that I wanted to share with all of you. The need is increasing and more people are being helped. Read Linda's words:

"I just thought I'd let you all know that we are expanding rapidly and are so excited that the Lord is providing. We committed a month ago to provide kits to the refugees in the Salt Lake Valley. 1,100 refugees are admitted into Utah each year. They get help from the government for two years and then they are pretty much on their own except for medicaid and Food Stamps. These are families from refugee camps from war-torn countries around the world, many from South Africa who are in abject poverty. They have asked for a minimum of 100 (preferably 150) kits per month in addition to the five shelters we are now serving. We will be giving them 150 kits the first of November.

Within a few hours after I committed to provide kits for them, the Wells Stake were we serve our mission contacted me and told me that they have chosen our project for the "Day of Service". They are involving the whole community within the stake boundaries including businesses, other churches and schools.

Last summer when we moved into Destinations, Kip Lambert told me that we had another offer for space downtown from his bishop who saw our project. I asked him to check and see if it might still be available. After inquiry, I met with Bishop Creed Anderson. He has donated a beautiful space to us at 2200 South State, right around the corner from our mission. We even have an elevator so the elderly sisters on our mission can serve there with worrying about stairs. One company is donating 12 large shelve units and 12 large tables. Rubbermaid Corporation is donating 50 to 100 storage bins along with other corporations and benefactors who want to remain anonymous. Reagan Outdoor Advertising is making signs for us at both locations. Joanne's, Michael's, and Roberts are donating large amounts for the event and Dove is donating a large amount of supplies that day also. There is absolutely no way we could stock a second location without a lot of inventory and the Lord is providing. We are temporarily using that location for storage, but are waiting for another missionary couple to be called who I ca train to take over the 2200 South State location and make the kits for the refugees out of there. Then we could continue to make the kits for the five shelters at Destinations.

I just wanted to thank you for all the support you have given in the past and invite you to share this news with others. I am still speaking in wards and stakes, sorority groups, etc. for their participation and am receiving it. We will need all the help from the community we can. I have brochures and DVDs I can give if you need them to spread the word.

I feel so grateful to be part of this and witness the growth that has taken place. It's amazing to me that this project started in one of our little widow's apartments and has expanded to this level. It's a very humbling experience.

Thanks for all your support.

Linda"

Need is Doubling

It is now confirmed that kits are being supplied to refugees from Bosnia, Iraq, Somalia, and South Africa. Refugees coming to Salt Lake Valley have almost no personal possessions so they are grateful to receive welcome kits. These kits are almost identical to the kits being produced for the women and children in the shelters. As things get more organized, I will look for opportunities for us to learn more about the lives of these women and their children.

Right now, Linda is working to put together 300 kits in the next month so all donations are appreciated. She is especially low on:

• women's towels in all colors
• women's lotions
• women's combs
• black and lavender colored hearts (I have a template if you'd like it)
• book bags ( I have a pattern if you would like it)
• farm themed blankets
• coloring books
• books for young children or beginning readers (think non-English speakers)

Donations can be dropped of anytime at Heidi's house.

Update

Yesterday, I made a delivery to Linda. She passes along a big thank you for everything that has been donated and delivered. Kits are now being distributed to five local shelters, the new one being the Center for Women and Children in Crisis in the Provo/Orem area. Last week, they received a delivery making a total of 942 kits delivered so far this year. Also, Linda is currently working with the leadership of the Inner City Project to start delivering kits to the refugees from camps in Africa. More details to follow on that.

Right now, there is a huge need for colored pencils, school scissors, and rulers. Also, several Little Leaps games have been donated but there is no system to use it. If you have a Little Leaps system that your household is no longer using, Linda would love to place it in a kit. We are also on the look out for Peter Pan or Tinkerbell characters.

Just a reminder that there is a workshop at Heidi's house on Thursday the 25th at 1:30pm. Bring the project you're working on or come help with some available there.

Thanks for all you're doing to make the Heart to Heart Humanitarian Project a success. Keep your eye on the totals on the blog. They are always changing and are a great way to monitor our progress.

Needed Supplies

School supplies are still needed. These include: school scissors, pencil sharpeners, school glue, washable crayons, and markers.

Also needed are:

• Women's Towels in the following colors: cream, purple, pink, peach and tan
• Full-size Lotion
• Travel size toothpaste (if anyone knows a dentist)
• Women's combs in the following colors: peach, red, dark blue, yellow, white, cream, tan
• Thomas the Train items in good condition
• My Little Pony books or activity books

Thank you for all of your donations. You can drop things off anytime at Heidi's house, and they will be delivered to Linda.

August 25th Workshop

Please put August 25 at 1:30pm on your calendar for a workshop at Heidi's. You can bring the project you're working on, or supplies will be provided for you to use. Every one's help is wanted; it will be fun to spend time together. Hope to see you there!