This weeks needs & Merry Christmas!

A huge thanks to Meadows Parkway Preschool for the huge donation from their canned food drive. After that we only need a few things. This week we need:
       
2 jars of peanut butter
10 sleeves of ritz crackers

Bags will go home on Thursday.  Deadline is Wednesday.

Thank you to everyone and Merry Christmas! :)

This week's needs

Bear Necessities needs a few things this week so if you're at the store and are able to help, it is VERY appreciated:

22 cans tuna
18 15 sleeves ritz crackers
18 14 cans soup
27 23 cans corn

We also began serving three additional children this week.  That brings our total at both schools to 31 students.

Thank you for being a light for Christ in our community!  Throughout time God has used his people to reveal himself to others and that's what Bear Necessities is about; serving Jesus by serving others, revealing the God who provides by sharing our provision, loving others as He has first loved us.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Today all of our families picked up all the fixings for a fabulous Thanksgiving dinner at John Weldon.  This yummy meal, as has been mentioned, was donated by Grace River Church.  The families also received two boxes of Girl Scout cookies and a VERY full stocking for each child.  These were donated by a group of Girl Scout leaders in our community.

Volunteers are packing right now and we've already counted for next week and we have everything we need to pack next week's bags!  Thank you to everyone who donated this week!

I pray everyone has a safe and Happy Thanksgiving!

Packing for Thanksgiving and THIS WEEK'S NEEDS

It's not difficult and it doesn't even take very long, working together to do God's will that is.  Actually, that's not always the case.  Sometimes it is difficult and takes what seems like forever but not this morning!

A group of people that included members of our Bear Necessities community, the John Weldon staff and the Grace River Church Family met at John Weldon to pack up Thanksgiving meals for the families from John Weldon.  God provided leaders, liaisons, packers, decorators, donors, organizers, distributors and a place to store the meals until delivery.  Sure, one person could have accomplished the task but it would have been daunting and exhausting.  As Pastor Chris Highfill read in Acts before we began, I was reminded of how God had put that same scripture on my heart at the birth of Bear Necessities:

The Believers Form a Community

 ⁴⁴ And all the believers met together in one place and shared everything they had. ⁴⁵ They sold their property and possessions and shared the money with those in need. ⁴⁶ They worshiped together at the Temple each day, met in homes for the Lord’s Supper, and shared their meals with great joy and generosity ⁴⁷ all the while praising God and enjoying the goodwill of all the people. And each day the Lord added to their fellowship those who were being saved. (Acts 2:44-47)


For two thousand years Christ has called believers together to share the blessings they've been given with those in need and the privilege of doing that work for the Lord in this community is great!  From the beginning, God has provided enough for all and gives us the honor of working with him to distribute it within our communities.  It is His way to provide for us... just as he provided leaders, liaisons, packers, decorators, donors, organizers, distributors, shoppers, a place to store the food and the food itself, He always provides.  It may not be in the way that we expect.  Sometimes we have to work together for it to happen but that's His way too.  This whole community thing has always been His way because He loves us and He wants us to love one another.

Thank you to the staff at John Weldon, the people at Grace River Church and each of you within Bear Necessities for continuing to be the kind of community described in Acts 2.  My heart swells with great joy and love that I get to join with you!

 

Don't forget that we still have needs for this week so that we can send food home with our kids on Tuesday.  Our deadline for this is Monday:

12 cans of soup
26 ravioli
28 easy mac envelopes

I also went ahead and counted for the following week since I know we'll all be busy enjoying family next weekend and stuffing our faces with turkey!

The following week's needs are:

28 beefaroni
28 easy mac envelopes
28 cans peas

Have a blessed weekend everyone! 

Needs for Thanksgiving Week

Tomorrow we will join together with Grace River Church to pack Thanksgiving meals for our families and I'm so excited to be doing so.  I'll do my best to get some photos of the packing and post them.  With Thanksgiving being next week, the kids only have school on Monday and Tuesday.  That means that instead of a Wednesday deadline, we have a MONDAY DEADLINE for all our food.  This is what is needed to serve our kids:

12 cans of soup
26 ravioli
28 easy mac envelopes

I also went ahead and counted for the following week since I know we'll all be busy enjoying family next weekend and stuffing our faces with turkey!

The following week's needs are:

28 beefaroni
28 easy mac envelopes
28 cans peas



Thanks to everyone that heeds the call to care for our community!  I pray each of you is blessed by the Lord and grasps just how dearly you are loved by Him!

Thanksgiving Update and This week's needs

Thank you to everyone for the wonderful response for the Thanksgiving meals.  The volunteer positions filled quickly.  Donations are still being received and may be made online (recommended) or mailed:

Grace River Church

PO BOX 1031 

O'Fallon MO 63366

Online at 

http://www.graceriver.cc/give/

This coming week we will need the following items to be able to fill the bags for our students:

Ritz cracker sleeves- 12
easy mac envelopes- 28
green beans 28


The earlier we can check this off the list, the sooner we can look at the next weekend as, with Thanksgiving, that will be a very short and busy week. 

Thanksgiving Needs

The last month has held several bits of news and excitement, some personal and some for our community, but too many to get to in one post.  The most pertinent item is Thanksgiving!

From the beginning, we have been working together with local churches to provide meals for the families enrolled in Bear Necessities.  Grace River Church is new to the area but they have set themselves to serve the community from the beginning.  Over the summer they held outdoor (and indoor in the rain) movies with popcorn, cotton candy and many other fun activities for anyone who wanted to come.  If there's been a community event, they've had a table set up to greet people and offer a church family to them.  I've had the privilege of speaking with the pastor, Chris Highfill, and his sweet wife, Sarah, and they strike me as incredibly genuine and kind.  I believe that Grace River will be a great asset to this community… and they already are!

Grace River has a team of people who are working to provide Thanksgiving meals to our Bear Necessities families.  They are still receiving donations and welcome our already established Bear Necessities community to participate with them.  I explained to Chris that the Lord has brought together people with a heart for sharing Jesus through sharing food with local children and we're both excited about this partnership opportunity.

You don't have to attend Grace River to help but if you're looking for a church to try, they are currently meeting at John Weldon the second Sundays of the month at 10 a.m. but will begin meeting EVERY Sunday January 11, 2015.

If you've already got a church home but feel connected to the kids at John Weldon and Bear Necessities, this Thanksgiving thing is for you too!  Just because many of us go to different buildings on Sunday mornings to worship does not mean that we are not a part of the same church family.  The church belongs to Jesus and so, we're all one family through him!

I just love when we get the opportunity to be with family!


UPDATE: 11/15- VOLUNTEER POSITIONS HAVE BEEN FILLED.  tHANK YOU!

Packing will take place NEXT SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 22 AT 9 A.M. in the JW CAFETERIA.

You can contact me or Chris to help out:  dorinda_peyton@yahoo.com or Chris@graceriver.cc

A short week before Halloween...

This week Bear Necessities needs the following:

12 individual boxes of cereal
13 tuna
27 ritz cracker sleeves
4 easy mac envelopes
28 cans of corn

Since there is no school on Friday, the deadline for this week is no later than Wednesday morning.  Thank you to everyone who helps and prays!

Needs for THIS WEEK

This week Bear Necessities needs 

15 cans of tuna
21 cans of corn

We need everything for set up on Wednesday.  Thanks!

Back in the swing of things...

Hi Everyone!

This week we will be back in the swing of things at both schools.  We have served kids at John Weldon the last two weeks and are scheduled to begin at the middle school on Friday. 

As I've gone through the pantry, I wanted to share some important information.  There are just a few items that we are low on and some that we have a HUGE surplus of, which we don't want because we don't want food to expire before we can get it to the kids.  For this reason, if you're out purchasing for Bear Necessities, please only get the following items at this time:

beefaroni
ravioli
spaghetti o's
tuna
cake mix
icing

At this moment, we do not have needs in other areas but have little or none of these items.  When other items run out, I will be sure to let everyone know. 

This ministry is such a blessing for struggling families and it would not happen without each of you listening to the call from the Lord to take care of the kids he loves!

New School Year 2014-2015!

While we do not know yet how many students we will be serving, we do know that we will still serving in John Weldon and FHMS this month. There are a few things that we are just flat out of if you're out and about and want to pick some things up:

ravioli
beefaroni
corn
green beans
easy mac

We exhausted all of those over this summer but were able to serve those who needed it most each and every week! Now that the school year is upon us, we will surely increase our numbers from the summer and cannot do it without you!

This week's Needs

First I want to thank everyone who helped so much when I needed to leave so unexpectedly.  My stepmom has been fighting cancer for over four years and after several strokes and a heart attack, I just had to fly out to be with her and and my two sisters for a while.  She is still fighting the battle but it is definitely a tough one.  God has granted us many miracles over these four years as the doctors have told us over and over against that she just had a short time to live and yet, she got to see my youngest sister get married last year and hold her grandkids some more.  Only God knows the number of our days but we are grateful for every day he gives us.

Beth, Julie, Joan, Angie and my darling husband-  Thank you so much!

There are just a few weeks left in school and this week we only need a few things each week.  Here is the list for this week:

30 cans of tuna
25 sleeves of Ritz crackers
15 Easy Mac envelopes
30 apples

If you are able to help, it is always appreciated!

Needs and Unexpected Needs

I am leaving town today unexpectedly for a family emergency.  Everything is taken care of for this week but I will need someone to deliver the bags next Friday in case I am not back or have just returned.  If you can do that, please text me 314-540-4718.  Be sure to tell me who you are in the text in case my phone has deleted some of my contacts.  :)

The following is needed for next week:

10 cans of chili
45 cans beefaroni
45 apples

There is no longer a tub on the front porch as the last one broke and I have not gotten a replacement yet.  Please feel free to set items on the porch and my family will bring them in to the basement pantry.

I am thankful that at times of unexpected emergency, there is always the confidence that God will take care of the details.  We are His and so is Bear Necessities.  What a privilege it is to serve a loving Lord!

Numbers and needs

We are back up to 41 students each week.  These kids are at John Weldon Elementary, of course, and at Francis Howell Middle School.  We've been serving kids at the middle school for two weeks and everything seems to be working quite smoothly.  We are so grateful to the staff there that has embraced our effort to make sure that there are no hungry kids at our schools!

This week, we will need the following items:

18 ravioli
41 cans corn
10 easy mac envelopes
41 apples

Please be sure to share this with anyone else who might want to help!

Always enough...

Some of you have been waiting months to hear this.  Some of you began asking about it and praying for it a couple of years ago.  This week we began serving students at Francis Howell Middle School.  Yay!  We currently have just a handful of kids that we are serving there and while I sure wish they were the only ones in need at the school, I know that God will provide even if the number grows.  As students move, parents get new jobs and other changes in circumstances that we don't always know the details about, our numbers change throughout the year.  At times they've grown to a point that i kind of held my breath as I prayed but no matter what the number has been, God has been faithful.  This ministry has been about showing the love of Christ in the community from the very beginning and since love has always been the heart of God, he is making himself known in these communities.  

My family has been in this community for almost twelve years and I can say that I have seen God moving throughout the people here in recent years and it is so fun to witness.  Each year there are new volunteers and donors for Bear Necessities and my prayer each week is that each and every person who participates knows how recklessly they are loved by God.  

This week God has met most of the needs we have in advance but there are two items that are still needed:

36 cans of corn

36 apples

If you are able to give toward this ministry, please give as you can.  As each person give what he/she can, there will be enough.  

"All the believers were one in heart and mind. No one claimed that any of their possessions was their own, but they shared everything they had. With great power the apostles continued to testify to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus. And God’s grace was so powerfully at work in them all that there were no needy persons among them. For from time to time those who owned land or houses sold them, brought the money from the sales and put it at the apostles’ feet,and it was distributed to anyone who had need."   Acts 4:32-35

Our Donation Needs This Week

What a glorious spring break!  According to Facebook, many of you saw the beach and a few even escaped to snowy mountaintops to ski, while the rest of us ventured out and explored the adventures here in the good ole 'Lou. No matter where we were, it seemed like everyone had a good time. Today is the first day back to school after spring break and the weathermen are predicting.... snow.  Well, according to weather.com, there is a 60% chance of snow but according to my calculations, the weathermen are wrong about 50% of the time and if I take half of 60% I get 30% so it's not going to snow. Sure, there's nothing scientifically accurate about that nonsense but it's getting me through this morning with a smile on my face.  ;)

We only need a couple of things to be able to serve the kids at John Weldon this week and here's the list:

25 Ritz cracker sleeves
6 Easy Mac Envelopes
35 cheez its snack size bags

If you're able to help, please do and if you're not, please pray and pass on the need to your friends in case they can help!

Have a blessed day!

Updates and Donation Needs for this week

It's been like forever but that's because it's been so incredibly busy with new transitions!  So, what's been happening...


John Weldon FINALLY got to celebrate their 100th day of school as much as Old Man Winter tried to fight them on it.  The amazing first and second graders at school went over the top to bring in 100 items for Bear Necessities!  I got the privilege of talking with the first graders about their contribution to the community.  Aren't they darling?!

We were also privileged to receive another grant funded donation from our friends at the Saint Charles Elks' Lodge.  I didn't get a photo of them because I'm sure the grown men who brought the THREE TRUCK FULLS would have frowned at me if I'd asked and they'd already made soooo many trips carrying up all the food they brought!  God uses this group of lovely people in such a mighty way and I'm so grateful for them!

Last week I had the privilege of meeting with the principal at Union High School in the Francis Howell  School District.  My darling friend has been substituting there and had mentioned what we've been doing. Kandy Worley is the principal there and such an incredible lady!  She has this great big heart to help her students achieve greatness and we all know that can hardly happen when there's a grumbly in their tumbly... (Winnie the Pooh, right?) So, we were brainstorming how we can solve the problem that she sees in her school with hunger.  We came up with a tentative plan that we thought would work and then out of no where, God just took over!  The Lord sent Harvester Church in Saint Peters to provide for Union High School.  When I left the meeting with Dr. Worley, we had lists of things to do to make it all happen and in one phone call, we checked of every item!  It's just incredible to see Christ's church throughout the community loving as Christ did!

In other exciting news for our community, we will be serving at Francis Howell Middle school very soon.  Dr. Huff recently met with his BIG (Building Improvement Group) and will be giving us numbers very soon for us to make sure that there are no hungry kids there either!

I'm not sure yet how the logistics of FHMS will work but I promise to give updates and ask for help as soon as I know!

Now, to end this very long post, we do need a couple of things this week for John Weldon:

15 Ritz cracker sleeves
15 Easy Mac envelopes

The plastic tub on the porch got blown away in the wind and shattered earlier this month so I'll be replacing it today.  Thanks, in advance, for everyone who works together to be Christ's church in this community!

Next week

A this point I'm not totally sure what we will need for next week.  The first and second graders at John Weldon celebrated the 100th day of school today FINALLY and to commemorate the day they each brought in a can of food for Bear Necessities.  I'll be picking everything up on Monday so expect an update then.  We will, for sure, need 35 apples but I can't be sure of anything else.

Have a blessed weekend!

Winter, birthday bags, next week, sign ups and news

I've got to say, I'm not really a big fan of winter... don't get me wrong, I like one or two big snows so that we can take the kids sledding but beyond that, the cold is just not for me.  I get cold and I cannot get warm!  I don't think I've had full feeling in my fingertips since November!  Tonight, however, we are supposed to get an icy mix and I'm so totally excited to hunker down tonight with the fam totally unable to go anywhere because the roads "might" be bad.  Sometimes, after a long crazy week, a good night of freezing rain is just what I need!  (Dear Lord, please let it all be melted by morning!)

Bear Necessities has continued to serve 41 kids in January and gave five of those kids birthday bags.  We have six birthday bags that need to go home in February and we need large gift bags and peanut free classroom treats for those kids.  Each student has 22-24 kids in their class.  The total number of treats we need is 133.  Remember that everything has to be individually wrapped, with the ingredients on it and on the peanut free list.  

Some of the items from the Student Council food drive are finally starting to run out.  The following items are needed for next week:

14 peanut butter (18 oz)

37 Ritz cracker sleeves

15 fruit cups

20 applesauce

40 apples

Lastly, all of the packing opportunities have been filled but if you are available on Friday mornings to drop off the bags at John Weldon, please sign up:

http://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F0F4AAEAA22A64-20122013

Ok.  Maybe this is actually last, we have been contacted by Francis Howell Middle school to begin serving the students there.  We don't know how many kids we will be serving but what I do know is that God will provide for these kids too!  

This week and the SignUp Genius

It's a beautiful day here in Missouri!  I hope everyone has had a chance to get out and enjoy the beautiful weather since you just never know the next time we'll have freezing temps again!

We are back into full swing and ready for volunteers and donations for this semester.  Looking forward, our donation list will be shorter for the next month or so and then will go back to our more normal lists unless something unexpected happens.  Please be sure to check back in as things from the Student Council Food Drive will begin to run out soon.

This week we will need:

30 cans of soup
41 easy mac envelopes

The SignUp Genius is also ready to go and can be viewed here:

http://www.signupgenius.com/go/20F0F4AAEAA22A64-20122013

Last semester it filled up VERY quickly so don't delay if you're hoping to be able to bring your kiddos to help out!

God bless!

Welcome 2014

One of these days these kids will go back to school!  Just kidding but it has been a nice long break for sure.  There are just a few things that we need to be able to provide for the children this week:

34 peanut butter
21 Ritz cracker sleeves
30 easy mac envelopes

Hopefully the grocery stores will have these items restocked after Snowmageddon this week! 

I also wanted to update everyone on the amazing things that God did through this community the last two months.  Sixteen families received Thanksgiving dinner, forty-one children were blessed with stockings filled with goodies and twenty-one were given what they wanted for Christmas!  That is all in addition to receiving food each weekend so that not one child goes hungry!  It really is amazing what God can do with a group of willing people! 

Thank you to each person who has been a part of this ministry in 2013, I look forward to all that God will do in 2014! 

Look for the packing sign up to go up later this week.