FP Update
Hale Sanders
To Family Promise of Cobb Supporters and Core Team members,
Here are some key items you need to know:
· We had a great team of 11 folks who volunteered their time on Saturday morning to paint all rooms in the day center, and it looks great! The front two rooms and one of the back rooms is tan, Camilla’s office is a lavender/mauve color, and the other rooms are light blue.
· The guest family has been staying at St. James Episcopal for the last week, and everyone involved has said it’s been a wonderful experience. Here is message from Stephanie Winkler of St. James:
o On Sunday January 5th Family Promise of Cobb County officially opened its doors, hearts, and resources by welcoming in our first family. St. James’ was the first hosting church for our wonderful ministry. With all of their very dedicated volunteers, St. James’ created a very loving homey atmosphere embracing the guests. The children at the church made colorful signs for the bedroom doors and delicious chocolates left on their pillows. From very young children to adults, the enthusiasm for caring for these families was incredible. The genesis of Family Promise in Cobb County brings in hope and a future for the families in need of new beginnings. All of our participating churches will continue to provide all of the resources and care to ensure this success.
· We’re encountering some challenges with getting the required day center upgrades completed and now have learned that the required new fire hydrant will have to be approved first by the Georgia DOT. All of this could lead to a later open to the day center than anticipated. We will keep you posted.
· We are beginning to receive applicants to volunteer to drive our van. All such applicants should contact our Director, Camilla, at cwor...@familypromisecobbcounty.org.
· We continue to need a 15-seat van (we currently have a six-seater) and prefer one with less than 40k miles. Let us know if you have any leads on this.
· Here is an update of developments from Claas Ehlers of National FP:
o *PetSmart Promise*: Pet Hotels opened in Albuquerque, Colorado Springs, Boston, Charlotte, Houston and Atlanta. Check out some photos at https://www.facebook.com/PetSmartPromise . We already have one guest in, a black and white cat named Neko. This program is open to any Affiliates within range of one of these locations. There will be more opening up in 2014. We also will have five new onsite facilities opening this year. Contact Jeanna jste...@familypromise.org for more info on Pet Hotels and PetSmart Promise. And make sure to like PSP on Facebook and make people aware of all PetSmart is doing on the issue of family homelessness.
§ Note: The Petsmart location in Atlanta is Duluth which is about a 35-40 minute drive from here. As we receive guest families that have pets, we will support letting their pets stay at this store, but it will require someone to drive them to Duluth and back at least once a week.
o *Financial Literacy*: We are so excited to be unveiling a Family Promise specific financial literacy program later this year. This curriculum is tailored not just for families experiencing homelessness but also the specific dynamics of Family Promise Affiliates.
o Willie Geist, on *The Today Show*, will be looking at family homelessness throughout the coming year. Check out the last segment on this clip which includes Karen Olson, Destiny, one of our most charming guests, and Temple Sinai as a host: http://www.today.com/video/today/54001967 . We'll keep you posted.
As we continue to make progress with getting our day center open, we will keep you posted.
Thanks,
Hale Sanders
Secretary, FPCC