May 26, 2021

Today was a typical busy, busy Wednesday and fortunately the weather cooperated nicely. The morning was chilly, even cold enough to make hands cold, but it warmed up steadily when the sun broke through in the late morning. The afternoon was lovely, with sunshine and warmth. The forecast looks stormy, so tomorrow may not be so nice. The morning had a busy parking lot with many happy people dropping off groceries, pantry and hygiene items. Thank you, everyone! We describe these people as ‘happy’, simply because they are. Volunteers comment regularly how happy people are when dropping off donations. It is contagious! The afternoon was a nonstop busy pace of families coming through, from 1pm right up through 3:30pm. Busy and great day!

Groceries today were provided by 24-Seven, St. Louise, Calvary Chapel Eastside, Newport Covenant, Bellevue Presbyterian, Crossroads Bible, Bellevue Christian Reformed, and Indian Fellowship churches, as well as the Rotary Club of Bellevue, the Bellevue Breakfast Rotary Club, and the Jubilee Friends group. A total of 219 orders came in today and all went out to families. Thank you to everyone who donated.

The AM crew was mainly from Bellevue Presbyterian Church today. They worked hard all morning receiving all the deliveries and getting them organized. Food boxes didn’t show up until 12:30pm, which is the latest ever. The crew quickly iced and wrapped three pallets. Then they packed one pallet with fresh produce, working incredibly fast. By noon, we were set. Wow! Thank you and well done crew.

Communication continued to families today about the changes to the GFF program. Notes were put in each grocery bag, as we aim to do things differently each week to reach people. There are three more days left for families to come to talk with us, and we expect a steady flow beginning Friday. We hope to have the framework of Phase 3 of GFF by June 11 out to all partner leaders. Stay tuned. Please pray for this time of discernment and listening.

Boy Scout Troop 624 of Mercer Island recently did a neighborhood drive for ‘Groceries for Families’. They changed their requested list from non-perishable foods to a very specific list of pantry items used here. They hung them on doorknobs two weekends ago and then picked up all the donations last weekend. Wow, what a great job they did! Volunteers today picked up a huge load, which filled a car. Nearly everything is a perfect match for the GFF operation. Thank you so much, Scouts and leaders!

A few stories and updates:

Hamadi comes for groceries each Wednesday, sometimes with his kids, and has been in the program for about a year. They have 7 or 8 children, including a newborn. He and Trenton have connected well this spring, as they both have ties to Kenya. Hamadi is originally from Kenya, and Trenton was a missionary in Kenya for three years. It’s fun to watch Trenton practice his Swahili. They have a nice friendship. We’ve been following Ramadan through Hamadi this spring, which has been interesting. He’s a nice man and doing all he can to care for his family.

There is a woman who comes each week to pick up groceries for her family and three others. She told us today she is soon starting a full-time nanny position which pays well enough that she can exit the program in a week or two. We celebrated with her. The difficulty will be transitioning the other families to pick up their own food. She is trying to help them manage the change and clearly concerned for them. It’s an interesting situation, which we appreciate her care in helping it go well.

Three different families brought lunch for the crew today:
- Angelina and her two sons brought El Salvadoran enchiladas and rice. All were gone by the end of the day. Yum!
- Mercedes brought El Salvadoran pupusas with coleslaw. Most were gone today. Yum!
- Maria brought Mexican enchiladas, which will lunch tomorrow

Thanks for another great day in ‘Groceries for Families’. While a transition is coming and numbers are trending down slightly, the daily operation remains focused on loving the people right in front of us each day. There are needs being met for these families, some tangible and some intangible. Some will feed their families and some will feed their souls. Please continue to pray for them. Thank you for all you’re doing to support them. Hopefully, you feel a connection to them and are feeling an impact on your own life.

Blessings to you all,

Ken Carpenter
Director- Community Care, Jubilee REACH
On behalf of the Jubilee family

Groceries for Families: Week 61 - Day 2

Groceries for Families: Week 61 - Day 3

Groceries for Families: Week 61 - Day 1