The Family

In the Nurturing Community, the family is a key factor in the providing for the needs of each individual. During our current pandemic, this has been emphasized in many of the stories being told by those closely associated with those most affected by the virus. The difficult circumstances that confront those family members who have been affected by the virus emphasizes the importance of the strong family unit. Story after story relates how families are dealing with isolation, support, children, financial concerns, and death.

The Covid-19 Pandemic amplifies how much more difficult it is to provide for our families when we are experiencing a change in income or shelter due to unemployment or other circumstances. Our congregation has a history of providing support for vulnerable families through our partnership with Family Promise of Lawrence.  (https://lawrencefamilypromise.org)

Prior to Covid-19, we were one of the 23 Lawrence churches serving as a host congregation for Family Promise. Approximately four times per year, we welcomed up to four families who stayed with us for one week before moving to another host church. Family Promise FUMC volunteers prepare a room for each family with specially selected bed linens, toys, games and books for both children and adults. Each room also has a DVD player and other comforts of home – alarm clocks, reading lamps, tissues, fresh towels, etc. During the week, our volunteers prepare and share meals with our guests, enjoy fellowship, play lots of games with children and adults, help with home work, walk to the park and just hang out.
  
Since the pandemic, we are not able to host families in our church. We must search for alternative ways to support our neighbors who are experiencing homelessness. If you would like to lend a hand, please visit the FUMC website https://www.fumclawrence.org/serve/ or https://lawrencefamilypromise.org. Thank-you for your steadfast support of Family Promise and all the missions at FUMC. Together we move mountains!

The Justice Ministry team is continuing to meet, virtually, during the Pandemic to provide some leadership in order to accept the challenge to follow the high calling “to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God (Micah 6:8). We are always interested in hearing your ideas, feedback and suggestions.