My wife and I opened an ice cream shop three years ago, and it's been an amazing experience for our family. Not just the ice cream, although that's good! It's our 12 employees. All but one are young adults with special needs. We have some with autism, some with Down Syndrome and one in a wheelchair. They bless us and our customers each day. They truly enjoy their job and simply pour out love to everyone that walks through our doors. I've been in the restaurant industry my whole career, an industry with a terrible turnover rate. So many people think they… Read More
Food
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I remember a time when family not only meant that which you were born into, but also the people around us who we "do life" with. God is the greatest advocate for community, and I do not believe it is by chance that we find unity there. Bless-N-Basket was birthed from the very idea of putting unity back into community, and loving on our neighbors as Christ commanded. What was supposed to be a small get together for women in the living room of our home soon became a call to start a complete food pantry. The very first meeting in… Read More
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Nine years ago, my friend, Justin, and I were feeling an extreme passion to serve God. Justin felt the need to bring awareness to the homelessness issue in our small town in North Carolina. While we prayed and dreamed, we pulled more people together to figure out how to serve the homeless in our area and beyond. One time, we gathered at the local soup kitchen and asked for folks to drop off supplies while we pulled an all-nighter out in the cold to bring awareness to the growing problem. We didn't really have a plan for what we would… Read More
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When people are going through a crisis, friends need to come alongside of them and lend their support. That is the mission of Neighbor Brigade, a nonprofit started by my childhood friend, Pam Manikas Washek. She was diagnosed with cancer and fought the disease for a decade before losing her battle in 2012. But two years before she passed away, she decided to turn her pain into purpose by helping others experiencing similar crises. So she launched Neighbor Brigade. Volunteers sign up to bring a meal to someone struggling with a medical crisis or a death in the family. They… Read More
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My husband and I started Abigail's Place in 2015, a ministry that offers people with special needs a chance to live independently. In 2013, we found a young man with special needs sleeping on the floor of a home where 11 other people lived. It really broke our hearts. After we opened up our own home to him, God began to show us ways to help others with their housing. There are so many people with special needs that need to be rescued from their current environment. That young man is now one of our current residents in the homes… Read More
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I've been writing notes on a napkin and putting them in my kids' lunchboxes for years. Some are funny, some are serious. But to me, it's just a way to tell them I love them and to make them smile, think, laugh or blush at the school lunch table. One day, I took a picture of a napkin I thought was clever, and posted it on my Instagram account to share with my buddies. I had no thought of it going viral, but it did. Apparently, it reminded people of things their family used to do to make their day brighter.… Read More