The perfect gift for the holidays!

As the days grow shorter, we begin to think about the holidays and one of the great stressors of that time of the year: Finding The Perfect Gift for The Person Who Has Everything!

I have several of those in my life--people who go out and buy what they want and need instead of waiting, like good friends and family, until the holidays so that I will have some idea of what to get them. Over the past several years, I have learned just how to handle this.

Most of my friends and family members have some cause for which they work tirelessly or to which they donate regularly. A few years ago, I began to realize that the simplest and best gift that I can give is a donation in honor of someone on my list to an organization that supports a cause dear to that person's heart.

Recognizing what is important to a person tells that person that you care about him or her--enough to notice how they spend their time; enough to support the causes that they support. In this time when so many are in need, your tribute gift will not only warm the heart of a loved one, but also the hearts of those working for the organization to whom the gift was made and ultimately (and in my mind, most importantly) the hearts of those who receive services as a result of your gift. Whether your loved one's cause is people, animals, the environment, or another worthy cause, there is an organization that will welcome your gift.

Most organizations will mail a card to the honoree or make another sort of acknowledgement of your tribute. If you decide to make a tribute gift as a Christmas or holiday gift, be sure to check with the organization to see when their deadline is for assuring that your honoree will receive their notice by the holiday.

InterServ acknowledges tribute/honor and memorial gifts by mailing a card to the person of the donor's choice and by publishing the tribute in our "InTouch" newsletter. For acknowledgements to be printed in the Holiday "InTouch" newsletter, your tribute or memorial gift must be received by October 14. Gifts received after October 14 will appear in the Spring "InTouch" newsletter, however, honorees will still receive an acknowledgement card in time for the holiday if the gift is received at least 5 business days prior to the holiday. You may also make arrangements to pick up a gift acknowledgement card at our InterServ Foundation offices--they make perfect stocking stuffers! Call us for details or to make a gift (816.238.4511, ext. 29).

There are people in the world who touch our lives in remarkable ways. A gift in their honor to a cause they support is a way to touch the life of another person--someone in need--as well as the heart of someone who enriches your life just by being there for you. Make your list today. You will be glad that you did.

You Can Make a Difference - One Person at a Time

Our mission, "Through the sharing of God's love, we seek out and assist those in need, so all may live their lives more fully and more capably," is put into action through the programs and services we offer at InterServ.

We help working parents by ensuring that they have access to quality affordable care for their children. The children who come to our centers gain the skills they need to be successful in school and in life. We help older adults to maintain their independence by providing access to nutritious noon meals through our senior nutrition and mobile meals programs, and to in home care and other services such as Lifeline emergency response. We provide food orders to families who are struggling to keep food on their tables. Last month we were able to provide 545 food orders. We provide a safe place for youth to come after school where recreation programs help to build character and values that will last a lifetime. Volunteers are an integral part of our success. Last month we helped to connect 158 volunteers with meaningful work that makes a difference in our communtiy.

We are grateful for the support of our community and we give thanks to those who partner with us to share God's love in a very tangible and meaningful way.

We will host a special celebration to honor our donors at Ashland United Methodist Church on Thursday, October 27th from 4-6 pm. Please join us as we share thanks with people who support our organization and help to keep it strong.

You can help to make a difference - one person at a time. Join InterServ as we live out our mission - one person at a time.

"Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, and whatever is admirable - if anything is excellent or praiseworthy - think about such things." Philippians 4:8

Rethinking Church & Putting Love into Action

This weekend, churches in St. Joseph, Missouri are putting their love into action by helping InterServ and Community Missions with projects that will help benefit programs that help people to live their lives more fully and more capably.

On Saturday, United Methodists will gather at the Community Missions campus (Juda House and Haven) and build a storage structure and a shaded area for InterServ and its related organization, Community Missions. Another group of Methodists will bring a sack lunch for those who will be working on the construction projects. Still another group of Methodists will bring truckloads full of paper and hygiene items to be distributed through InterServ and Community Missions. Across town, an ecumenical group of church goers will gather at First Christian church for morning reflections about poverty as part of a "Journey to Justice" experience. Participants will then go to one of eleven different work sites to hear first-hand accounts of how lives have been changed by the agencies working to fight poverty in St. Joseph. Finally, InterServ staff and volunteers will work to move items for a family affected by the recent flooding as another act of sharing God's love with people in need.

On Sunday, still more Methodist church members will help out by replacing house numbers on the homes of some of the people who receive Mobile Meals. At 4:00 p.m. InterServ's Retired and Senior Volunteer Program will honor volunteers with an appreciation event at the Firefighter's Hall on A Highway. Our oldest volunteer is 102 years old and the person with the most lifetime volunteer hours has volunteered over 12,000 hours of service!

I am proud to be part of this wonderful organization and to see how people from faith communities all over the city are putting their love into action - not just this weekend, but every day. God's love is truly amazing.

Putting Love in Action

"This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person? Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth." 1 John 3:16-18

How do we love with actions and in truth? Just a sampling of the projects for Sept: On Sat. Sept. 10th the Ecumenical Community Empowerment Committee will sponsor a Journey for Justice event. It begins at First Christian Church (927 Faraon St. - St. Joseph, MO) at 9 a.m. participants will hear reflections and meditations regarding poverty, and then go out to one of 11 mission sites where they will hear first hand accounts of clients who have been helped in their struggle against the affects of poverty. Both InterServ (Youth Services) and Community Missions (Juda House & Haven) will serve as work sites. Also on Sept. 10th, United Methodists will work on a project for InterServ and Community Missions as part of Serve 2011, a conference-wide service initiative by the Missouri United Methodist Church. On Sunday, Sept. 25, churches will participate in the CROP Walk which supports Church World Service globally and Open Door Food Kitchen and InterServ Mobile Meals locally. Also on Sept. 25th, churches will do service as part of St. Joe Serve, an annual community-wide service event of St. Joe churches.

People are putting their love into action by living out the gospel message of hope and healing.

From the Executive Director

InterServ’s long standing statement of its mission reflects a people filled with faith and purpose, actively involved along this journey of life in reaching out to brothers and sisters in need, so that the receiver and the giver may experience God’s gifts.

Last week, today, tomorrow, and next month the headlines for us will be about the dread, anxiety and devastation of flood waters. People uprooted from their homes, their neighbors, and/or their livelihoods. With questions of how long before we see some relief in receding water levels and the wonder of how do we cope with that sense of powerlessness against the path of Mother Nature.

As with the flood of 1993 people seek basic needs: shelter, food, transitional & permanent housing, clothing, access to health care and inclusion. Inclusion is a community’s message to those affected - that we care about what happens to them. A message that gives hope and builds a network of support for recovery.

Also in the news will be United Way, Red Cross, faith communities, service clubs, businesses, federal, state and local governments, all of which will combine resources, call the community together, and assist people facing crisis and offer support that addresses physical, emotional and spiritual needs.

It is your gifts which allow InterServ to be a part of addressing basic needs and help in the building of a network of support. Those gifts which make emergency food for families available at the InterServ-Calvin Center food pantry, your sharing of clothing items to be given out by volunteers at our free clothing store, and your contributions which allow staff and volunteers to help find resources needed in a long term recovery.

This discussion about natural disasters will mirror the impact of poverty on people’s lives. Last week, today, tomorrow, next month, and next year, the headlines will be about the dread and anxiety of poverty; people uprooted, questions about relief, wonderment of how to cope and escape that sense of powerlessness that poverty brings. We remain mindful that the largest numbers of those affected are children. And it will be faithfully serving people like you who provide for those seeking basic needs, giving a message of inclusion that offers hope which builds a network of support so that all may live their lives more fully and more capably. Peace.

Sorry for the delay in the blogworld, but we are back.


Over the next couple of weeks, the Inter-Serv staff will be blogging its way through the information superhigh way.

Check back for updates by the Inter-Serv Foundation, listing of events, and general information concerning our mission.

You don't want to miss it.

"He must become greater; I must become less."

Yesterday, I was talking with a co-worker and mentioned that I thought the reason I continued to work in social services was because it kept me humble. Every day at InterServ, I see what happens when people elevate the needs of others--especially the poor and disadvantaged--above their own. The result is always much more than I could ever have imagined. The Souper Bowl of Caring is a classic example.

We have had an amazing and wonderful drama unfolding this week at InterServ. Each year for the past several years, local churches undertake a challenge on Souper Bowl Sunday. No, I didn't spell that wrong--it really is SOUPER Bowl Sunday, a day when churches in the area rally the troops, martial the resources and deliver the goods. "The goods" amount to thousands of cans of soup donated to the InterServ Food Pantry to feed the hungry. This year, it's beginning to look like the churches really outdid themselves.

The full effect of the "Souper Bowl of Caring" will not be felt until next week, but churches are well on their way to doubling the donation they made last year. This weekend, four churches will present their offerings at Hy-Vee on Saturday at 1:00 p.m. The report is that it is more than 25,000 cans of soup! Other churches have reported in preliminary totals bringing our tentative total to nearly 40,000 cans of soup! Our goal was 20,000 and $5,000 in cash.

Each day, I receive from our volunteers and our donors and our clients, as well, a lesson in being Christ-like, in putting others before ourselves. They show rather than tell us that it's not about us. In everything we do, we should point the way to God. That takes humility.

"He must become greater; I must become less." John 3:30