May 16, 2020

• Tom Norman
• Loren VanDeusen
• Click here to be added to First Community prayer chain

On May 14, several Keller Williams Associates and family members joined us for their Annual RED Day Celebration. RED stands for Renew, Energize and Donate.  The Keller Williams Associates all over the world choose to “Give Where They Live” as part of this annual day of service each May.

Each year all the Keller Williams’ offices reach out to local organizations and/or individuals to find a project or projects within their community to assist, creating a massive one-day outreach of volunteering and impact in our local neighborhoods. Major thanks to Stacy McVey for making the contact between us and The Keller Williams Associates.

RED Day is built on the belief that people can and should come together to achieve extraordinary things to help others.  RED Day just happens to be a one-day expression of the constant state of the Keller Williams culture and displays the amazing impact a company can have when individuals come together to work as a team for the greater good of everyone.

As you can see in the photos below, the group assisted with landscaping, pre-packing bags, and serving clients. Thank you, Keller Williams Associates.

Click here to view the 8865-pound order we picked up this past Monday. Thank you to the volunteers who helped pick up and unload this large order despite the weather and three fallen trees on the grounds of First Community South near the annex!

Below you can see photos of volunteers working diligently behind the scenes to make Heart to Heart happen!

Update from Cheryl VanDeusen

Eight eager volunteers wore masks and brought their own tools last Thursday to weed, spread mulch, add soil and straighten irrigation lines in anticipation of planting the beds in the middle of May.

It felt good to be in the sunshine and pull tall weeds even while staying 6 feet away from each other. Our married volunteers come in handy when we need to do a two-person task in these infectious times!

Loren has pepper and tomato plants growing in our growing center in the basement and we have cabbage plants waiting in our small greenhouse. We are also on the lookout for collard plants at local nurseries.

We have a lot of donated seeds from our fellow master gardeners in the Pickaway County Master Gardener Volunteer organization where Loren and I do our OSU extension volunteering. We will use them and see how our clients at Heart to Heart like some different vegetables- last year they loved the okra – who knew!! Okra will be grown again this year!

Thanks to our volunteers that day and to all of you who will be helping someway in the future.

Message from Lamar Graham, Director

I recently watched A Place at The Table and found it to be really informative. When you get a chance, you should check it out. Share your thoughts with me if you would like. One of the highlights that I take away is our constant need to serve healthy nutritious meals.

With this, I’m extremely grateful for the work Diane Sturges is doing with our cooking classes, the work Cheryl and Loren VanDeusen do with the gardens at First Community North, and all of our garden connections through MidOhio Food Collective and otherwise.

When we go to Mid-Ohio Food Collective to pick up fresh produce on Mondays and Wednesdays, the National Guard is there to help. They load our vehicles with the produce to bring back to Heart to Heart to distribute to our clients. See the whole story on the NBC4i site.

It’s time to enroll or re-enroll your Shopper’s Plus Card online. You will need:

• • Your Shopper’s Plus Card number
  • Organization Number: TB926 FIRST COMMUNITY CHURCH

Through this program, First Community Missions earns more than $6000 per year which is then given to support our own food pantry, Heart to Heart.

You can enroll your new card at any point throughout the year, but current reward program members are asked to renew their support online every year.  To ensure your contributions are still benefiting First Community Church, please login to check your account before the end of the month!

In the period beginning February 1 and ending April 30, 2020, this program earned $1071.55 toward Heart to Heart with 259 households participating. Thank you!