July/August GroupServe newsletter

gsjulyaugust2011

Living the Mission: Let's Do Lunch [Norfolk Public Schools Edition]

On Saturday, June 11th, First Baptist Norfolk hosted a lunch for pregnant teens and young mothers in the Norfolk Public Schools system. Many of the girls came with their babies as well as other family members. Attendees were served lunch by volunteers from our church as they celebrated their accomplishments—choosing life for their baby, finishing the school year, and (for seniors) graduating from high school. This event gave the girls a chance to meet those from other schools who are in their same situation and reach out to each other, as well as to obtain information about resources (health, jobs, counseling, etc.) that can be of use to them in the summer while school is not in session. They received gift bags filled with donations of baby supplies given by church members, as well as information about upcoming programs at our church. Some of the young ladies wrote down prayer requests on cards that were provided and we have been able to partner with them in prayer. This lunch was an opportunity to show the girls the love of Christ in a tangible way. We hope this will be the beginning of a sustained relationship with these girls.

If you are interested in volunteering with this ministry, please contact the missions office at 466.5181 or sluttrull@firstnorfolk.org.

Union Mission Women and Family Shelter: Items needed

The Union Mission Women and Family Shelter is in need of donations of the following items:

Undergarments
Socks
Pillows (standard size)
Diapers size 4,5,6
Childrens pajamas ( all sizes)
Adult Pajamas (all sizes)
4 plug-in sesored night lights
4 small humidifiers for family rooms
1 new infant car seat
1 new toddler car seat
1 new child car seat/booster seat

If you are able to help, please contact the Union Mission at (757) 466-4470. Thanks! ‎

Living the Mission: North Suffolk Fellowship Memorial Day Weekend Bash

Sixteen children and adult volunteers cooperated to live the mission by providing various services using our block party trailer, face painting, balloon animals, and other gifts in North Suffolk at the Riverfront Swim Club on Memorial Day weekend. While painting faces and caring for children on the inflatables, our members heard repeated comments such as:

"What a great idea for a church to serve the residents of our community! Thank you for doing this for our family."

"We visited your church before and loved it, but we really need something closer to where we live for regular fellowship."

Please pray for our members who live in Suffolk as they seek to reach their neighbors and the many residents who have expressed a desire to worship where they live. Pray also for surveys we are conducting in North Suffolk neighborhoods to inform residents about our plans and to get to know them. Pray for a leadership team that will seek to reach this area for Christ and for our church’s involvement in upcoming events in which the Swim Club has invited us to participate.

For more information about our work in North Suffolk, contact the missions office or join our North Suffolk Fellowship Facebook group.

Cuffee Community Center Update

A big thanks to everyone for all your help this school year with Wild Wednesdays! It has been challenging at times, but it has been a huge blessing to be part of God's work there! We were able to celebrate a salvation during our time there last week, as Craig Clayton was able to pray with Keonte, one of our 4th grade boys, to receive Jesus into his heart! Mr. Mike is going to try to continue to connect with Keonte and work through the New Believers' book for kids. This is so exciting!!!

Melody McMahan did an awesome job sharing her testimony last week with the whole group, and Jay explained what it means to follow Jesus! Nikki Brownfield was able to share the plan of salvation with another little girl and her mom as well, and every child and teenager went home with a tract about becoming a Christian! Lots of seeds have been planted!

The library staff and rec center staff were very appreciative toward us and hopeful that we will be back in the fall. We are planning to return to our weekly program in September, but we don't want to completely disconnect from the people there over the summer and lose the ground we've gained.

We have been talking with the library staff about a few special events we would like to host over the summer and are waiting to hear back from them about details. We are also hoping to bring some of the Cuffee kids to our VBS, so if you would be willing to give kids rides during that week, please let us know. We are planning to scholarship a few children to go to our worship dance camp in July and children's camp in August, so if you are interested in contributing to that, please let us know. You can also stay connected with children and teens there by just hanging out or volunteering at the library or rec center throughout the summer. The children will most likely be there all day everyday, so it would be a good chance to connect with them one-on-one.

Please contact the missions office for more information about ways to serve at Cuffee.

Mission VBS update

2011 Vacation Bible School

The Big Apple Adventure


2011 Mission VBS: A Partnership with St. Mary's Home for Disabled Children

Join Us for this Special Week of Service!


This year, during our regular week of VBS, June 27--July 1, we will be providing a significantly modified VBS in the afternoons (3:00-5:15 p.m.) to the children at St. Mary's Home for Disabled Children, which is located just a few blocks from the church, off of Kempsville Road, across from Sentara Leigh hospital. There are in excess of 200 staff persons and 78 children at St. Mary's and during our VBS week we will have the opportunity to positively interact, encourage, and share the love of Jesus with both residents and staff. This is a group of people who are frequently overlooked by the general population and they are both amazed and VERY excited that we want to come and minister to them.

You can assured that to spend even a small amount of time with these people will deeply touch your heart!! These children are profoundly impacted by their disabilities and are residents at St. Mary's because their family cannot (or will not) provide their care. Many of the children do not have verbal communication and most are in wheel chairs. Ministering to these precious people will take significant creativity and modifications on our part, but I KNOW the blessings will be great for all of us!!

Just a few very important facts about any one who wishes to participate with us, in any way whatsoever:

EVERY person must have ( or have had) a TB test within the past year and be able to provide the medical results;
You may choose to have your TB test done by your Private Care Physician, or
Their head nurse has graciously agreed to administer TB tests to all of us, free of charge:
· TB tests are administered at St. Mary's only on Tuesdays;

· Test times are 8:00--10:00 a.m.;

· Take test on a Tuesday and return that same week Thursday to have test'read;'

· Due to the extreme sensitivity of these children, IF you have your test done at St. Mary's, it will be necessary to have it done TWICE--6/14 & 6/21 and read TWICE on 6/16 & 6/23;

· We need to let them know in advance, when we are coming for testing, so please call (757-461-3226, ext. 238)or send an email to Beth at bsimpkins@firstnorfolk.org before June 14 and let her know that you plan to have your TB tests done at St. Mary's

Every person must have a valid photo I.D., which will be run through a background system by the on-site sheriff, before entering the actual resident areas;
Daily persons will be asked to complete a simple health screening sheet, asking questions, such as: have you experienced fever, coughing, etc. in the past 24 hours, etc.

ALL participants will be asked to attend a special training regarding confidentiality; policies, etc.

Therefore, it is ESSENTIAL that every person who plans to volunteer with Mission VBS NOTIFY US IMMEDIATELY, so that you can be on our list to submit and be informed of special trainings, etc.

Although these requirements may seem very strict, again, these children have profound disabilities; many of them have multiple tubes, machines, etc. that help support their life and it is of paramount importance to guard them from infections, etc., as these could become potentially fatal.

I am asking that YOU pray.......about YOUR involvement in Mission VBS.......pray for the children and staff to whom we will be ministering......pray for the team of our staff and VBS leaders who will serve these precious children during VBS. God has a mighty plan in store for us and I am excited to see what He and He alone will do through us!! To God be the glory!!!

Thanks for your prayers and support and I am hopeful that many of you will choose to serve with us during this very special experience!

Living the Mission: International Missions Update

Before the summer has officially begun in Hampton Roads, the members of First Baptist Church Norfolk have been living the mission around the world. Our teams have taken the good news of Jesus Christ to East Asia, the Philippines, Peru, Ukraine, and Uruguay. They have used sports, music, medical experience, Vacation Bible School, preaching, and teaching to make a great impact in these countries and regions. Please continue to pray for those teams who are preparing to serve and the financial needs that exist as we support the work of our members around the world. Real time updates may be seen on www.bigserveglobal.org and giving may be done through designated offerings to the World Mission Offering. May God continue to bless our church as we live the mission!

Let's Do Lunch: Norfolk Schools Edition

The members of First Baptist Church Norfolk partnered with the Norfolk School System and Keesha Rodgers to hold a special time for young students who are expecting babies or have already begun the journey of parenthood. Contact our misssions ministry for more information on how to get involved with this special ministry.

Living the Mission: Cookout for International Students at Old Dominion University

On Friday night, May 20th, members from First Baptist Norfolk hosted a cookout for international students studying at Old Dominion University. The event was held in the backyard of a house in close proximity to the school and was part of our church’s effort to partner with Global Student Friendship to reach out to the 1500+ international students at ODU. This cookout was a perfect opportunity to enjoy food, games, and fellowship with international students who are here studying this summer.

Students from about a dozen countries were present, including some who had been in the United States for only one week. It was our joy to welcome these students and to spend time getting to know them. New friendships were formed and conversations about spiritual beliefs took place. It is our hope that these relationships will continue and that God would use us for His glory as we reach out to these students with the good news of Jesus Christ.

This cookout was a kickoff to what we hope will be a continued partnership with international students. If you are interested in becoming involved in this outreach, please, contact the missions office at 466.5181 or sluttrull@firstnorfolk.org.

Medical Missions Opportunity

We are delighted to announce that we will be planning another Urgent Care Clinic at the Union Mission. The proposed date is July 9th. The format will be much like the last clinic we held at Union Mission. We will have an intake area where folks will get to know the residents and make connections, the patients will be triaged and seen by
providers as their needs are called for, they will be discharged through
nursing/education and then one final and most important evangelism contact
will be made. The facilities are outstanding and the staff at Union Mission go out of their way to make this a tremendous success.

This gives you a general idea of both the flow and manpower needed for such an event. We see between 50-100 residents and many hands make light and effective work! Two of our main medical core folks will not be available for this event, so we can use additional help (both skilled in the medical field and non-skilled to help with other tasks). If you are able to help, please contact Colleen at cdnrn@juno.com. Thanks and may God bless each one of you.

World Changers

If you are able to either help feed or help coordinate teams of people to feed World Changers in Chesapeake (June 20-25) or Norfolk (June 27-July 2), please contact the missions office at 466.5181 or sluttrull@firstnorfolk.org. Thanks!

Mission VBS

Dear Friends,

I just wanted to give you all the ‘latest & greatest’ news regarding this year’s Mission VBS! Plans and decisions have been tedious and nerve-wrenchingly slow this year, but we now have a definite and amazing plan for moving beyond our walls to partner and minister with an often neglected group of children and staff! We will be providing a significantly modified VBS in the afternoons (3:00—5:15 p.m.) to the children at St. Mary’s Home for Disabled Children, which is located just a few blocks from the church, off of Kempsville Road, across from Sentara Leigh hospital. There are in excess of 200 staff persons and 78 children at St. Mary’s and during our VBS week we will have the opportunity to positively interact, encourage, and share the love of Jesus with both residents and staff. This is a group of people who are frequently overlooked by the general population and they are both amazed and VERY excited that we want to come and minister to them.

Wednesday morning a team of us went and met with several of their staff persons and toured their facility. It and ‘they’ are amazing!!! I can assure you that to spend even a small amount of time with these people will deeply touch your heart!! These children are profoundly impacted by their disabilities and are residents at St. Mary’s because their family cannot (or will not) provide their care. Many of the children do not have verbal communication and most are in wheel chairs. Ministering to these precious people will take significant creativity and modifications on our part, but I KNOW the blessings will be great for all of us!!

Just a few very important facts about any one who wishes to participate with us, in any way whatsoever:

·EVERY person must have ( or have had) a TB test within the past year and be able to
provide the medical results;

·Their head nurse has graciously agreed to administer TB tests to all of us, free of
charge:

Ø TB tests are administered at St. Mary’s only on Tuesdays;

Ø Test times are 7:00—7:30 a.m. and 1:00—1:30 p.m.;

Ø Take test on a Tuesday and return that same week Thursday to have test’read;’

Ø We need to let them know in advance, when we are coming for testing.

·Every person must have a valid photo I.D., which will be run through a background
system by the on-site sheriff, before entering the actual resident areas;
·Daily persons will be asked to complete a simple health screening sheet, asking
questions, such as: have you experienced fever, coughing, etc. in the past 24 hours,
etc.
·ALL participants will be asked to attend a special training regarding confidentiality;
policies, etc.

Although these requirements may seem very strict, again, these children have profound disabilities; many of them have multiple tubes, machines, etc. that help support their life and it is of paramount importance to guard them from infections, etc., as these could become potentially fatal.

I am asking that YOU pray……about YOUR involvement in Mission VBS……pray for the children and staff to whom we will be ministering……pray for the team of our staff and VBS leaders who will serve these precious children during VBS. God has a mighty plan in store for us and I am excited to see what He and He alone will do through us!! To God be the glory!!!

Thanks for your prayers and support and I am hopeful that many of you will choose to serve with us during this very special experience!

For the children,

Beth Simpkins