Calling all runners and walkers…consider joining the Hope team! The annual Emerald City 5K Run/Walk will be held at the Church of Viera on Friday, February 24, 2023 beginning at 6 p.m. As a “Land of Oz” supporter, Hope is sponsoring runners and/or walkers for our “Hope to Finish” team. Register at runningzone.com, and be sure sure sign up for Hope’s team. Give a copy of your receipt to Jackie for reimbursement by Hope outreach in support of Family Promise. If you have questions, please contact Jackie at 321-622-6126 or Nancy Roberts at 321-327-4122.

In 2022 Hope’s total outreach expenditures from Hope funds came to $33,987. This includes $27,054 for “external missions,” that is for organizations and agencies which exist outside our building. For “internal missions,” those outreach ministries that are generated within Hope, a total of $5357 was spent. A total of $576 was spent for advertising. In addition, $13,500 in Thrivent Action Team funds supported many Hope activities in 2022. Our monthly Food on the First collections for 2022 totaled well over 1400 food items and nearly $600 in monetary donations. Hope’s contribution for LWML mites totaled almost $600. Thank you, Hope!  Praise be to God for the generosity of our Hope members and for the opportunities we have to be Hope in our community!

Everyone is invited to join the pink beading group for an hour of fun and fellowship! The group will meet Friday, Feb. 3 from 6 to 7 p.m. in the fellowship hall. Each month 30 bracelets are given to cancer patients at the Breast Center at Gateway. Come join the group, and if you have questions or would like to work on bracelets at home, Please contact Janet Duddy at 561-339-1279.

February cookies for Bakers’ Blessings on the Road will be going to Johnson Middle School. Cookie bakers are asked to sign up on the narthex sheet and have your cookies at Hope by Feb. 19th. We have a change in our routine which will begin this month: cookie labels can now be found in the box on the narthex couch in the food pantry corner, and you are asked to place your cookies in or beside that box when you bring them in on the 19th. If you need clarification, please contact Nancy Sutter at 321-537-2717.

Our Veterans Blankets Project is completed!  Nineteen (19) Veterans Blankets have been completed! Most of them will be delivered to Vitas Healthcare (hospice), Melbourne Office, and some of them have gone to individuals who are terminally ill. Vitas is very excited to receive them because they identify a patient as being a veteran in hospice care and they are in need of more immediately. There are 4 more kits available. Contact Deaconess Lois Diebel, (emails below) if you would like a kit(s) to complete.  Thanks to Marie for invaluable help during this project.

A big THANK YOU to Phyllis Derda who is moving and leaving our Loving Stitches group. Phyllis was instrumental in founding this sewing group and in coordinating the Fidget Mat Project and the idea phase of the Veteran’s Blankets project. You have been an inspiration to our group and provided great leadership.  God be with you always; we know that he will. You will be truly missed. If you have questions or would like to help with Loving Stitches, please contact Deaconess Lois Diebel  at deaconess.lois@hope-brevard.com.

Our Food on the First collection will actually occur on the second Sunday in February, the 12th, to coincide with the Super Bowl game day and Hope’s traditional friendly fan competition plus participation in the Souper Bowl of Caring. You may cheer for your favorite team by placing your donations on the team table of your choice, whether it is the Philadelphia Eagles or the Kansas City Chiefs. All donations will go to the Genesis Food Pantry, and their needs this month are cereal, Chef  Boyardee, saltines, kidney beans, spaghetti, and elbow macaroni. Your plastic bags and dozen egg cartons are also very much in demand at the pantry and appreciated. With the high demand for food at the pantry, we are going to begin using Thrivent Action Team funds each month to supplement what Hope gives to the pantry. To facilitate the recording for Thrivent, we would ask that you kindly sign the Thrivent sheet with your name and phone    number when you bring your donations to the pantry. Please know that all you do to support the food pantry is most definitely a way to be Hope in our community! If you have questions about Genesis Pantry or would like to volunteer, please check with Nancy Sutter at 321-537-2717.

Hope has participated in the Souper Bowl of Caring since 2013 and even received recognition in the past for its Super Bowl competition in collecting donations…thus the tradition began! The Souper Bowl of Caring is a large organization with thousands of participating groups across the country that collect food and monetary donations between Jan. 15 and Mar. 15 to “tackle hunger.” Hope’s record Souper Bowl food collection was in 2021 with 300 food items, and our monetary record is $180 in 2020. If you are interested in learning more, take a look at their website at tacklehunger.com.

For the month of February, we purchased 5 packs of underwear, 6 packs of razors, 12 belts, 6 men's shorts, 5 bottles 3 in 1 soap with the Thrivent card. We will no longer be using the Thrivent cards for Daily Bread but instead we’ll be taking funds directly from the outreach funds. This allows us to purchase the most current needs as they often change from the time we apply for a Thrivent card to the time we purchase items. Items that are 100% needed through the year always are women's underwear, size 6-8, and men's shorts, size 29-34. For February, Daily Bread could use men's and women's deodorant roll on or spray versions. Any and all clothing items for men and women are always welcomed as well as used sheet sets and towels. Thank you for all your support. 

It’s a new year, 2023 is here!  It is a great time to fill out a Hope Cares gold-colored half sheet, even if you have filled one out before. Hope Cares is a  program that matches needs with resources. Hope Cares provides choices of ways that you can bless others, just fill out a gold sheets with your preferences of ways to help. As the requests for transportation, meals delivered to a home, sending greeting cards, or many other needs that are requested, volunteers will be contacted to help someone in need. Thank you for being a person of Hope in our community. Deaconess Lois Diebel, Hope Cares Facilitator.