Wish List

     I have many, many people come up to me and ask, "James, what kinds of things do you need for Joel's Place?  What can we donate?"

     Ok...maybe not many, many...but some people ask me, "James, what can we donate to Joel's Place?"

     Ok...maybe not some...but a few people have asked me that question before.

     Ok...one person...three years ago asked what we needed...but I told them and it was really helpful.

     So...if someone were to ask me what Joel's Place needed, how would I respond?  There are actually a few distinct areas that we could use some donations for:

• Youth Center maintenance and resupply.  Joel's Place is pretty much kid-proof, but we still run out of things and have to replace items that have worn down with all the kids-hours
• Ping Pong Paddles
• Paper Plates and Bowls (preferably Correlle Brand)
• Toilet Paper
• Paper Towels
• Batteries: AA, D and 9 volt
• Duct Tape and Painters Tape
• Black Sharpies
• 3 foot long fluorescent light bulbs
• Office supplies. 
• Printer Paper
• Stamps
• Pens
• Bone Builders Backpack Supplies.  During the summer we partner with a few different agencies to give 200 kids a weekly supplement of food.  The pick up backpacks that have breakfast and lunch items, drinks and snacks.  The Food Bank stores these items for us as we collect them over the winter so that we are not buried by granola bars.  Here's what we are looking for:
• Breakfast items: Individual oatmeal or cereal packages 
• Juice:  Boxes (100% apple juice preferred)
• Milk: Shelf stable and lowfat (unflavored, individual servings preferred)
• Lunch items (high protein): Soup, ravioli, chili, tuna cups, or easy mac
• Fruit: Fruit Cups or Applesause (canned or squeeze type, not plastic cups)
• Snack Items: Crackers, Granola Bars, Chips etc

         We are looking for 4,800 of each of these things.  Sounds daunting, but it only requires a large group of people to give a few things each.  We already have hundreds of the snack items that have come in and our stash at the Food Bank is growing by the week.

If you are interested in helping out with any of these things, feel free to let me know or just drop something by when you are in the neighborhood.  We are so grateful for you and all the ways that you help us to invest in these kids.

Daily Bread part 3

     My job is weird.  I mean really, really strange.  One of my primary duties is writing grants and raising funds to pay our staff.  However there are some times when no amount of good strategy or good follow-up or moving testimonies or amazing statistics helps.  Sometimes the money just does not come in.  Tuesday was one of those days.

     I went to bed on Monday night knowing that we needed $2975 in order to finish paying our staff and we had $307.  I was out of calls to make or grants to write or favors to call in...so I prayed.  It was not an especially original prayer.  It was not a weeping and pounding on the floor prayer.  I prayed the Lord's Prayer and repeated the "Give us this day our daily bread," line many times.  I woke up on Tuesday and prayed that God would give us enough to meet our obligations for that day.  "Daily Bread" just kept rattling around in my head all day.  I stopped by the post office and found 3 unexpected checks waiting for us that equaled $1350.  Arlys and I looked through our account thoroughly and found another $317 that was available.  That brought us to $1974...about $1,000 short. Well maybe one of our senior staff didn't need to get paid today.  God says that He will provide, but He does not promise to do it on the 1st and 15th of every month.  The duties of the day rolled over me and swept me away from thinking about payroll until 4:30pm.  I was serving dinner at the Boys and Girls Club and had a donor pop into my mind.  I shot them a text asking if they would be able to give that month.  I didn't offer a number or reason.  I just asked.  They texted back saying there was a check waiting for me.

     I won't say that I broke every speed limit law in order to get there before 5...but I got there before 5 and picked up the check...for $1,000.  Along with the concessions sales that we made that day, we were able to meet our payroll for that day...with $28 left over...to build for next payroll.

     Some people will read that story and feel their entire body tense up.  It feels out of control and incredibly risky.  As for myself, I would not say that I was the easiest person to get along with on Tuesday.  However, I am learning to trust that God will actually provide for us.  I am learning that my best efforts are not the only hope for Joel's Place.  I continue to learn that it is He who hold this place in His hands, keeps it open and blesses the kids.  I have been gifted a special seat where I can watch it all unfold and laugh in wonder at the joyful absurdity of it all.

     "Daily Bread."  What do we need God to give us today?

Pick. Click. Give.

     If you live and work in the non-profit sector, as I do, you have been living with the realities and the details of Pick.Click.Give...or LovAlaska...for several months now.  I had a Board Meeting yesterday and realized that some of the important details of this amazing program have not been communicated clearly.  Or, more likely, they were overwhelmed and buried in the annual chaos that is the holiday/end of year season.  So...allow me to explain.  No.  That would take to long.  Allow me to sum up:

The Permanent Fund Dividend Registration is open.
     If you are an Alaskan Resident you can apply for the PFD at this link   The application opened January 1st and there have already been over 143,000 applications submitted.

The Pick.Click.Give Option
     When you are completing your application, there is an option to participate in Pick.Click.Give.  This program allows you to donate part of your PFD to any Alaskan non-profit that you select.  You can find Joel's Place on the list under the "J" section.  You can give any amount you desire and edit it any time in the next 6 months.

Wait.  I can edit my selection?
     Yes.  You can log back in to your application and change the amount you are donating or who you are giving it to up until the end of summer.  You don't have to make major giving decisions before your computer screen times out.

Why not just wait until I get my PFD and then write you a check?
     That is a legitimate option...I will never say no to it.  However, everyone who participates in Pick.Click.Give is entered into a drawing to win...and 2nd PFD.  It does not matter if you give $50 or $1,500.  Everyone who participates is entered to be one of 10 winners who will receive another dividend check in the fall.  I am just here trying to help you win some money.

How does this benefit Joel's Place?
     Pick. Click. Give has been instrumental in us growing as an organization in the past few years.  It has built up our infrastructure which has allowed us to receive grants and awards that benefit the youth.  It has payed for our audits and taxes and we have been able to leverage those things into hundreds of thousands of dollars in grant and government monies.  It helps...a lot.


Pick. Click. Give is a great way to invest in our community.  It is quick.  It is easy.  It is really effective.  I would invite you to join me in giving (to Joel's Place) through your dividends.  Thanks everyone.

Hello 2015

  You know that internal dialogue that you have with yourself in early December that goes something like this:

• "December is going to be really busy this year."
• "Yep. It sure is."
• "Mother-In-Law is visiting...staff are leaving town for christmas break...lots of extra events and parties on the schedule not to mention Christmas, New Years and preaching at church...the baby is going to choose not to sleep during normal human hours for the next few weeks...that seems exceptionally busy." 
• "Yep. It sure does."
• "I wonder if I should do a couple of things ahead of time...like write a few extra blog posts that I can just put up over the next couple of weeks?"
• "Are you kidding me?  You love writing.  You're a natural.  You'll have plenty of time to crank some of these out during this next month."
• "Oh, right...plenty of time...where exactly?"
• "If you don't get a chance to write the posts at work because you are covering other responsibilities, you can always just write them from home...when it is quiet...and there are no chores to be done...and the children are sleeping..."
• "......."
• "You know...from 2-3 in the morning.  You will be plenty motivated to write about Joel's Place instead of desperately falling into bed for a couple of blissful hours of slumber."
• "You're right.  Oh, how well you know me."

So as I look back on the past couple of weeks...I think that maybe that was not the best plan for updating the blog.  Not too big a deal, but I need to remember that my inner voice overestimates my motivation and underestimates the chaos of the holidays.

All that to say it has been a fabulous holiday season filled with laughter and family and tons of kids at Joel's Place.  And these were not calm children.  These were hyped-up-on-sugar-and-caffeine-out-of-school-bored-and-understimulated teens who ran around Joel's Place like Who's on Christmas morning.  In one evening I had more thefts, crashes/injuries, broken doors, vandalism and general wild-eyed chaos than I had seen in the past couple of months combined. 

But that is why we are here.  That is why Joel's Place is built to be kid-proof.  That's why we play loud music and sell candy and soda.  These youth spend most of their days being told to be still and quiet.  They come here to release the pressure so that they can excel back in the real world.  I know these things, but sometimes I forget.  Christmas Break and Spring Break tend to be excellent reminders.

I am really looking forward to 2015 and all the opportunities ahead of us.  I will get into those in a later post...probably next week...because I am doing those weekly again...and not listening to that little voice in my head that says 4am is prime blog writing time.