JUNE UPDATE
From the Board Chair
Hello friends,
June in Augusta is always hot, but for some reason, this year it seemed hotter than normal. We are challenged with cooling down an older building. Many fans are running each Thursday, adding to the noise but necessary for our clients and volunteers alike. We also began a major steeple, roof and tower restoration, which has led to us changing our path to unload our inventory for the food pantry. This causes us to have to interrupt our flow of food pantry clients while we unload vehicles full of canned goods and fresh produce. We are blessed by the understanding and patience of our clients during this restoration project.
In June, our food pantry served 961 visits from people experiencing food insecurity including 350 walking bags distributed to people with nowhere to cook. Each walking bag contains 2 sandwiches. One peanut butter and jelly and one meat and cheese. That's 700 sandwiches made in the month of June, which is a lot of sandwiches! Volunteers served the other 611 visits by shopping with each household to get the groceries those families can use. We try our best to stock different varieties of food and ensure that we have some fresh produce and frozen meat to offer each week. It is only by the grace of God that we still have enough stock to help the last households that come before noon. We give thanks for the many donations of food we receive throughout the month.
Our health product programs continue to grow. Our diaper bank supplied 720 packages of a week's worth of diapers to families who cannot afford the cost of diapers but want to keep their children healthy. They also supplied an additional 228 packages the last week of June since we will be closed on Thursday, July 4. Volunteers break the large boxes of diapers into the allotted amounts for a week based on the size of diapers. This takes many trips to Costco, both loading and unloading. It also takes many hands to package the diapers. God has blessed us with volunteer hands from many groups to complete this task. The same kind of volunteer support is needed to package our adult incontinence products. This program supplied 211 packages of product to adults who cannot stretch their budgets for this expensive need. Our period product program supplied 211 clients with supplies they and their families need each month. We are continually looking for grants to help cover the high cost of these 3 programs.
Our birth certificate volunteers broke a record in June seeing over 60 clients two weeks in a row. In June, they saw 209 clients, got back 76 birth certificates, gave out 71 and sent off 91 new applications. We see quite a crowd of people each week waiting patiently for their name to be called. The process to request a birth certificate takes a lot of time for each individual. Our photo ID drivers transported 30 people to the DDS in June. Each person has a unique story and does not always have adequate documentation to get an ID.
22 people received their photo ID. We have 3 volunteer drivers. Many weeks in June we were down to one volunteer available. Again, people were patient waiting for their ride.
For various reasons our volunteer nurses were short staffed each week in June as well. This did not cause us to turn anyone away. Those nurses able to volunteer worked with 195 visits from people unable to afford their prescription medication in June. These nurses show each person they work with compassion and kindness that can only come from their own personal faith in God. They work with pharmacies to keep our costs down while working with clients to make sure they have a way to get to that pharmacy. Please pray for the woman we met who is on dialysis and a diabetic. She came to us in need of several prescriptions amounting to a significant cost. Our nurse volunteer reached out to a local program that helps to fund the high cost to dialysis patients and arranged for this woman to meet her the next day. We have learned that this woman is now receiving help managing her costs. Please pray for the woman who is immobile and behind on her medications because she can't get to a doctor for a prescription. Her friend came to us looking for a smaller wheel chair so she could get into the bathroom easier. Our nurse volunteer advised her friend on how to get assistance with transportation and other needs. We have learned that this woman is now receiving the benefits she is qualified for including transportation to her doctor.
All of the people we meet each week need our prayers. Each story shared has its own unique challenges. We give our time and our hearts to those who come for help. but when we leave for the day, we can return to our air conditioned cars and homes to get out of the heat. Imagine facing each day without having a place to cool off. We pray that those who come will feel more hopeful because of the services they receive at GAP and that they will come to understand that God is walking alongside them as they move through their days. They are not alone. They are loved. Please pray for GAP.
In His service,
Elaine
