"Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. These words that I am giving you today are to be in your heart. Repeat them to your chldren. Talk about them when you sit in your house and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up. Bind them as a sign on your hand and let them be a symbol on your forehead. Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates." Deuteronomy 6:5-9
After months of prayer, planning, painting, plumbing, and pruning, the Mission Athens team and our church family at Central Church of Christ are so proud to announce the birth of The Haven. Located at 810 N. Malone Street in Athens, AL, The Haven is the home of our newest community outreach ministry program.
Over a year ago, the Mission Athens team began discussing an permanent home where we could reach out and provide services to our community. Specifically, we were praying for a place that would be easily accessible to school-aged children. In 2012, we found a house literally on the exact corner we wanted, and we were able to purchase the property. For the past several months, countless volunteers have worked tirelessly to meet with city officials, develop appropriate plans, remodel the house, clean, paint and landscape, and now The Haven is ready to open our doors to children.
Our initial plans are to be open from 3:30-4:30 on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons beginning Tuesday, March 5. During this time, specially trained volunteers will provide a snack to the children and help them with their homework, focusing on reading and math skills. If you are interested in learning more about volunteering at The Haven, please contact Will Grice at Central Church of Christ so that you can complete the required training program.
We invite you to celebrate with us at an Open House at The Haven on Sunday, March 3, from 1-3 p.m. If you would like to help support the efforts at The Haven, please bring some of the following items to the Open House to help us get ready for our grand opening. Items needed include: Ziploc bags, Febreeze, Pine Sol, Clorox or Lysol wipes, liquid hand soap, paper towels, paper plates, small Solo cups, napkins, liquid hand sanitizer, spray cleaner for counter tops, bathrooms and tables, pencils and paper, crayons, markers, trash bags, etc. You can find a more comprehensive list of items available at Central Church of Christ.
We would like to say a huge THANK YOU to all the volunteers who have worked so hard to create such a special place for God's seeds to grow in our community. The dictionary defines the word haven as "a place of safety and refuge." We are praying that it will be just such a place for these special children, and we solicit your prayers that God's love would be felt by all who enter our doors.
Last summer, the Mission Athens team hosted a cookout at 5th Avenue Park, just down the street from what is now The Haven. At that time, we were all so fervently praying that God would open the doors for us to work more closely with our neighbors in that community. We did not know that on that day, we were taking our first steps towards achieving our dream. All we knew was that there were so many precious children living in that neighborhood who could use some love.
There was one little girl in particular with pigtails and a blue balloon who captured our hearts. She was just about to start kindergarten, and she couldn't stop talking about how excited she was about going to "big school." We are so happy that now we will be her neighbors, and we pray that we can help her and all her friends succeed in school and achieve their highest potential. We also pray that they will see that there is a God who loves them, and that as we work as His hands and feet with these children, that we will all draw closer to Him.
