Kids Klub 9.29.10

At Kids Klub yesterday evening, we studied the parable of the sower. In this class, cheese popcorn "seeds" were "planted" along the "path" on the table. The kids were more than ready to gobble up the popcorn when it was finally allowed, although I suppose the analogy of the parable suffered a bit with that activity!

Poverty in Arizona

As streams of data begin to be released by the U.S. Census Bureau, their findings regarding the poverty level in Arizona caught my attention this week. Arizona is ranked second in the nation in the percentage of residents living at or below poverty level. In Arizona, 1 in 5 residents live in poverty, and over 30% of its children live in poverty. That figure jumps to 45.70% in households where a mom is present, but a dad is absent. You can read more about the findings by connecting to this link:

East Valley Tribune article

Who are the poor? Especially as it relates to Aim Right's sphere of outreach, who are the children who live in poverty? While the instances below are true stories--ones I've encountered in the past 6 days--I've changed some names and details to protect privacy.

Jazmin and her 4 or 5 siblings live in a house with their parents. From the outside, the house appears to be of reasonable size. In a recent conversation with Jazmin, I learned that while she has her own room, the rest of her siblings either sleep in the living room or the parents' room. Jazmin explained to me that the house is actually a duplex, with another family living in the back portion of the house.

Eduardo's family lives on a limited income, which is even more limited when Dad hasn't worked for at least 2 weeks. With the end of the month near, the family's food stamp allowance has been exhausted. Dad visited the local food bank to secure some fruit and bread for the family, but he spent precious funds on booze for himself. I have to wonder if one of the reasons he drinks is to escape his drab reality.

Neighborhood Ministries, a local outreach organization, offers a helpful resource called "God's Heart for the Poor." It's a basic list of Scriptures to dive into and learn for yourself what God's Word says about the poor. May God stir our hearts to reflect His as we relate to the poor in this state!

Your Gift...Doubled!

After submitting reports, undergoing site visits and interviews, and attending numerous trainings, Aim Right has been awarded a

$15,000 matching grant

by the Mission Increase Foundation (MIF), a national organization that assists non-profit ministries in Biblical fundraising, giving, and discipleship. From now until December 15, 2010, your gift is eligible to be applied toward this matching grant opportunity. Simply designate your gift "Matching Grant."

If you wish to make a gift online using your debit or credit card, click on the link below. Just remember to include "Matching Grant" in the designation field. We praise God for His provision through the generosity of MIF!

Donate Online through Network for Good.

Kids Klub Rally 9.22.10

After some singing led by Andrea and Jasmine, the youngest classes (K-2nd grade) headed downstairs for their rally time. One of the purposes of rally is to reinforce and review the past weeks' Bible stories, and these youngsters did a fabulous job of answering questions during our review game.



If you answered a question correctly, you had the fun of standing up and throwing the beach ball to another student to answer a question.

We ended the evening with play time.

Needed: Jobs!

Sometimes eating bagels pays off.

The local Einstein bagel shop is one that Andrea has frequented during her time in Phoenix, and she recently found out that they were hiring. She filled out an application, had an interview, and is now a shift manager at Einstein's.

Perhaps I should add that her shifts usually start at 4 a.m. (yes, you read correctly....FOUR a.m.) or 6 a.m., but years of living and working on a dairy farm have prepared her quite nicely for those hours!

Time and time again, we have seen God provide part-time jobs for our interns--not always what they might love doing, but nevertheless a source of income that enables them to meet their intern budgets and still be involved in the ministry in the afternoons and evenings. Interns have been landscapers, construction workers, housecleaners, babysitters, welders, office workers, dog kennel cleaners, daycare workers, and the list goes on.

You can join us in praying for our new interns, Kelsi and Joel, as they look for jobs in the area. Kelsi is interested in babysitting, nanny, or daycare jobs, and Joel has skills in construction. If you know of any openings (preferably morning, around 20 hours per week), please call our office at (602) 462-1987 or e-mail amy@aimright.org.

September Tidbits

Boys are outnumbering the girls in Kids Klub attendance. Why? I don't really know, although it makes for a little more rambunctious crowd!

Wednesday evening we studied the story Jesus told about the wise man and the foolish man. In classes where students are of reading age, we try to have enough Bibles available so that students can read the words themselves. These 2nd graders have been great learners!

This young man is one of the faithful walkers. Since we currently do not have a driver for our bus, several children walk to Kids Klub, and the rest we transport in a van and a few cars. The walking part is a little more tricky than you might assume, since the child's parent may or may not always remind him or her about Kids Klub. That means the child has to (a) remember there's Kids Klub that evening and (b) plan ahead to walk there in time! I'd say that Jose probably walks at least 1/2 mile to Kids Klub.

Former intern Roger Beachy ('06-'07) and lovely wife Janine were in the Valley last week, celebrating two years of marriage and re-connecting with the many teens and individuals they have impacted through their enthusiastic hearts for the Lord.

A cook-out with Roger and Janine one evening:

Last week, Sanctum began. Sanctum is the new name for what was formerly called Out Loud, a twice monthly worship service for teens. You can read more about the group here and even "like" them (for all of you who know Facebook lingo!), on their Facebook page: Sanctum on Facebook. Bob Oxley leads Sanctum, along with several other talented musicians. If you live in the area, you're certainly invited to worship along with us on Monday evening. The next scheduled Sanctum is September 27.

Teen Night 9.03.10

The Rec Center opened this afternoon, so the place is abuzz with action! This game is apparently the most popular.

The new intern team continues to be initiated. At Teen Night on Friday evening, Caleb had prepared special diapers for them. Here they are opening their precious little bundles.

Caleb was nice enough to put good-tasting (albeit realistic-looking) stuff on the inside!

Joel whooped the girls and ate the most.

Then, some teens had to eat a banana with no hands (it was already peeled for them).

The next victims/volunteers guzzled Mountain Dew.

The lovely Miss Dora who managed to avoid all gross activities throughout the evening but really wants her photo on the blog. Here you go, Dora!

Finally...the lovely and lively Miss Madison who is missing a few diapers -- three, to be exact. And she informed me she doesn't want 'em back!

First Kids Klub

Opening night of Kids Klub brought lots of.....

KIDS!

Wow, Joel is fitting in quite well already!

On Tuesday afternoon, we visited our routine Kids Klub attenders from last year, as well as several new children who attended VBS this summer, and invited them to Kids Klub. And then we tried to formulate a plan to transport about 75 potential kids using one van and three cars. Somehow, it all worked out, because the auditorium was filled with nearly 70 kids Wednesday evening. Some of them did walk or were brought by their parents.


Ro planned several no-hands eating contests. Here the kids were eating cream-filled chocolate cakes. The winner was the person who came up with an empty plate and an empty mouth first.

The new interns were initiated, although Ro was kind enough to warn them ahead of time that there would be messy food involved. Ro covered two plates of Whoppers with whipped cream.

And then Joel and Kelsi had to transfer Whoppers onto another pie plate, using only their mouths, of course!

I don't remember who won, but they both got pretty messy!

Next week will be Kids Klub classes, with children divided into rooms by grade to hear a Bible story and participate in other activities. Please pray that God will work in many children's hearts this fall!