Being in Gulf Shores has created challenges for my training for the ride-mainly getting time. My rides have been just before dark or early on Sunday mornings. Besides the numerous amount of small bugs that make breathing a challenge-it hasn’t been too bad. Unfortunately I am not being challenged by hills which I believe is going to have its affect. But, we’ll see. Sunday I am riding 50 miles just so I know that I will be ok on the following Friday.

I am excited about the riders! We have such a great group of people going with us-all very mission minded and servant hearted.  I will be doing my best to try and keep up. There are only two girls really riding so it will be fun J

Being in Baldwin County and listening to employees of businesses discuss their fear and frustration has helped me stay connected with what is happening here. Although we do not repair homes in this area, the situations that are occurring sometimes become the initial scenarios that strap people financially and keep them from being able to repair their homes.

We are all diligently raising our support and working to raise our $1200.  These proceeds will go to help us serve more families. Some of our goals for the fall include opening a thrift store for building supply materials and possibly becoming a partner with a program called Circles. We have some huge hurdles ahead of us but looking forward to the incredible challenge!

Finally, my ride last Sunday went very well. The distance from Robertsdale to Point Clear and back was 40 miles. Most of it was flat with some small hills. Getting to Point Clear and riding along the Gulf was inspiring and really beautiful. The coastline has rows of quaint and cute cottages most of which are summer or rental homes. Parks were frequent for boat launches and picnics. Much of the land was crop land with a few deep, green, plush horse pastures dotting the landscape. I expected an intense sun but high clouds diffused some of the heat. Without hills I was able to ride fast and was finished in about 3 hours. I know that will not be the case with the actual ride.

Just one week away and I’m ready to ride!

Blessings, lisa

Arts and Hearts will be held on Thursday June 10th at 6:00 PM at the Event Center in Opelika, AL. (near 8th and Rail). There will be several art exhibits that you can bid on and Martha’s Trouble will be the anchor group perfoming musically. It’s going to be a ton of fun.

But why? We are constantly hearing of friends who begin a battle with cancer and many women are being affected by breast cancer. This is what has happened with our friend, Pam. Pam is the sister of Dawn Spurlock who lives in Auburn. Dawn’s husband Heath is on ARM’s board of directors. A few months ago, Pam was diagnosed with breast cancer and found to have some of that cancer in her lymph nodes. Pam is a single parent mom trying to make ends meet. Due to the strained resources, Pam did not have health insurance when she was diagnosed. She faces piling medical expenses that are compounding the problem.

This benefit is one of many to help offset some of her medical bills. Because of the connection with ARM, some of the proceeds will come back into our community to help families needing home repair assistance.

So, if you have some time Thursday night we encourage you to come. Tickets are $25 and can be purchased at the door.

Go enjoy some great music, beautiful art, and engage in an opportunity to help a family!

Blessings!

ARM is doing some amazing things this summer and fall. Our Livingston staff is getting ready to host their first set of teams in a few weeks. They’re site will be packed with 60+ kids coming each week on average. In Tuskegee, we will stay steady with out of town work teams and weekend teams. This fall, we will be opening our store. We haven’t come up with a name yet but it is a thift store for building supply materials and tools. This will give ARM its own office space (much thanks to the Auburn Wesley Foundation for supporting us for so many years) as well as an extra source of income. ARM is also prayerfully considering another venture that is geared toward helping families get out of poverty. We’ll keep you posted on this development.

But, events like the Cycle of Service help us so much to continue our outreach to underserved families and children. If you would like more information, let us know. Thanks so much and we look forward to seeing you on the ride!

1) Summer staff arrive tomorrow and begin their two weeks of training! We are excited about not only the diverstity of this staff but their experience and talent. They are going to be incredible role models for the youth

2) Annual Conference is right around the corner and we will have snack bar once again to sell items and continue to spread the word about our ministry

3) Cycle of Service is next month and is going to be a great event! We are being inteviewed next week on Alabama Live with Kim Hendrix. This interview will be on Monday, May 17th at 11:00 AM. So, listen out for us. We will also be interviewd by Bob Crittendom on the Meeting House at 4:00 PM Thursday the 20th. These are great opportunities to hear more about the work of ARM!

That’s just the highlights! We are blessed and ready for our summer ministry to kick off!

Check out Cycle of Service http://cycleofservice.arm-al.org

Interested? You can go the entire distance with us or choose a leg of the journey. Registration will begin March 1. If you can’t bike but would like to donate you can do this as well. We have a goal of $60,000. Just go to cycleofservice.arm-al.org to register or give. Thanks and we’ll see you on the ride!

“Treasures in Heaven”!