take time to recharge! spring/summer newsletter...

Spring/Summer Newsletter 2015| TREE OF LIFE 1

After leaving, He went up on a mountain-side to pray ... (Feeding the 5000 - Mark 6:46)

After Jesus had sent the crowd away, He got into the boat ... (Feeding the 4000 - Matthew 15:39)

I messed up this time! I am sure you were waking every day in Spring looking for the Tree of Life Newsletter in your ‘inbox.’ Alas, Spring came and went and here we are in midsummer and I am embarrassingly only now subscribing some thoughts. We did opt for a Spring/Summer caption though to avoid too much disappointment!

Ever get to the place where the day’s agenda is full before you wake and before you know it, another season of life has gone? It’s a huge dilemma that we face if we are wired to serve. In our efforts to serve as many as possible across the Tree of Life community, we need to be careful that we don’t bypass God’s agenda and concentrate on our own.

Jesus sets the perfect example. I’ve been re-reading some of the most well known miracles of late and it’s amazing how much truth is packed into the aspects of Jesus’ life that we too often just skip over. Jesus had a servant’s heart. He was filled with compassion. He sets the pace for reaching out. We read of two examples where He fed large groups of people - Feed-ing the 5000 and Feeding the 4000 - and yet there’s an interesting aspect to both miracles that I hadn’t noticed before. After each occasion, Jesus withdrew to a quiet place, escaped the crowd, re-grouped with His Father and close disciples and then took the next step on His journey of faith.

Continued on page 2

Take time to recharge! Spring/Summer Newsletter 2015

Spring/Summer Newsletter 2015 | TREE OF LIFE 2

Upcoming Events 2015

Serving can be tiresome and challenging. If we burn out, we are good for nothing and inevitably, we will bypass God’s plans. Take your example from Jesus and as the summer wraps up, take time to withdraw, escape, re-group and unwind. Having fed 5000 and then prayed, Jesus was able to fulfill the next element of God’s plan and walk on water!

Blessings,Paul SmithExecutive Director

Taking time to Recharge Continued from page 1

8/29/2015 - Back-to-school Teen Clothing Closets 10 am-12 noon. For Teens in grades 6-12. Free clothes and free haircuts. Teen must be present to receive free clothes. Tree of Life Center, 210 N. 21st Street, Unit D, Purcellville. Contact Tree of Life with questions at 703-554-3595 or [email protected]. Also, visit our web site at www.tolministries.org.

9/3/2015 – Volunteer Appreciation Dinner starting at 5:30pm. We are so thankful and grateful to the many people who give of their time and talents. We would like to take an evening to honor you. Please join us with your family.

Introducing a NEW ministry to Tree of Life - Crowns of Glory - Serving homebound seniors (ages 55+) who reside in Western Loudoun County. Offering practical help, spiritual support, companionship and respite care. Contact us to learn more or if you would like to volunteer.

Continued from page 3


9/12/2015 - Back-to-school Teen Clothing Closets 10 am-12 noon. For Teens in grades 6-12. Free clothes and free haircuts. Teen must be present to receive free clothes. Tree of Life Center, 210 N. 21st Street, Unit D, Purcellville. Contact Tree of Life with questions at 703-554-3595 or [email protected]. Also, visit our web site at www.tolministries.org.

VOLUNTEER PROFILE: LINDA WATKINS, Food Pantry Ministry Leader

Please share with us a little about you and your family:I am a wife, mother and grandmother. My hus-band Alan and I have lived in Purcellville 5 years. Prior to moving here I worked for another ministry right around the

corner from TOL. I have been with Tree of Life Food Pantry for 4 years. What attracted you to Tree of Life? Serving in community has always been a desire. My husband and I had a prayer ministry and we were blessed to pray for so many in our community and beyond our county. One Saturday, as we were praying for families and individuals in the Purcellville Train

Station amongst a table spread with a light lunch which we provided for those who came for prayer, I felt a stir-ring in my Spirit that I would be feeding a larger group of people. My head thought of a number of ways to do that. Soon after, I was outside in my front yard with my dog Penny Lane and a lady walked by with a very large poodle. She asked me if I lived there and then introduced herself as Peggy Fowler, the original builder of our home. We began to talk and she told me she was the Operations Manager at Tree of Life Food Pantry and welcomed me to come for a tour. Well the next day I was there and plugged in! It was not a way that I had previously thought in my head on how I could feed others. And well, the rest is history.

What is your favorite part of volunteering?There are so many aspects of my role that I enjoy. First and foremost that the ministry foundation is built on Jesus Christ and prayer. Building relationship with merchants and civic groups is another and then what I call bridge building with other pantry’s and individuals who get food distributed to those who are in “desert” communities which are areas that are not near food resources.

Any closing thoughts?The very core of this ministry for me is a relationship. Continued from page 4

Upcoming Events 2015 Continued from page 3


I enjoy that we are Connecting, getting to Ask how we can help, Recommending awesome services in our community and Encouraging our partners as well as one another on our volunteer staff. I love what this

ministry is really all about: Bringing the focus back on Jesus Christ. And doing what he did and still does through each of us.

PARTNER PROFILE: MISC. Stories

Healthcare VouchersErick stopped by and had horrible pain from a tooth that needed to be pulled. He asked if Tree of Life had dental vouchers. We do have dental vouchers! He con-tinued to talk about how he had an appointment that day to have a tooth pulled but, didn’t have the resourc-es to pay for it. We contacted our healthcare ministry leader who then approved to pay for the extraction. When Erick was told the good news he began to cry and praise God for all the blessings he has been receiving! The dentist had to actually extract 3 teeth that day and still at no cost to Erick. Between the generosity of the dentist and our contribution the bill was paid! Annual Clothing and Furniture GiveawayOur food pantry was able to provide a large amount of pies, cookies and cakes this year. So, when a woman misplaced her bag of clothing a volunteer offered to go back in with her to help her shop to replace them. But she said, “Oh, no it’s ok, I was given this pie and I hav-en’t seen one of those for a very long time!”

A free Bible was given to a woman and when she and her children where leaving the oldest daughter asked a volunteer if she could have one also. Her son was then asked if he wanted a bible since it looked as if he did but, he wouldn’t ask. However, the 4 year old daugh-ter jumped up and down and said, “I want one, I want one!” We were able to give the two youngest bibles on their age level. As the whole family left with their new bibles they were prayed over and extremely blessed!

Many partners commented on how nice the clothing drive was this year. They felt very special by the atten-tion they were able to get a personal shopping assis-tants (our volunteers)! Work Force ConnectionsA lady recently came to Work Force Connections (WFC) seeking help with re-entering the job market after the several years of being a military wife and stay-at-home mom. She was re-entering the work force following the death of her husband, had no resume and wasn’t even sure what she wanted to do for a job.

Continued from page 5


Over the past weeks TOL has partnered with this lady to help her identify where her skills and interests lie and to help focus on what kind of job she may want to seek. We are now helping draft a resume based on the areas where she has decided to look for a job and to develop a networking plan. This path has been more than looking for a job. It has also involved steps in her continued healing after the death of her husband as TOL comes alongside her not just to help with the job search, but also with prayers for guidance and for her and her children.

Helping HandsFollowing a recent request from a Western Loudoun employer, we have been able to assist a local family with diverse needs.

One of the challenges was sourcing transportation to help get a dad to work. He had no drivers license and his bicycle had broke. One of our team members do-nated a bike, Veloville (a local bike shop) volunteered their labor and helping hands paid for the parts to get the bike repaired. A wonderful example of a “hand up!”

A Hand Up Continued from page 4

DONOR PROFILE: PURCELLVILLE BUSINESS ASSOCIATION AND THE TOWN OF PURCELLVILLEThe Purcellville Business Association (PBA) has been a tremendous blessing to Tree of Life. The relation-ship has grown through integration of our purpose in the business community. The PBA has provided a

platform for promotion of events, and in 2015 provided a platform for the Town of Purcellville

to recognize Tree of Life as 2015 Volunteer Organization of the Year. The PBA is a great relationship organization, with approx mately 25% of the organizations connected in some way to Tree of Life.

Likewise, the Town Council has provided some excellent relationship opportunities to further promote Tree of Life’s benefit to the community in the Town of Purcellville. Besides bestowing the aforementioned award, the Town has worked with Tree of Life in opening up the Tree of Life Center in Purcellville at a ribbon-cutting ceremony. Tree of Life has also worked with the Town in helping town residents who have shut-off notices for water bills.


HELP THE CAUSE

Your involvement makes a differenceTree of Life offers a wide range of volunteer opportunities.

Tree of Life Center(Behind old train station in the Valley Business Park)

210 N. 21st. St., Unit D, Purcellville, VA 20132703-554-3595 | [email protected] | www.tolministries.org

Please

Donations for Tree of Life!Help families in need this winter by donating funds to help with providing food, shelter and heat to many people in need. Funds will be used to provide for needs of the Hungry, Homeless and Hurting in our area. Visit www.tolministries.org to make an online

donation or mail your donation to Tree of Life Ministries, 210 N. 21st Street, Unit D, Purcellville, VA 20132. Tree of Life is a 501(c)(3) organization and is a member of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability.

take time to recharge! spring/summer newsletter...

Documents