GRACE UPON GRACE
In the 6th Chapter of the gospel of John, a young lad offers up his five barley loaves and two fish to Jesus’ disciples, as they worry about how they are going to feed the 5,000 who had come out to see and hear this itinerant preacher. Jesus takes this offering, blesses, breaks, and distributes these loaves and fishes, and all are fed, with 12 baskets left over.
One interpretation of this miracle of the feeding of the 5,000 is that those pious Jews who had come out to see Jesus, opened their kosher baskets to each other and soon they had a “picnic on the grounds” that would rival any of our modern day “church suppers.” The miracle, however it happened, is that from a small offering a great multitude was provided for abundantly, “with twelve baskets left over.”
And so it seems true for our experience in this last month of December when a generous Board member offered to match dollar-for-dollar $10,000 ($5,000 from the Board; $5,000 from the community). The net results as of December 28 (the grant deadline) was: $3,910 from the Board; $16,715 from the community. And over a thousand has come in after the deadline. Now that is something to celebrate! Thank you all who have supported our efforts and contributed so generously. Thank you!
AND BEHIND THE SCENES FROM THE COMMUNITY
At Self-Help Credit Union of Durham: we say goodbye to retiring James Sansom, the chief loan officer who has been a supporter of, and shepherd for, our efforts from the very beginning. James has guided and supported our efforts in birthing this organization. He has worked with us from the time 4 years ago when David and Doug sat down with him to explore the possibilities of getting a mortgage loan; to the reality of a residence for post-incarcerated individuals, working to rebuild their lives after incarceration. Thank you, James, and Self-Help Credit Union for your faith in our vision and mission. We wish James well as he steps through the door of retirement to enter another fruitful stage of his life and work. Thank you, James!
AND BEHIND THE SCENES OF OUR ORGANIZATION
David Stanford is preparing all the donation records (checks and on-line giving); Paul Triulzi, Treasurer, is completing the expense side of our ledger; and Dennis Whitling, our volunteer accountant, is organizing these for filing both our Form 990 for the IRS, as well as the Solicitor’s Annual Report for the Secretary of State’s office. Doug will then be using these documents to complete our Grant Request with Orange County for funding with an “Outside Agency Grant.”
Meanwhile, Cynthia Wheaton is working with Paul on the “mail merge” annual donation records to provide our donors with their statements for their contributions for this last year.
And Althea Alton is providing the patient expertise to shepherd our newsletters into being.
As you can see, there are many volunteer hours taken up “behind the scenes” that are necessary to make this organization grow and prosper. A Big Thank You goes to all who are working faithfully behind the scenes to make Reentry House Plus, Inc. a thriving and successful organization. Thank you!
A WORD FROM OUR PRESIDENT, DOUG PETERSON
Our mission to help justice-involved men and women reenter society with the skills necessary to overcome the inevitable challenges to their success most often involves persons of color. To that end, it has long been a goal of RHP to involve more men and women of color on our Board to gain their particular insights into unique problems faced by this population. We are pleased to announce that with the inclusion of these three talented individuals in December that the Board is now 40% minority.
Please join us in welcoming the following to our Board:·
Pastor Tremaine Royster is growing the Jones Grove Missionary Baptist Church in Hillsboroughand has been involved with the NAACP and prison ministry. He is particularly interested in helping us to upgrade our internet presence and has many more ideas to help with our growth and work
Pastor Dewey Williams is head of Mt. Bright Baptist Church and mentor to several areaAfrican American churches. He is in the process of writing a book on ministering to men andwomen on Death Row. He was also one of the founders of Jubilee House in Durham. He hopes to share with us what he learned in building that organization.
Gabriel Kyerematen, PHD, MD, has been an attending physician in the Florida Dept of Corrections and other prison systems for over 25 years. He now lives in Durham and is licensed to practice in NC. He has expressed an interest in working with Will and Tommy to oversee the health of the men in the house among other interests.
It will remain a primary goal of the Board of Reentry House Plus to seek individuals of all backgrounds and ethnicity who have an interest in helping us to achieve our goals as laid out in our Mission Statement and we are particularly pleased to include this class of 2022.
The “Proof of the Pudding” - A word from Randy, One of our Residents
“The Reentry House Plus has made a large impact on me. Because when I got out of jail, they were nice enough to take me into their program. They are helping me out with rides to the doctor and appointments. They have also helped me with clothes and a coat. And they are getting me into more regular exercise.
“Thank you, and Happy New Year” - Randy
