October 6, 2008

Hello Volunteers,

September’s Outreach at Able Body Labor was very successful. We fed 76 guests; 47 men, 21 women, and 10 children. We had 7 individual famiy units represented who mainly needed bagged groceries, but stayed and shared dinner with us. There is a great increase in families needing help, especially during the financial  crunch we are experiencing. I receive calls everyday from individuals, families, and social workers for their clients, needing clothing, food, and monies for rent and electric and it is getting worst. One of the biggest problems we are seeing, is when land lords are in foreclosure with their rental properties, and the families are unaware until the Sheriff comes around to have them evicted. It seems that some land lords continue to receive rent, but purposely not tell the renters they are going through foreclosure. Yes, this is a time for us to be our brother’s keeper, because we all need each other.

Next Monthly Outreach: October 18^th is our next Outreach and will be held at Able Body Labor, 12006 Martin luther King Dr., Seffner, FL 33584, from 12:00 – 2:30 p.m. If you are interested in volunteering, please email or call. This will be our last Outreach for the year since we are hosting the 5^th Annual Thanksgiving Dinner in November, and will co-host the 3^rd Annual Christmas Day Dinner in December with the United Methodist Cluster of Churches.

October 25^th is the last Volunteer Training Class for participation in our Annual Thanksgiving Day Dinner and if you would like to participate in the festivities, please call or email to register for the class. We have had very good attendance in these classes, so register ASAP to secure your place. The class is held at Westminster Presbyterian Church, 402 E. Lumsden Rd., Brandon, FL 33511 – from 10:00 – 2:30 p.m. Lunch and snacks will be served. Only individuals taking the classes will be allowed to volunteer in specific areas, while others who have not taken the class will be limited in some areas of participation such as door monitors, and host and hostesses. Call/email for more information about these fields.

Certification  Cards:  For the individuals who have taken the class, please make sure I have your entire family’s name on file for your certification cards. This is especially true for your children. Some of you signed in as husband and wife, but did not include all of the children names. We need names for everyone, so you won’t be detained at the registeration desk on Thanksgiving Day with no card. Everyone with a certification card on file, will be given special instructions on where to sign in on Thanksgiving Day. You will have a separate area to sign in - from that of our regular registration desk.

Set-Up and Break-Down: There are yet available spots for anyone wishing to help with Set-up on Wednesday, November 26, starting at 5:30 p.m., and Thanksgiving morning beginning at 9:00 a.m. Finger foods and drinks will be available. Transportation help will also be needed with some items and food pick-ups. More info to come on these areas of service, but if you will be available, let me know so I can place you on our reserve list.

Website: Please go to our website – www.cynthiapinckneyministries.org, and view our needs list of products and food items that are needed for the Thanksgiving Dinner and giveaways. We are looking to serve over 900 guests, and will need an assortment of items. Men jeans are a precious commodity, so if you know where we can replenish our stock, please call or email. There are other clothing items we can use such as children socks and underwear, so again, call or email and I will let you know where we stand in need on diferent items. A caterer is again donating her time this year to prepare the dinner for us, but we will need to purchase the food items to give her. Please send your check or money orders to: Cynthia Pinckney Ministries, Inc., P.O. Box 1079, Seffner, FL 33584. Every gift [small or large] will help in this gigantic effort. All donations are tax deductibles and receipts are given upon requests. Thanks in advance for what you do.

T-Shirts: All volunteers are required to wear Ministry T-Shirts on Thanksgiving Day, and are offered to everyone after each training class. If you have taken the class and have not given me your size and the quantity, please do so as soon as possible. The T-shirts are $8.00 for adults, and $5.00 for children. The last order for the T-shirts will go for printing on October 27^th, so don’t delay in giving me your order. November 10^th  is the last day to pay for the shirts. If there are extinuating circumstances concerning the purchasing of T-Shirts, please contact me and we will work it out. Everyone will be notified of a date and time T-shirts can be picked up before Thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving Dinner will be served from 11:00 – 2:30 p.m. on Thanksgiving Day. This will allow volunteers time to have dinner at home with their families, if you desire. However, our volunteers are permitted to partake of our bounty after our guests have eaten, and we encourage you to do this. We plan to have lots of food. After the last training class is completed, everyone one participating will receive an email with the time you will be required to report for service on Thanksgiving Day.

Volunteers who have taken the class/ or signed up to take the October class, are asked to please send me your availability hours for serving on Thanksgiving – whether it’s one (1) hour, or the whole day. Chairpersons are being assigned to the different Ministries, and you will be contacted with final instructions for your participation in one or more of the areas. There is casual dressing, but short-shorts for women/young ladies will not be acceptable.

Thanks goes out to the many organizations, church groups,  student classes, individuals, banks, and couples who have donated their precious time coming out to help organize the many donations we have received at our storage units. We also appreciate donations of the much needed resources and finances for our monthly feedings, and for the upcoming Thanksgiving Dinner. I can’t do this without the help of the community, and for that I am grateful.

Continue to keep the Ministry in prayer, as we plan and administer this gigantic effort of serving God’s people – with a Servant’s Heart.

Blessings,

Cynthia Pinckney

August 25, 2008

Greetings Volunteers & Friends of Ministry,

Our Clothing and Feeding Outreach on Saturday, August 16, was successful. We serviced (47) men, (25) women, and (15) children with a hot meal, clothing, shoes, toiletries, and other needful items. We are seeing more family units come out than ever before - needing bags of groceries. We gave out 38 bags of groceries to families, and 45 canned food items to the homeless. Many people are in a greater need now, and we will see more if our economy continues to decline.

Our next feeding is September 20, at Able Body Labor…12006 Martin Luther King, Seffner, FL 33584, from 12:00 – 2:30 p.m.

The Ministry (joined by another ministry) was able to rescue a mother & son from sleeping on the streets, and put them in a motel until permanent housing is found through The Homeless Recovery Program. Please pray for her as she go through the maze of finalizing paperwork, and for placement in a special needs school for her son. There is another mother with 5 children (of whom we were not able to help) living in a van, and need your prayers also.

VOLUNTEER TRAINING CLASS:  There are only TWO remaining training classes offered for serving at the 2008 Community Thanksgiving and Christmas Dinners, and if you are interested in volunteering, please  register for either September 27^th, or October 25^th  by calling the Ministry (813) 571 – 1556, or email – cp@cynthiapinckneyministries.org.  Available seating is limited, so call and reserve your place. If you are unable to attend the class but would like to volunteer in another area of service, inform us at that time. There are a few remaining areas of service that do not require training.

THANKSGIVING DAY:  Our 5^th Annual Community Thanksgiving Day Dinner will be held at the Bill Carey Boys and Girls Club – 213 N Knights Avenue, Brandon, FL 33510, from 11:00 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. Everyone involved in the set-up on Wednesday, November 26, (the day before Thanksgiving) and the completion of set-up early Thanksgiving morning, will be contacted as to what time to report. Finger foods and drinks will be served on Wednesday evening for anyone coming directly from work.  activities planned for our guests.

THANKSGIVING DAY MENU AND NEEDS LIST:  Our Product Needs List for Thanksgiving is already posted on the website, but the Menu and Needs List for the Dinner will be posted in a few days. We want to make this the “Best Year Ever” for God’s people, and if you would like to make a donation towards the dinner, please do so by check, money order, cash or PayPal on the website. Our caterer (and team) from the last 3 years, will be donating her time to prepare the food, and we only need to purchase what is needed. If you have any questions, please feel free to inquire.

DROP-OFF SITES FOR DONATED PRODUCTS:  Name and Addresses of Drop-off Sites for Donated Products will be placed on the website by the end of September.

We humbly thank each of you for what you have already done for the Ministry. We can’t do what we do, without you. Last year, we had over 900 people to walk through the doors of the Boys and Girls door on Thanksgiving Day, and we are looking forward to another banner year. We learned lots last year, and have put parameters in place so we can perform in an excellent manner. Thanks for helping us help those less fortunate, and to bring many people together for fellowship.

 VOLUNTEERS – YOU ARE THE GREATEST!!

 

Volunteers & Friends of Ministry:

Our Outreach Activity to the homeless and needy on Saturday, July 19, was successful. We fed a total of 68 individuals – 15 children, 22 women and 28 men. Every month we are seeing an increase in family units coming out not only to be fed, but are asking for canned and staple food items. We served a hot meal, gave out clothing, shoes, an assortment of toiletries, socks, children books, and handed out 35 bags of groceries. Many expressed their thankfulness for what they were receiving because of the desperate need they have found themselves in. There was a 72 year old grandmother who kept saying thank-you, because she didn’t have much food at home to last her until the 1^st of the month. We were so glad we were there for her, and for the extended family.

Our Next Outreach Activity is Saturday, August 16, at Able Body Labor – 12006 Martin Luther King, Seffner, FL 33584.  Set-up is at 11:15 p.m., and dinner will be served at 12:00 p.m.

Volunteer Training Classes are on-going. If you would like to participate in the Thanksgiving/Christmas Dinners, but have not taken the class, please do so as soon as possible. Visit the website www.cynthiapinckneyministries.org for the time and date of the next training, and to also sign up. If you have any questions, please contact Cynthia by phone (813) 571 – 1556, or email.

Training classes are not needed in this and a few other areas.   We will need help with set-up the day before Thanksgiving (Wednesday, November 26, from 6 – 8 p.m., and also on Thanksgiving morning, Thursday, November 27, from 9.- 11:00 a.m. If your schedule conflicts with taking the volunteer training class but you would love to volunteer your time, this would be the ideal area for you to offer your assistance.There are a few other areas of which training is not required. For more info, call or email. (Finger foods and drinks will be offered if you are coming directly from work).

The Thanksgiving/Christmas Needs List is posted on the webiste, so please take a moment to see how you, your group or organization can be an integral part of the 5^th Annual Thanksgiving Dinner to the homeless, needy, hungry and displaced.

The Ministry will be offering Opportunities for Volunteers to help sort and pack clothing, shoes, toiletries and other miscellaneous items for our Thanksgiving/Christmas giveaways on September 6 and 13, October 4 and 11, and November 1,8,15 and 22. If you are interested in helping, please email/call for more information.

The Ministry thanks each of you for the part you play in helping us be a blessing to our less fortunate. Without your help, support and prayers, we would not be able to provide assistance to the many who call, or referred to us each week.

Cynthia Pinckney – 08/08/08

THE STORM DIDN’T STOP THE FEEDING OF THE HOMELESS -  NEEDY

The summer storm w/lightining didn’t stop the monthly feeding of the homeless and needy at Labor Finders on Saturday, June 21, 2008. In particular, that day was the most successful feeding we have had since inception February, 2007, and also with the most volunteers (24) showing up braving the downpour of lightining and rain. Even though most of the volunteers were soaked, we all felt joy being able to serve the many people who showed up during the worst rain storm the Ministry has witnessed during a feeding. We had 35 men, 36 women, 14 children and 2 infants needing a helping hand and we were happy to be there to honor our commitment to them. We noticed there were more family units asking for canned and staple food items for their households than ever before… because they are finding that they don’t have enough food stamps to last until the 1^st of the next month. We were thankful we had more than enough food, drinks and desserts for everyone. We gave out clothing, shoes, toiletries, workboots, socks, canned food items, etc., and we also offered blood pressure checks by a licensed RN.

Our 5^th Volunteer Training Class for the 2008 Thanksgiving and Christmas Dinner on July 26 is full, but there are yet openings for classes held on the 4^th Saturday’s in August – October. If you are interested in serving during these events, please go to the website and register. The classes are filling up fast, and only volunteers who have taken the classes will be allowed to serve during these days. If you are only interested in helping to set-up the day before Thanksgiving, please call to be added to the roster. If your church group or organization is interested in having me come and conduct the volunteer training on site, please get in touch with the office.

I would like to thank all of you who donate in some way to the Ministry… whether it is your most valuable asset – your time, tangible material or financial giftings, we appreciate all that you do. We can’t serve the community in an excellent manner without the help and support of our community/area churches, and we are blessed to have you in our corner. We especially like to acknowledge the help from the Community Service Team - Fishhawk Volunteers Youth Group for braving the rain with us. Remember, we are a 501( c)(3) non-profit organization, and all donations are tax deductible.