Email - Volunteer Update - December 2010

Here's the monthly update email I sent to volunteers for December 2010:

Greetings, Wonderful Breakthrough Volunteers!
As we gear up for this delightful Holiday season, there are lots of opportunities for volunteering with us at Breakthrough Urban Ministries. We need your help in order to make these events a success, so please come out and join us when you're able.
DECEMBER MEAL OPPORTUNITIES 

December is HUGE for meal-serving at Breakthrough.  We need TONS of help, particularly at the Men's serve! If you've ever wanted to come and check out Breakthrough, this is the time.  And please bring friends! The more, the merrier.  :)

Here are the details:

• Friday, December 17th - Women's Facility (AKA Joshua Center)
• For the Women's Meal, we need volunteers willing to help lead a craft, volunteers to help prepare food and decorations/decorators
  
• Monday, December 20th - Men's Facility
  
• For the Men's Meal, we need volunteers willing to bring side dishes and deserts, volunteers to serve as waitstaff and decorations/decorators.

Let me know if you'd like to sign up for either or both of these meal times and I'll make sure to reserve a spot for you - and don't forget to bring your friends and loved ones!

NOTE: DECEMBER DATE CHANGE
For the month of December only, we'll be serving at the Men's facility on the 3rd Monday of the month, Monday, December 20th,

The meal we serve at the Women's facility will remain the same - the 3rd Friday of the month - Friday, December 17th instead of the 2nd Thursday.

CHRISTMAS STORE
The fabulous Breakthrough Christmas Store is right around the corner: http://stage.breakthrough.org/general/60/annual-christmas-store, Saturday, December 18th.  Don and I are on the hook for serving on the hospitality committee that morning.  Please let us know if you're interested in coming with us to pass out hot chocolate and keep the snack table full. Breakthrough also needs volunteers for gift wrapping, stocking the store and other areas as well.  Please contact Liz Laird directly if you're available to help that Saturday and want to get involved: elaird@breakthrough.org.

BRATSCHIE HOLIDAY OPEN LOFT
Mark your calendars! We're hosting our Annual Holiday Party again this year to benefit Breakthrough's Christmas store on Sunday, 12/12, 12-4 PM and you're invited!  Come over to ring in this festive time of year with us - and while you're at it, bring an unwrapped toy or gift with you to donate to the store.  Our address is 900 S Wabash Ave, #706.  Call if you have any questions or need directions (312) 545-1023 (Don).

BREAKTHROUGH'S NEWSLETTER

There are many more opportunities to get involved at Breakthrough.  Here's a link to their latest monthly newsletter update: http://stage.breakthrough.org/article/100/get-involved-oct-2010.  It includes information on prayer gatherings, Arloa's book (The Invisible - awesome read!), and a lot of information about Breakthrough's Fresh Market program.  If you're interested in urban farming at all - you'll want to check out the Fresh Market - it's doing some really great things in that area.

OUR WONDERFUL BLOG
Don't forget to check out our blog: http://wcbreakthrough.blogspot.com/. This blog keeps an archive of all the monthly update emails, and there's also a lot of unique information here that's just good to know. Feel free to bookmark the blog for easy reference.

Breakthrough's Official November Newsletter

November 2010

Ministry Focus  a look into the impact of Breakthrough

Share The Spirit Of Giving

  It’s a great joy to give gifts to others, and many of us feel that in abundance at Christmastime. Unfortunately, for many of Breakthrough’s guests and neighbors, holiday gift-giving brings on an added stress with little money to spare. More >>

In All Things, Being Thankful

Although she will not spend Thanksgiving with her own family this year, Donna will not be alone. She also has much gratitude to express. “I praise God that I’m not still using drugs,” she says. “I praise God for the air I breathe. I am thankful for the people who have been placed in my path to help me and remind me of where I’ve been and how much God loves me.”

Donna has been a guest in Breakthrough Urban Ministries’ Interim Housing program for just over a month. She is grateful to have a safe, nurturing place to stay while she continues to put her life in order.

More >>

The Latest

Good Food And Conversation…

It’s Not Just For Thanksgiving!

Myriame, a guest in Breakthrough’s Interim Housing program, has fond memories of family Thanksgivings in South Dakota. “My dad’s side of the family was large, so there were lots of us around the table. We’d spend the day playing sports…tackle football, basketball, croquet – all kinds of things,” she says. “And we always had plenty of great food.” More >>

LOOKING TO SUPPORT THE BREAKTHROUGH INTERIM HOUSING PROGRAM?
The following are urgent needs in each center:

• Towels (bath and face towels)
• Linen-blankets, sheets, pillows (twin size)
• Socks, gloves, hats, scarfs
• Foot and hand warmers
• Toiletries (soap, deodorant, toothbrushes, toothpaste)

Outreach:

• snacks (hot chocolate packs, chips, cookies, water)
• gloves, hats, scarfs

All donations can be dropped off at the Breakthrough Ministry Center (402 N St. Louis)

GET INVOLVED

Upcoming Volunteer Engage Events

 Thursday, December 2nd, 6-7pm**: Prayer gathering, focusing on Breakthrough’s programs. (**Prayer gatherings will always occur the first Thursday of the month, from 6-7pm, at the Breakthrough Ministry Center.)

This Month’s Volunteer Focus: Holiday Service Events

Thanksgiving Baskets through the Fresh Market

While Thanksgiving is a time of joyful celebration for the many blessings in our lives, pulling together a Thanksgiving supper with all the trimmings can often be expensive.

This year, the Breakthrough Fresh Market will distribute over 400 Thanksgiving baskets into the community.  On Saturday, November 20th, volunteers will gather to assemble the baskets from 10am-12pm.  The baskets will then be distributed through the Fresh Market from 1pm-4pm.

You can help out by serving as a volunteer that Saturday, or by donating items for the baskets.

Items needed include:

• 14 lb turkeys
• 1 oz packages of brown gravy
• 15 oz cans of corn
• 5 oz boxes of cornbread stuffing mix
• 16 oz cans of cranberry sauce
• 13 oz packages of instant mashed potatoes
• 15 oz cans of yams

All donations can be dropped off at the Breakthrough Ministry Center (402 N St. Louis) by Wednesday, November 17th.

The 12 Days of Christmas

The holiday season is a time when many people’s thoughts turn to serving in their community.  In an effort to provide small groups, offices, churches and social groups an opportunity to serve together, Breakthrough has put together our Twelve Days of Christmas, offering twelve different service opportunities throughout the holiday season.  Learn more about these opportunities.

Volunteer Needs

To make our “12 Days of Christmas” a success, we need you, your family, your small group or your office to be involved!  Opportunities range from hosting a Christmas party to helping to sort and price gifts.
The Fresh Market is also currently looking for volunteers who can help with the online registration of Fresh Market guests.  Hours are negotiable.

For more information about these volunteer opportunities or others, please contact Liz at volunteer@breakthrough.org.

How You Can Pray:

 Prayers for East Garfield Park and Chicago:

• That the love and peace of Christ would rule in East Garfield Park.
• God would meet the physical needs of warm clothing and shelter for our homeless day guests.
• Breakthrough staff and volunteers would reach out to the local senior adults building, especially to those with no family.
• Donors and friends would continue to consider Breakthrough for their year-end giving.
• God would mend and heal broken relationships.
• God would continue to develop a spirit of community among and between residents of East Garfield Park and Breakthrough.

 Prayers for Staff and Volunteers:

• Peace for staff and volunteers during the “rush” of the holiday season.
• Breakthrough would demonstrate the love of Christ to our guests and neighbors in this season of joyfulness.
• Volunteers would consider how they can commit to serving on a regular basis, not just for the holidays.
• Breakthrough would collect enough Thanksgiving and Christmas food items for our holiday baskets, as well as items for our Breakthrough Christmas Store.
• God would give great vision to the Breakthrough leadership team for 2011.

 For more information on how you can get plugged in as a volunteer at Breakthrough, contact Liz at volunteer@breakthrough.org or 773.346.1771.

Bratschie Holiday Open Loft

We're hosting our annual Open Loft again this year to celebrate the Holiday season with friends and loved ones, as well as provide a drop-off location for gifts for the Christmas Store.  So come on down and bring a friend or two.  We promise delicious morsels and a festive spirit!

Sunday, December 12th.
Noon to 4 PM
900 S Wabash

You can find some great gift ideas for the Christmas Store on their website: http://www.breakthrough.org/general/60/annual-christmas-store.

Can't wait to see you there!  :)

Encouraging Word from a Breakthrough Guest

This note was passed along by the Volunteer Coordinator, Liz.

On Friday night, the volunteers after serving wonderful Pecan-Ricotta stuffed pasta shell and cucumber/tomato salad - sat with various guests. Glenn, Ron, Edward and myself had a young lady sitting with us. We had such a miraculous time, that by 9:15- which is quite late to be sitting for a meal, all the volunteers were around our table, laughing until they /we were crying, enjoying each others company, the Word of God, and our own stories. I highlight this because I think it's a great way to repay those volunteers- they get to know the people they are serving, share some of the Word, and leave feeling refreshed and satisfied that their efforts are appreciated and an important part of the steps we men need as we regain control over our lives AND souls. To the man, even Edward who is not very religious,felt good and exceptionally clean and bright after that small gathering. I think maybe encouraging the other guests to invite the volunteers to sit with them more often, to feel comfortable opening up to them- I have yet to meet a judgmental volunteer, and giving back just a little of their time for the efforts and sustenance that they bring to Breakthrough. (And not just food).

Coffee is DELICIOUS!

And even more delicious when you're giving to Breakthrough with every single cup that you drink!

As you may know, Breakthrough is partnering with Land of a Thousand Hills coffee company to sell the Breakthrough Arise blend of coffee.  A sizable portion of the proceeds for every bag of coffee sold at www.drinkcoffeedogood.com/breakthrough goes directly to Breakthrough!  Not only that, Land of a Thousand Hills is a fair trade company based in Rwanda, doing amazing work as the country continues to rebuild following the 1994 genocide.  I want to encourage you to consider buying your coffee (and maybe your office or church's coffee too) through this awesome site!

Email - Volunteer Update - November 2010

Greetings, Wonderful Breakthrough Volunteers!There's a lot going on this fall, and as we gear up for the Holiday season, there are lots of opportunities for getting involved at Breakthrough Urban Ministries. Take a moment to read (or skim) this month's updates - bear with me, this one is long, but oh so completely worth it!  And let me know if you're interested in helping with anything...

NOVEMBER MEAL OPPORTUNITIES 

The following meal dates are for November:

• Thursday, November 11th - Men's Facility
  
• Friday, November 19th - Women's Facility (AKA Joshua Center)

Let me know if you'd like to sign up for either or both of these meal times and I'll make sure to reserve a spot for you.  If this is your first time, we usually meet between 6:30-7 PM to set-up and prep food, serve the meals around 8 PM and make plates for ourselves - and then take off after dinner, usually by 9 PM.  You'll get a more detailed email with the address and exact times the week of our serving date if you sign up - so be sure to let me know if you're interested.  Also - if you'd like to help contribute to the cost of groceries (NOT required), the suggested donation is $10 - payable to the chef for the meal.

CHRISTMAS STORE
The fabulous Breakthrough Christmas Store is right around the corner: http://stage.breakthrough.org/general/60/annual-christmas-store, Saturday, December 18th. The Bratschies are planning to host our Annual Holiday Party to benefit Breakthrough on Sunday, 12/12, to collect donations - and ring in this festive time of year - so mark your calendars.  More details to follow.

CRAFTING 

Breakthrough is looking for a group of 2-3 volunteers that are interested in leading crafts on a monthly basis with a group of women that used to be guests at Breakthrough's Joshua Center. This is a great opportunity to build long-term relationships.  Please contact me if you're interested.

THANKSGIVING BASKETS
On Saturday, November 20th, the Breakthrough Fresh Market will be putting together Thanksgiving baskets to distribute to approximately 400 Fresh Market guests.  You can help out by serving Saturday (11/20) AND donating items!  Donations are being accepted now through November 19th at the Breakthrough Ministry Center (402 N St. Louis).  The items needed are:

14 lbs turkeys
1 oz packages of brown gravy
15 oz cans of corn
5 oz boxes of cornbread stuffing mix
16 oz cans of cranberry sauce
13 oz packages of instant mashed potatoes
15 oz cans of yams

BREAKTHROUGH'S NEWSLETTER

There are many more opportunities to get involved at Breakthrough.  Here's a link to their latest monthly newsletter update: http://stage.breakthrough.org/article/100/get-involved-oct-2010.  It includes information on prayer gatherings, Arloa's book (The Invisible - awesome read!), and a lot of information about Breakthrough's Fresh Market program.  If you're interested in urban farming at all - you'll want to check out the Fresh Market - it's doing some really great things in that area.
 
ATTN: AMBIANCE AWARE

If you love to plan meals, ambiance or fancy yourself a type of Martha Stewart-ish host(ess), then you may want to consider joining the planning team as we brainstorm and plan for ways to make our monthly meal times more enjoyable for guests at Breakthrough by using themes and decorations to really put in that extra effort.  The first meal we'll be helping to plan is the December serves for both the men and the women. This is a big serve for both - so it's a good one for us to cut our teeth on...

If you're interested in joining us, we'd love to have you - just send me a quick note with your level of interest and days/time when you're available and most likely to be able to participate.

DECEMBER DATE CHANGE
For the month of December only, we'll be serving on the 3rd Monday of the month, Monday, December 20th, instead of the 2nd Thursday.

The women's serve will remain the same - the 3rd Friday of the month - Friday, December 17th.

Breakthrough Needs Men's Suits!

Breakthrough is looking for work-appropriate suits for the men of the Breakthrough Ministry Center.  Quite a few of the men have been participating in job fairs and interviews, but the suit collection they currently have is too small.  We specifically need waist size 36, 38, and 40 pants, in a variety of lengths.  If you have sports coats, dress pants, non-crazy ties and/or suits that you no longer wear or could spare, please donate them!



Liz Laird has even offered to come pick them up if that would help!  


Here's her info:
Liz Laird

Volunteer Coordinator
Breakthrough Urban Ministries

402 N St. Louis Ave

Chicago, IL 60624

773-346-1771

Kitchen Needs - Target Wish List

Breakthrough staff have recently created a Target Gift List for all of Breakthrough's kitchen utensil/pans/item needs.  If you've served with us lately, you probably know that the serving utensils, pans, etc., aren't the best... 

If you or your group might be interested in purchasing something for the Breakthrough kitchen, you can find the list at http://www.target.com/registry/landing?ref=nav_registries and search first name: Breakthrough, last name: Ministries.  You'll see the list as "Kitchen Needs."  Anything purchased through the list should ship directly to Breakthrough Ministry Center: 402 N St Louis Ave, Chicago, IL 60624.

Greeting Cards Make Great Crafts!!!

... and even better gifts!!!

We were finally able to make greeting cards with the ladies staying at Breakthrough's Joshua Center, many thanks to Melissa and Joann!  We did this prior to September's monthly meal and it was a huge hit!  The ladies were able to make some really cool cards for their friends and loved ones. I even made a birthday card for one of my best friends! We're hoping to make greeting cards again - this time closer to the Holidays!

Next up - pumpkins!  So grab your sharpies and your best carving tools!  : )

Email - Volunteer Update - October 2010

Greetings, beautiful Breakthrough volunteers!

Here are the updates for October 2010.  Enjoy!

Annual Benefit Dinner

The Annual Benefit Dinner is a huge event for Breakthrough and their big fundraising event of the year. Don and I are hosting a table at this year's Annual Benefit Dinner again so if you haven't yet been able to make it to one of Breakthrough's Annual Benefit Dinners, now is definitely the time! 

Mark your calendars for Friday, October 22, 2010 and plan to join us to hear stories of how God is moving in, at and through those at Breakthrough Urban Ministries. This year's benefit is at the Hyatt Regency O'Hare (9300 Bryn Mawr Ave Rosemont, IL 60018)

Follow this link for more detailed information: http://www.breakthrough.org/general/43/annual-benefit-2010. To register, just follow the prompts - under "Event Information" select "Bratschie, Amanda" as a table host if you'd like to sit at our table. 

Meal Details
And now - without further adieu...
The following meal dates are for October:

• Thursday, October 14th - Men's Facility
  
• Friday, October 15th - Women's Facility (AKA Joshua Center)

Notice that this month's serving dates are during the same week - that doesn't happen every month... it's our happy fun-time special timing month - we usually serve the 2nd Thursdays and 3rd Fridays.  Since it's such a special month - you should definitely sign up...  ;)
Let me know if you'd like to sign up for either or both of these happy fun-time special meal times and I'll make sure to reserve a spot (or two) for you.  If this is your first time, we usually meet between 6:30-7 PM to set-up and prep food, serve the meals around 8 PM and make plates for ourselves - and then take off after dinner, usually by 9 PM.  You'll get a more detailed email with the address and exact times the week of our serving date if you sign up - so be sure to let me know if you're interested.  Also - if you'd like to help contribute to the cost of groceries (NOT required), the suggested donation is $10 - payable to the chef for the week.

Breakthrough's Volunteer Engage Newsletter

There are many more opportunities to get involved at Breakthrough.  Here's a link to their latest monthly newsletter update: http://www.breakthrough.org/article/95/get-involved-sept-2010.  It includes information on prayer gatherings, Arloa's book (The Invisible - awesome read!), the running program and how you can be praying for Breakthrough - as well as more opportunities for serving.

Email - Volunteer Update - September 2010

Greetings, Wonderful Breakthrough Volunteers - 

Here are the updates for September 2010.  Enjoy!  :)

Meal Details
The following meal dates are for September:

• Thursday, September 9th - Men's Facility 
• Friday, September 17th - Women's Facility (AKA Joshua Center)

Spaces are limited, so please let me know if you'd like to sign up for either or both of these meal times and I'll make sure to reserve a spot for you.  If this is your first time, we usually meet between 6:30-7 PM to set-up and prep food, serve the meals around 8 PM and make plates for ourselves - and then take off after dinner, usually by 9 PM.  You'll get a more detailed email with the address and exact times the week of our serving date if you sign up - so be sure to let me know if you're interested.  Also - if you'd like to help contribute to the cost of groceries (NOT required), the suggested donation is $10 - payable to the chef for the week.

Crafting Helps Connect
Crafting continues to be a huge hit with the Women staying at the Joshua Center.  We'd like to have a craft time every month for the women - or at least when possible - so craft ideas are always welcome.  If you have any craft ideas, or would be willing to lead craft time for the ladies, please drop me a line and let me know.

I think we're going to try to make greeting cards with the women this month (it didn't happen in August after all), so let me know if you have any supplies or other goodies to share as we craft our hearts out!  :)

Other Breakthrough News

Check out the newsletter published by Breakthrough for yet even more news and events that you can use to get involved.  http://breakthrough.org/article/93/get-involved-aug-2010#healthy

SAVE THE DATE!  Breakthrough's 2010 Annual Benefit

Mark your calendars for Friday, October 22, 2010 at 6 PM and join us at the Hyatt Regency O'Hare.  Don and I will be hosting a table again this year and we'd love for you to sit at our table.  More details to come!  

LuminocityBreakthrough was a huge hit at this year's Luminocity event on Sunday, August 22nd.  A huge thanks to everyone that was able to volunteer and help out to make that event a success!
And as an added bonus, Arloa Sutter (founder of Breakthrough) was interviewed on stage at the beginning of service on 8/22, along with one of our fabulous volunteers, Melissa Hovey.  For those of you that missed it - Melissa shared with our church family about the ways that serving at Breakthrough has blessed her and her family. It was an inspiring interview.

Email - Volunteer Update - August 2010

Greetings, Wonderful Breakthrough Volunteers -
Here are the updates for August 2010. Enjoy! :)

Meal Details
The following meal dates are for August:

* Thursday, August 12th - Men's Facility
* Friday, August 20th - Women's Facility (AKA Joshua Center)

Spaces are limited, so please let me know if you'd like to sign up for either or both of these meal times and I'll make sure to reserve a spot for you. If this is your first time, we usually meet between 6:30-7 PM to set-up, serve the meals around 8 PM and take off after dinner, usually by 9 PM. You'll get a more detailed email with the address and exact times the week of our serving date if you sign up - so be sure to let me know if you're interested. Also - if you'd like to help contribute to the cost of groceries (NOT required), the suggested donation is $10 - payable to the chef for the week.

Crafting Helps Connect
Crafting continues to be a huge hit with the Women staying at the Joshua Center. We'd like to have a craft time every month for the women - or at least when possible - so craft ideas are always welcome. If you have any craft ideas, or would be willing to lead craft time for the ladies, please drop me a line and let me know.

I think we're going to try to make greeting cards with the women this month, so let me know if you have any supplies or other goodies to share as we craft our hearts out! :)

Calling ALL Crafters!

We tried something new this past month with the guests staying at the Women's facility (AKA Joshua Center).  Instead of just showing up and serving dinner and leaving, we decided to try our hands at a few crafts.  We had a candy cane nameplate table, a cookie-decorating station and even a ornament table.  It took awhile for our friends at the Joshua Center to get involved, but as soon as they did, they LOVED it!  The crafts were a HUGE success!

Most, if not all, of the Women made all three of the crafts too!  They couldn't stop talking about them!  I saw several of these new friends at the Christmas Store the next morning and I heard so much good stuff about the crafts that they did.  One woman said that she had never decorated a cookie before. Wow!  How cool is it that we were able to provide such a great experience?  And about something that I've definitely taken for granted before.

As a result of the overwhelmingly good time that the Women had, we've decided to do a special craft every month.  And that's where YOU come in.... We need craft leaders and lots of good craft ideas.  So drop me a line at amanda(dot)bratschie(at)gmail(dot)com if you'd like to lead a craft - or if you have crafting ideas that think might work.  Keep in mind that it's for roughly 30 guests staying at Breakthrough - not everyone will participate, but some volunteers will probably make the craft too.

For all our craft ideas, we need to assume that about 35 people will participate and that we'll only have about an hour to put everything together.  Get your artsy hat on and let's get crafty together!  :)