Joe - March 2021

I was in a collaborative meeting in another city recently and one of the people in the room was the leader of a government funded community action agency. She confided in me, “I have more money than I know what to do with. I’m telling everyone who knows of a need to send them to me.” I asked her if she felt that approach might crowd out neighbors and churches who would typically be involved in caring for those in need. She assured me (and later others in the room) that everyone should send people in need to her first because of the resource she had. I’m glad we think differently. Unfortunately, when the referral process is prioritized by resource rather than relationship, we’ll always crowd out real compassion. Thankfully, that didn’t happen in Joe’s case. After his wife left him and their children, the state took them. Since, Joe has been working hard to get his kids back and he’s close.

“For that to happen, I need my 2 bedroom place to become a 3 bedroom place. Thankfully, there’s a program like Neighbor Connect. With assistance from a local children’s home, financial help from one local church and volunteer labor from another, Neighbor Connect has helped me get a wall built, creating the third bedroom I need. If it wasn’t for Watered Gardens’ Neighbor Connect ministry and their relationships in the community, I don’t know when I’d be able to have my kids back home with me. I praise God, and I thank you so much for what you do.”

Neighbor Connect is a Watered Gardens ministry that connects one neighbor’s skill to another neighbor’s need. Thank you for your support. You’re helping us empower neighbors to build a better community.

James Whitford

Co-Founder and Executive Director

PS: To find out more about becoming a Neighbor Connect volunteer yourself, visit neighborconnect.us.