On August 12^th and 19^th, Tree of Life Ministries held its Annual Summer Giveaway events in each of our three regions: Purcellville, Leesburg, and Sterling.

These events are open to Loudoun County residents and beyond, offering free backpacks, school supplies, clothing, furniture, haircuts, and more.  This year, we had over 1000 attendees and gave out 987 backpacks filled with school supplies; additionally, 458 individuals received clothing.  This was all made possible by an army of 275 volunteers and the contributions of numerous local churches and businesses, as well as personal donations of clothing, furniture, backpacks, supplies, and more, from the Loudoun community for which we are beyond grateful.

We are so thrilled to be able to provide this support across the county and our hope is that everyone who attended was blessed by the events and knows they can reach out to Tree of Life should they have a need in the future.

 

 

Grocery Deliveries

Twice a week in each of our three regions, our grocery delivery teams head out into the community to bring food to the most needy among us.  These deliveries contain two to three weeks worth of food and families can call once a month for a delivery – no one is turned away.  So far this year, we have delivered over 75,000 lbs of food!

One of the special things about our model of delivering food is that it gives our volunteers time to pray with the partners, get to know them, and identify other ways Tree of Life can help. So often, this time of prayer and fellowship reveals just how difficult that person’s situation is – whether it be housing insecurity, job loss, family relationship struggles, and the like – but they now have one less thing to worry about: putting food on the table.

If you would like to help us feed Loudoun, consider becoming a regular food donor! Click HERE for our pantry addresses and hours and be sure to follow us on social media (below) for regular pantry needs updates!

 

 

 

 

VOLUNTEER SPOTLIGHT!

We wanted to take a moment to highlight one of our volunteers… Yvette Perri!  

If you know Yvette, you know that she has a heart to serve and everything she does is with others in mind. Over the years, in addition to many other volunteer activities and her busy day-to-day routine, Yvette has volunteered at our annual clothing giveaways. But this year, Yvette stepped up to lead the week of prep and clothing giveaway in our Purcellville region. With her thoughtful leadership, we were able to give over 450 individuals clothing, shoes and more. When reflecting on the week, Yvette said:

“There was not one prayer or need we had that God did not answer!”

 

Thank you, Yvette!  God is good, all the time. 

 

 

 

 

Sterling VIP and Meet & Greet!

Our new Regional Director in Sterling, Rich Shipe, would like to invite you to join him at the next Sterling Volunteer Introduction Program (VIP) session held on September 7th.  Whether you are already a regular volunteer, a donor, or someone who wants to learn more and get involved, this is great opportunity to hear all about what is happening our Sterling region and get acquainted with Rich.

 

 

 

Fundraiser Update!

Our Annual Transitional Housing Fundraiser has ALMOST reached its goal… thanks to the generosity of so many in our community, we have funded 4 out of 5 apartments!

These apartments provide stable living conditions for the women in our program which lays the foundation for them to meet their goals and improve their circumstances.

You can help provide shelter and build hope – donate today!

 

 

 

 

 

Annual Golf Tournament

Tree of Life’s Annual Golf Tournament is October 13th at Raspberry Golf and Hunt Club in Leesburg!

This event is a great way to enjoy some sportsmanship and fellowship, all while making a positive impact on your community.  Sign up as an individual or a foursome, or check out our many sponsorship opportunities!

Click the button below or email Jordan Smith at jsmith@tolministries.org.

 

 

 

 

 

 

BACK TO SCHOOL! Whether or not you have school-aged children or grandchildren, most of us have someone we know who is going back to school!  Just as well, as we all have something to learn, and the Bible is here to teach us! Peter was an astute teacher in the Bible, and wrote the following for us to read in 2 Peter 1:5-9: For this very reason, make every effort to add to your faith goodness; and to goodness, knowledge; and to knowledge, self-control; and to self-control, perseverance; and to perseverance, godliness; and to godliness, mutual affection; and to mutual affection, love. For if you possess these qualities in increasing measure, they will keep you from being ineffective and unproductive in your knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ. But whoever does not have them is nearsighted and blind, forgetting that they have been cleansed from their past sins. This passage helps us to see a few things that Jesus wants to teach us. Peter makes it clear that the foundation is built on our faith.  Without faith, no other building blocks can be added. Many of the things that are to be added to our faith are fruits of the spirit (Galatians 5:22-23), including goodness, self-control, perseverance and love.  As such, we can see the Holy Spirit is actually the One doing the adding of each new attribute. The natural progression of the attributes to be added to our faith indicates that there is a continual building of our sanctification—we are continually learning to be like Christ. Each one of these attributes sets itself up for the next attribute to be added.  If we are not willing to participate in this process, the Scripture indicates that this unwillingness will keep us from being ineffective and unproductive in the knowledge of Jesus.  The reverse is also true, if we are willing for Christ to change us, He will grow us by adding these attributes to our faith, so that we can be effective and productive for Him! Happy Learning! May you be blessed! Chaplain Wayne Ruckman