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LSSM

LSSM Spotlight-February 2011

West Michigan LSSM Spotlight – February 2011
 
Honoring refugee women in Grand Rapids on March 8
By Doug Lachniet, Director of Major/Planned Gifts, Lutheran Social Services of Michigan
 
In the words of author Anaïs Nin, “Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one’s courage.” The proof of this is demonstrated by the courage of our refugees who left their own culture and, assisted by Lutheran Social Services of Michigan, resettled here. The women, in particular, have faced danger and adversity and struggled to keep their families together.
 
The 100th anniversary of International Women’s Day is Tuesday, March 8, 2011. To mark this celebration, Lutheran Social Services of Michigan has organized a free downtown event, “Join Me On the Bridge.” This gathering will be sponsored in part by funding from the North Kent chapter of Thrivent Financial for Lutherans.
 
Everything begins at 5 p.m. at Ferris State University’s Riverfront Café, 219 N. Front Street, north of Wealthy Street, with music by Brie Stoner. You’ll hear the survival story of Florence Bish, a Congolese refugee living in Grand Rapids, plus encouraging words from a successful downtown female business owner. Take part in the decorating of a banner and then march with us to the Fulton Street Bridge.
 
“We will spread out on the bridge for a group photo with this banner,” said Dana Doll of LSSM Refugee Services. “We’ll contribute that picture to a global collection of photos of women who meet on bridges to commemorate the 100th anniversary of International Women’s Day. Together, we will spread the message that ‘women are bridges to international peace and development.’”
 
This event is also designed to connect women from our community and churches with refugee women, and to raise awareness about volunteer opportunities for helping refugees in Grand Rapids. Please join us!
 
Last year’s inaugural “Join Me On the Bridge” worldwide celebration involved more than 20,000 women on four continents at 108 local community bridge events. It was created by Women for Women International, whose mission is “helping women survivors of war rebuild their lives.”
 
For more information about this event, contact the Refugee Services office at Lutheran Social Services of Michigan at 616-356-1934.
 
For Lutheran Social Services’ free monthly e-newsletter, Epistle, register at www.lssm.org. Watch our videos on the “We Are LSSM” channel on YouTube.com














West Michigan LSSM Spotlight – February 2011
 
Your gifts can help meet special needs
By Doug Lachniet, Director of Major/Planned Gifts, Lutheran Social Services of Michigan
 
Scott Spencer, manager of Campus Services at MapleCreek, was excited. His maintenance crew was about to bring out their brand new hydraulic ladder, and Gary Price, Environmental Services Supervisor for The Terraces at MapleCreek, would be going up and changing some blown out light bulbs in the streetlights on the senior living campus. 
 
The crew wheeled the unit across campus to the first spot and set the four stabilizing legs so that the leveling bubble was dead center on the guide. Scott used a lever to hand pump the hydraulic fluid that lifted up the platform at the top of the ladder. Gary climbed the steps with a new bulb in his pocket and a power screwdriver in a bucket.
 
“This is the best present,” Gary Price said. “Before this, I would have to put up a long extension ladder, lean it against the light pole, then climb up and hang onto the pole with one hand and lean way out away from the ladder to try to loosen the screws of the light cover and replace the bulb. That was so dangerous. There was always a risk of my falling from up there and being seriously injured or worse. I told Scott that with this very first bulb-change this morning, this piece of equipment was worth every penny we paid for it.” 
 
Scott Spencer agreed. Now, not only will the walkways and drives at MapleCreek be kept safer with good lighting, but so will its workers who maintain the lights.
 
Purchases like this can be made because of our generous donors, who make the “extras” possible. Donations are welcomed throughout the year for equipment like this and for other needs. If you can help us, please make your gift to "MapleCreek" and send it to: MapleCreek, 2000 32nd St. SE, Grand Rapids, MI 40598. Thank you for your kind support of MapleCreek and Lutheran Social Services of Michigan.
 
 
For Lutheran Social Services’ free monthly e-newsletter, Epistle, register at www.lssm.org. Watch our videos on the “We Are LSSM” channel on YouTube.com
 

LSSM January 2011

West Michigan LSSM Spotlight – January 2011
 
Compassionate in-home care: what sets LSSM apart?
By Doug Lachniet, Director of Major/Planned Gifts, Lutheran Social Services of Michigan
 
Anyone helped by the Lutheran Social Services of Michigan in-home services team in West Michigan knows what a dedicated, caring group they are. They serve about 240 people, at MapleCreek in Grand Rapids and across Ionia, Kent, Barry, Newaygo, Montcalm, Mecosta, Mason and Muskegon Counties. A grateful client said, “My caregiver is a ray of sunshine in an otherwise dull day.”
 
Pam Moran worked 10 years in the field and is the office problem solver. “All of us here have the heart and mind of a caregiver. We’re willing to do whatever it takes to make sure the client is taken care of. ‘Heart’ is something you can’t teach, and we definitely have it.”
 
Regional Supervisor Pam Van Spyker explained, “Our clients need us. We serve a wide variety of people, from those wanting our services a couple hours a week to those who are fully bed-bound and require 7-days-a-week care. We enable independence as much as possible.”
 
With new home care businesses opening up, Colleen Mahon-Van Doren, West Michigan Regional Manager for In-Home Services, warned, “People must be careful when choosing a company. Lutheran Social Services does a thorough background check, and drug and TB testing, for our caregivers. It means extra effort and cost, but it’s important to protect our clients. If you hire a business that doesn’t screen its workers, you become vulnerable in your home.”
 
Known informally as “MapleCreek at Home,” the West Michigan office is part of the statewide In-Home Services division of Lutheran Social Services of Michigan, founded in 1934. “We are faith-based here,” Pam Moran added, “and it really shows in how we treat our clients. One person told us, ‘The caring and friendliness of caregivers is what I like most about the services I am receiving.’ Our mission is ‘serving people as an expression of the love of Christ,’ and that alone makes us stand out.” Need some extra help? The West Michigan In-Home Services office can be reached at 616-242-0835.
 
For Lutheran Social Services’ free monthly e-newsletter, Epistle, register at www.lssm.org. Watch our videos on the “We Are LSSM” channel on YouTube.com
 
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Michigan Public Acts 256 and 231 of 1994 reward financial contributions to Michigan food banks with a 50% State income tax credit (half your money back!). Limits: up to a $100 credit ( for a $200 gift ) for an individual, $200 (for a $400 gift) for a married couple filing jointly, and for businesses, 5% of the business's tax liability before claiming any other credits, or $5,000, whichever is less. In addition to the State credit, your gift to a Michigan food bank should also qualify for a normal Federal income tax charitable deduction.