Host Congregation of the Month
Shawnee United Methodist Church
From Devry Shirk, Host Coordinator
Shawnee United Methodist has been involved with Family Promise for approximately eight years. I, Devry Shirk, am the host coordinator for SUMC. I had heard about Family Promise from other area churches. At that time I was involved in a Bible study with many of my friends and after discussing it with them and our pastor, Bryan Bucher, I decided to get involved with this program. In the beginning, my Bible study friends were the primary volunteers. Since then, many other members of our congregation have gotten involved.
Over the years we have served many families. Some of my best memories have been when we have hosted during the holidays or other special times . We have had Christmas celebrations, birthday parties, Super Bowl parties, Valentine’s Day parties, Easter egg hunts, Thanksgiving gatherings and so much more.
As the host coordinator I spend a lot of time with our families. Therefore, I typically have many opportunities to get to know them on a deeper level. I have had numerous late night conversations over the years. I am hopeful that I am helping in some small way. As the years have passed, I have realized that I get just as much encouragement from them as they do from me. Some of them have shown me what true determination, hope and faith looks like. I will never forget the single mom who stayed with us in the winter when we were experiencing sub zero temperatures. She was working at Procter and Gamble, third shift. She had a brand new infant and a toddler. She would take them to a sitter in the middle of the night via a cab. She was covered in hives because she was allergic to Tide and that was the department she was working in. This woman never complained. She was happy and gracious and just so thankful to be in a warm, supportive environment.
I am so thankful that our church is involved in this program. I pray that we can continue to bless many more families. Mostly I am grateful for the blessings that we have received over the years from the families we have served.
Shawnee United Methodist has been involved with Family Promise for approximately eight years. I, Devry Shirk, am the host coordinator for SUMC. I had heard about Family Promise from other area churches. At that time I was involved in a Bible study with many of my friends and after discussing it with them and our pastor, Bryan Bucher, I decided to get involved with this program. In the beginning, my Bible study friends were the primary volunteers. Since then, many other members of our congregation have gotten involved.
Over the years we have served many families. Some of my best memories have been when we have hosted during the holidays or other special times . We have had Christmas celebrations, birthday parties, Super Bowl parties, Valentine’s Day parties, Easter egg hunts, Thanksgiving gatherings and so much more.
As the host coordinator I spend a lot of time with our families. Therefore, I typically have many opportunities to get to know them on a deeper level. I have had numerous late night conversations over the years. I am hopeful that I am helping in some small way. As the years have passed, I have realized that I get just as much encouragement from them as they do from me. Some of them have shown me what true determination, hope and faith looks like. I will never forget the single mom who stayed with us in the winter when we were experiencing sub zero temperatures. She was working at Procter and Gamble, third shift. She had a brand new infant and a toddler. She would take them to a sitter in the middle of the night via a cab. She was covered in hives because she was allergic to Tide and that was the department she was working in. This woman never complained. She was happy and gracious and just so thankful to be in a warm, supportive environment.
I am so thankful that our church is involved in this program. I pray that we can continue to bless many more families. Mostly I am grateful for the blessings that we have received over the years from the families we have served.
