GSA to Host 6th Annual Homeless Walk Through Historic Leesburg, Virginia

300 hundred expected to participate in Leesburg Walk for Shelter

Mark Your Calendars – Saturday September 18, 2010

Pre-registration is at 9 AM. Family activities are from 10 AM until 1 PM.

Douglass Community Center, 407 E. Market Street, Leesburg, Virginia

Call GSA at 703-724-1555 or visit on line at http://www.goodshepherdalliance.org

Join The Good Shepherd Alliance, Inc. (GSA) in our 6th Annual Walk for Shelter on September 18. Celebrate with us our 27th year in meeting the needs of homeless and indigent persons in the Loudoun Community.

Living in Northern Virginia, it’s sometimes easy to forget that there are people living in this area who struggle without one of life’s most basic necessities: affordable housing. This September, we here in Loudoun County will have the opportunity to be part of the solution to that problem. The GSA will be sponsoring the Walk for Shelter which will take participants through the historic section of Leesburg, Virginia. All proceeds will benefit the Loudoun homeless at the GSA shelters for women, children and families located in Purcellville and North Leesburg.

Registration begins at 9 AM at the Douglas Community Center pavilion with the Walk to begin at 10 AM. Lunch and activities commence at 11 AM. Opportunities abound to bring your friends and family. Public School and Home School groups are invited. Churches, youth pastors, Sunday school classes, civic organizations, MOMS Clubs, etc. are all invited. Bring a group from your business, school, church or neighborhood. Wear your company or church T-shirt or bring a company or church banner. We want to show our community that we care and raise support for homeless programs and services in Loudoun County.

Special family activities to follow the walk to include an ice-pop for a donation booth, moon bounce, face painting, mimes performing, balloon animals, free grilled hot dogs and other family activities. Come and join us for a community event and be an advocate for those less fortunate. Registration is $20 for adults, $15 for youth 10 to 18 and children under 10 are free.

We would like to ask you to consider sponsoring our Walk this year. Now is the time! Perhaps your support for the homeless and near-homeless in our community can come through a financial sponsorship, a booth at the event or through facilitating a group to walk with us. Walkathon registration documents are available online through the GSA website. Call today for more sponsorship opportunities.

Common Ground Church has partnered with GSA to help solicit business sponsors and is coordinating the moon bounce, face painting and grilling of hotdogs. Their congregation will be volunteering at our registration tables and helping in various other designated areas of support.

GSA needs the continuous support from our dynamic business community to supply much needed materials, services and funding to maintain and upgrade our facilities. GSA strongly believes that assisting those less fortunate with their most basic needs fosters hope and goodwill among our diverse and fast growing community.

GSA is proud of its cooperative relationship with Loudoun County and Leesburg Town Government.  GSA is grateful to the Leesburg Town Council, Leesburg Police and Parks and Recreation for their cooperation and coordination of this event.

Children lead the way during Good Shepherd Alliance homeless walk on East Market Street. 300 men, women, students and toddlers are expected to walk for Good Shepherd Alliance homeless services and prorams. “Have I not commanded you? Be strong and of good courage; do not be afraid, nor be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.” [Joshua 1:9] Photo courtesy Justin Letendre.

“To whom much is given, of him is much expected. [Luke 12:48] We are a community of plenty and much is expected of us. Please come out and walk with us.

Last year’s walk…

Last year the Walk for Shelter took place on Saturday, September 19, 2009. The Walk for Shelter began in the early morning from the Douglass School Pavilion on the corner of Sycolin Road and East Market Street. The 1.2 mile walk continued west on East Market to Loudoun Street, then on to King Street, through downtown Leesburg, back to East Market then over to Harrison Street past the Government Building and back to the Douglass School. The temperature was a cool 63 degrees during pre-registration and check-in. But the morning warmed up fast and the 1.2 mile walk experienced twice the crowd size from last year as the large contingent snaked its way through the long avenues and then into the beautiful historic district on King Street. Three volunteer photographers, David Madison, Fernando Hernandez and Marinda P. Wong were on hand to capture these precious moments in time. Many grandparents, parents and children walked with GSA board members and staff. Parents said that the walk provided an educational experience that raised awareness about homelessness. The youth especially gained appreciation for the many blessings provided by their own families.

GSA Executive Director Vickie Koth provided the crowd with a pre-walk opening statement. Ms. Koth said, “Praise the Lord for such a beautiful day and thank everyone for coming and thank our sponsors, INOVA, Rock Creek Properties, TD Bank and Common Ground Church.” She provided an overview of the GSA programs: emergency and transitional housing, community outreach and the need for monetary and material donations to support the indigent and homeless population. Koth recognized the great community support and willingness to step forward to volunteer and contribute food and supplies every week. However the GSA has a great need for financial sponsors; even as little as $5 per month does make a difference when many can participate.

Pastor Dave Norman, GSA Board Member and Senior Pastor Crossroads United Methodist Church in Ashburn provided the prayer and blessing. Pastor Norman prayed that all our small steps taken would lead to larger steps toward helping the homeless tomorrow. He believed that each walker might be a voice for those whose voices are rarely heard.

243 people walked to include many children and teens. $7,000 was raised for homeless programs and services and to foster volunteerism in service to alleviate homelessness. Previous walks drew 61, 35, 120 and 138 registered walkers in 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2008, respectively. Past Delegate Dave Poisson, his legislative aide Sandy Martinez and Bob Ohneiser, GSA Board Member and Broad Run School Board Representative, participated in the walk.

The event had several special features to include a medical health tent with INOVA representatives on site at the Douglass Center pavilion. INOVA offered homeless walkers free screenings for blood pressure and body mass index and many walkers took advantage of the free screenings. Common Ground Church transported and installed the moon bounces, sound system and donated and served a wonderful lunch for tons of people. The congregation was an indescribable asset and GSA’s new partner in ministry.

The Good Shepherd Alliance maintains offices on Ashburn Road in Ashburn Village, an emergency shelter and transitional home in North Leesburg and a house for homeless pregnant women in Purcellville. The GSA also operates four thrift stores including a Hope’s Treasures Kids located in Ashburn Commons Shopping Center Plaza at 20630 Ashburn Road. It stocks children’s clothing, shoes, toys and accessories. Get what you need at a price you can afford. GSA’S other thrift stores include a 6,000 square foot store in Sterling and 3,000 square foot store in Ashburn Village. Our fourth store grand opening is set for October 1, 2010 in the Prosperity Center Leesburg (703 East Market Street). For more information about the new store call 703-724-1555.

If you would like to learn more about GSA visit GSA’s website, http://www.goodshepherdalliance.org.

“Blessed be the Lord, who daily loadeth us with benefits” [Psalm 68:19].

Registration starts at 9 AM on Saturday just one hour before the walkathon. The following Churches and organizations walked with the Good Shepherd Alliance on September 19, 2009. Common Ground Church, Community Lutheran Church, Christ Community Church, Cross Current Ministries, Daybreak Community Church, Delta Mime Team, Dranesville Church of the Brethren – Great Falls, Greek Orthodox Parish of Loudoun County, INOVA Hospital, LINK Food Bank, Mclean Bible Church, Nova Youth Flag Football League, Purcellville Baptist Church and St. Matthews Church.

The Bible commands us to pray for the peace of Jerusalem (Psalm 122:6), to speak out for Zion’s sake (Isaiah 62:1), to be watchmen on the walls of Jerusalem (Isaiah 62:6) and to bless the Jewish people (Genesis 12:3). These and many other Bible verses have one overriding message; as Christians we have a Biblical obligation to defend Israel and the Jewish people in their time of need.

A Night to Honor Israel
By Annette Scheel

Connecticut’s Senator Lieberman introduced himself as “your brother, Joseph,” thousands at the Fifth Annual Night to Honor Israel banquet broke into applause.

The July 19 - 22 gala, attended by 4,000 Christians and sponsored by the Christians United for Israel (CUFI) spoke to the solidarity of friendship between American Christians and World Jewry.

Israel’s Ambassador to the United States, Michael B. Oren, gave the keynote address. His stirring message told of the formidable dangers ever present within his nation.  Mr. Oren knows the scenario well.  He authored Six Days of War, a thorough account of the June, 1967, conflict.

Among the 4,000 attendees were Christians of African-American, Asian, Caucasian, and Hispanic origin from every state and denomination, including some four hundred college students representing CUFI from 350 campuses.  The founder of CUFI, the Reverend John Hagee of the Cornerstone Church, San Antonio, Texas introduced the speakers during the Wednesday night banquet.

A Night to Honor Israel was truly a memorable event and was indeed an expression of Christian solidarity with the State of Israel and the Jewish people. The statement of purpose reads:  “During the Holocaust too many Christians were silent and we were left to mourn the slaughter of six million Jews.  Today, Bible-believing Christians must speak up and stand up for Israel.  Our faith demands it.  The times require it.  We will be silent no longer.”

Each month CUFI chapters throughout the United States host similar events of support.  Some forty occur each month.  In May, The Covenant Baptist Church of Shepherdstown, W. Va., held such an evening.  It was spectacular in beauty of music, worship, dance and the presentation of Kay Williams’ colorful banners depicting the twelve tribes of Israel.  There too, speakers boldly proclaimed the need to support the Land of Israel and its people.  Keynote speakers were Noam Katz, Minister for Public Diplomacy of the Embassy of Israel in Washington and the Reverend Lennie Allen, Regional Director for Bridges for Peace, a Jerusalem-based Christian organization supporting Israel and building relationships between Gentiles and Jews.

If anyone is interested in publishing a faith article on this blog site, please contact Mark Gunderman at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)

“Love God with all you are and love your neighbor as yourself.”

By Aaron Box
Restore Community Church

Regardless of any church experience, most of us are familiar with “The Good Samaritan.” Actually the Good Samaritan was a fictitious character that Jesus used in a story he told a religious leader of His day. Jesus told the story of the Good Samaritan to describe what true religion is to look like – to care for your neighbor practically and sacrificially.

Just days before Jesus died, Jesus was asked a trick question by a religious fanatic, “Which religious rule is the most important one?” The question was intended to be a trap. Jesus’ response is beautiful, “Love God with all you are and love your neighbor as yourself.” Jesus repeatedly distilled religion into relationships and generosity to others. That is why the founding pastors of Restore Community Church focused on those things when starting Restore nine months ago.

“We aren’t perfect, but we are focused on joining Jesus in His mission, and following the example Jesus set for us.” says Ron Klabunde, a pastor of Restore.  For the past months all Restore’s energy has been focused on building healthy relationships and becoming a place where generosity is a way of life. Restore began their very first Sunday morning service by giving preloaded debt cards to every family who visited to empower them to be generous. Families were challenged to spend their 20, 50 or 100 dollars on someone they knew in need. Out of that first Sunday, incredible stories began to emerge with an 800% increase on the money Restore gave away. I consider myself privileged to be a part of what God is doing through Restore.

Since that first Sunday in October 2009, we have had numerous success stories: such as collecting and donating over a thousand pounds of food to LINK, a Herndon based food pantry. We packed more than 20,000 meals that were sent to children in abject poverty. The congregation provided over 100 local children food to eat over the week of spring break and collected 425 backpacks for local kids in need. Recently we sent over 1,300 clothing items along with hundreds of pairs of shoes and flip flops to children in Haiti who have lost everything. Currently Restore is working to provide 1,100 backpacks to Kids R First to assist the awesome work they do to empower local children who face financial needs at home.

What is most incredible however is what has happened to us as individuals. As we have come together to serve, the congregation has not only grown close to one another, but are being changed as people. Generosity truly becomes a way of life when you step out beyond what your church is doing, beginning to live generously as an individual. In the end it is the individual stories that move me deeply.

Such as the woman who found a single mom in need on Craigslist. A woman she has never met who was crying for help. This past week, the first woman began calling her network of friends, collecting supplies for this mom. Later today she will deliver the very essentials this stranger needed. Or that family that recently helped their neighbor get his small business off the ground. They gave their neighbor several hundred dollars to help him succeed. No strings attached or expectation for reimbursement, just generous hearts. Another family is currently helping their neighbor who is in a horrific domestic situation find freedom. They have arranged advocates and legal help, knowing all along they will probably foot the bill. Recently yet another family who faced tremendous financial difficulties gave sacrificially to their neighbor to help them avoid foreclosure. They literally gave to a point that it hurt in order to rescue another family from disaster.

These stories of individuals loving their neighbors because they were first loved by the ultimate example of generosity go on and on in the life of Restore Community Church. And within them is an important truth: a generous church on a mission with Jesus is nothing more than a group of generous individuals coming together on the same mission with Jesus. These stories of generosity as a way of living are the result of simplifying our religious efforts to loving God and loving people.

When Jesus told the story of the Good Samaritan who gave sacrificially of himself to love an individual that others had overlooked, he was painting a picture of what our lives could look like. We aren’t perfect, but if you want to grow in loving your neighbors and in the process join Jesus in His mission, Restore would love to invite you to be a part of the story being written here in Northern Virginia.

About Aaron: Aaron Box and his family moved to Northern Virginia from the Oregon Coast one year ago to be a part of Restore’s efforts to transform lives in Northern Virginia. Aaron is a father, husband, outdoor adventurer and project manager and a follower of Jesus.

If anyone is interested in writing a faith column for this blog site, please contact Mark Gunderman at .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address).

Two members of Restore Community Church preparing to deliver Christmas meals to over 100 families in the Sterling and Ashburn area. Every 6 weeks, Restore partners with a different local non-profit organization, providing residents, businesses, schools, clubs, churches, and government offices the opportunity to fill their Generosity Can with goods slated for those in need. Currently Restore is working to provide 1,100 backpacks to Kids R First to assist the awesome work they do to empower local children who face financial needs at home.