January 2016 Newsletter View this email in your browser A Word from Our Executive Director Cathy Berggren ... I once read a book by Eugene Peterson. On the front cover is a picture of a long dirt road. One of the book’s key messages is a reminder that we can always stay encouraged to keep walking forward on our journey because we can look back and see God’s faithfulness in our past. This is not only true in our personal lives but at the Real Life Center as well. I have watched God provide in so many ways year after year! This past year was no exception. I had the privilege of seeing lives changed in real ways. God did not only provide in unexpected ways, He also allowed us to grow personally and serve a larger number of families. You have been a part of His faithfulness too! You were that one volunteer who showed up at just the right time; you provided food when we needed it most; you worked in the orchard, garden, or stores; you prayed with us or sent us a generous check. It was all of us working together to be His hands and feet. I am thankful for you and I look forward to our partnership in 2016! We appreciate the tremendous support of our community, businesses, and
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January 2016 Newsletter View this email in your browser
A Word from Our Executive Director Cathy Berggren ...
I once read a book by Eugene Peterson. On the front cover is a picture of a long dirt road. One of the book’s key messages is a reminder that we can always stay encouraged to keep walking forward on our journey because we can look back and see God’s faithfulness in our
past. This is not only true in our personal lives but at the Real Life Center as well. I have watched God provide in so many ways year after year! This past year was no exception. I had the privilege of seeing lives changed in real ways. God did not only
provide in unexpected ways, He also allowed us to grow personally and serve a larger number of families. You have been a part of His faithfulness too! You were that
one volunteer who showed up at just the right time; you provided food when we needed it
most; you worked in the orchard, garden, or stores; you prayed with us or sent us a generous check. It was all of us working together to be His hands and feet.
I am thankful for you and I look forward to our partnership in 2016!
We appreciate the tremendous support of our community, businesses, and
volunteers. In 2015, the Real Life Center was able to accomplish the following:
1. Distribute over 533,000 pounds of food through our Pantry and Bread Room 2. Give 15,870 pounds of fresh fruit and vegetables through our Orchard
3. Serve 13,642 individuals or 4,279 families 4. Serve 2,202 families at our Mobile Food Pantry 5. Add 418 brand new families to our programs
6. Distribute 11,067 articles of clothing & accessories through our Clothes Closet
New is the year, new are the hopes, new is the resolution, new are the spirits, and new are our warm wishes just for you. Have a promising and fulfilling New Year!
Did You Know?
11.7% of people are food insecure in Fayette County?
13.7% of people are food insecure in Coweta County?
What is food Insecurity? "Lack of access, at times, to enough food for an active, healthy
life for all household members". Source: Map the Meal 2015 Feed America (data from 2013).
Our Businesses are Amazing !Welcome to our new partner,
A Sweet Customer Testimonial "Relocating can be a challenge for anyone but especially for a single parent. The Real Life Center has been a life saver. I'm learning how to budget and how to make myself employable. Yes, after years of working for the government in FL, a big gap in
Parkside Dental Practice .They held
their first food drive and collected 349
pounds .Thank you !We equally
appreciate Debbie Sanders with
Curves in Fayetteville for holding a 2
month food drive with her customers .
Her continued support of our ministry
has been wonderful .Many of our other
business partners also demonstrated
their corporate philanthropy in
abundance .Thank you to Chick-Fil-A for your generous support during the
Holiday Season ,Panasonic and
Gritton’s Training System for
supporting the Center with a large
food drive to stock our food pantry ,
Uniglobe Accent Travel for their 12
Days of Christmas Drive, Kiewit Infrastructure for their Fall Chili
Cook-off and generous financial
donation ,Thrivent Financial for
collecting food and cash donations ,
Dunlap Wealth Strategies for holding
their own holiday food drive ,
Hoshizaki America in Peachtree City
for collecting an overwhelming 4,680
pounds of food ,Coweta-Fayette EMC
for holding a Christmas Can-a-thon ,Keller Williams for donating 27
generous gift cards ,Fayette Piedmont Hospital for their generous
donation of $<1,000 in cash and
pantry items ,Edward Jones for
holding a food drive for the third year
in a row ,the Air Cargo Association
for their $1,000 cash donation ,
Prohealth Physical Therapy for their
month-long food drive in December ,
World Gym Fayette for collecting
gloves ,hats ,socks ,underwear ,
employment due to breast cancer can cast a shadow on things. Even with experience you are told that they chose another candidate. At the Real Life Center, they have always been encouraging and they pray with you. They have helped me even more then they know. Thank you so much!" Ella and the girls.
We Honor our Schools!
We are amazed at the generosity of
the Kindness Kids Club at Braelinn
Elementary School! They collected
750 cans of food, and even helped
us load all of the boxes in our truck.
We appreciate Kathy Caldwell, 5th
grade teacher and Kindness Kids
Club Sponsor for showing her
students how to share hope with
others during the Christmas season.
We look forward to partnering with
this sweet group of children again in
the future. We just cannot put into
words how grateful we are for the
Starr’s Mill High School Beta
Club! They held a three month long
food drive to help stock the Real
Life Center food pantry. A special
toothpaste ,toothbrushes ,deodorant
and all kinds of toiletries for all ages ,
and Somerby of Peachtree City for
collecting food during November and
December for our food pantry. We
look forward to partnering with all of
you again in 2016! We also
appreciate the items we received from
the Peachtree City Fire Department
through their annual Santa Run !They
delivered two huge truckloads of food
right before Christmas .Lastly ,we
express our gratitude to the Optimist Club of Peachtree City for delivering