Tag Archives: Auxiliary

The Hope Center Family Came Together for an Evening of Fellowship and Fall Fun!

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For the first time since the pandemic started we were able to bring our staff, Board of Directors, Auxiliary, and residents together for an evening of fun, food, and fellowship.

We hosted our first Hope Center Family Fall Fest at our Hope Center Farm located just outside of Hagerstown on the Conococheague Creek.

All of our staff, Board members, Auxiliary, Foundations Life Recovery residents, and some graduates were invited to come to the farm for a relaxing evening of hanging out and having fun together.

We had a hayride, lawn games, and tons of delicious food! And on top of all the fun, God provided an absolutely gorgeous fall evening to make the event perfect.

We all had a great time feasting on all the fall flavors, catching up and getting to know each other, and playing games like horseshoes and corn hole.

And it was a very special evening because this was the first time that many of the men in our residential life recovery program, Foundations, had the opportunity to hang out with the staff, Board, and Auxiliary. Many of these men entered the program after all the pandemic rules and procedures went into effect. We’ve been unable to host big group events like this so it was a special night for everyone.

The guys in our Foundations program especially loved having a night outside the city to have fun and meet new people. In fact, the guys were so excited for the event that they created a corn hole tournament with brackets prior to arriving at the farm! They organized and hosted the tournament for anyone who wanted to play.

Everyone enjoyed the food and fellowship but, let’s be honest, the food was the star of this event! We had our staff, Board, and Auxiliary all bring fall foods to share with everyone. The Hope Center provided the meat – and boy, was it good! Dillan Izer, son of staff members Aimee and Terry, spent hours overnight to make the most perfect and delicious smoked pulled pork. We’re so thankful for Dillan volunteering his night to prepare the meats for our picnic! The meat was definitely worth it!!

It was so nice to finally be able to host a large event with our staff, Board, Auxiliary, and residents. Covid has been a challenge for all of us but these moments together make us so appreciative of all the wonderful people God has put in our lives. We’re so thankful for our staff who have worked so tirelessly during the pandemic to keep our doors open and programs operating while also keeping everyone safe and healthy. God protected and provided during the pandemic and we’re so grateful to Him for all He did during these trying times.

As the pandemic slowly releases its grip on the world we’re excited for more opportunities to come together like this. And we’re really looking forward to the return of large events that include our wonderful volunteers and community guests! Continue to pray for protection for each other and continue doing what is necessary to keep each other safe during this pandemic.

Sales, Smiles & Savings – Thrift Store Day Had it All!

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What makes a successful Thrift Store Day? Great weather? Energetic volunteers? Excited bargain shoppers? All of the above!

On September 14th we hosted our 2nd annual Thrift Store Day at our Hagerstown location. It was a day full of sales, smiles, and savings! From a storewide sale in our Thrift Store to a special BOGO sale in the Trinity Center, our shoppers had plenty of great items to choose from at rock bottom prices.

In addition to the various sales, our Auxiliary had a food stand in the Trinity Center during the BOGO sale where they sold some delicious food items all day long! We also hosted a mini outdoor festival for any kids or kids at heart who wanted to play some games, jump around in a bounce house, and snack on some complimentary popcorn and cotton candy. The weather this year was perfect for our street festival – unlike last year which was unfortunately rained/flooded out.

All-in-all it was a spectacular day!

We want to thank all of our staff and volunteers who helped to make it all come together so perfectly. We are so grateful to each and every one of our volunteers who gave up part of their Saturday to help us create a wonderful festival and shopping experience for our guests. We are so blessed to have so many friends in the community – some old and some new – who give of their time so easily to help us bring events like this to life. Again, thank you to everyone who helped to make Thrift Store Day so successful!

And to our customers, the regulars and the newbies, thank you for your support of The Hope Center! Our customers may not truly be aware of how important they are to the overall success of all the various programs and services at The Hope Center.

Our Thrift Stores actually have two purposes: one is to provide great quality gently used goods at low prices so that individuals or families on any budget are able to afford material goods without busting their budget. The second purpose of our Thrift Stores is to help fund all the many programs and services offered free of charge to people in need in our community.

Every time you shop at our Thrift Stores in Hagerstown or Chambersburg you are actually doing more than just bargain shopping – you’re providing hope to so many people. A large portion of our yearly operating budget is funded by the proceeds at our Thrift Stores. Purchases made in our stores help to keep the lights on, the doors open, and the food warm for thousands of men, women, and children in the greater Hagerstown area.

When you donate your gently used items like clothing, furniture, housewares, and more, you’re helping to feed families. You’re helping to give overnight shelter to homeless men. You’re helping to provide a fun, safe after-school event for inner-city kids. You’re helping to give lasting change to men desperate to break their addictions.

So many lives have been touched, helped, and changed thanks to our shoppers and in-kind gift donors at our Thrift Stores. As you switch your wardrobe over to fall & winter and get rid of spring & summer clothes you no longer need, take a minute to think about how that one article of clothing has the power to do so much good in your community.

When you donate to and shop at our Thrift Stores you’re part of an eternal master plan that’s so much bigger than you can imagine. God is using your donations and thrift shopping to heal the broken, feed the hungry, shelter the homeless, and save the addict. Your purchases at our Thrift Stores may not seem like much but God turns your purchase into something spectacular.

So, again, THANK YOU to all of our shoppers, donors, staff & volunteers for shopping, giving and helping to make our Thrift Stores so successful. There are so many lives who were saved because of each of you. Thank you for caring and sharing.

If you’d like to learn more about volunteering at The Hope Center then call us at 301.739.1165 or email volunteer@hagerstownhopecenter.com.

To learn more about our Thrift Stores in Hagerstown & Chambersburg go to http://www.hagerstownhopecenter.com/thrift-store or call 301.739.1114.

If you are interested in donating your gently used items or becoming a financial partner of The Hope Center please go to http://www.hagerstownhopecenter.com/donate or call 301.739.1165.

 

2017: A Year to Remember

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I don’t know about you but it just seems that each year gets a little shorter and goes by a little faster. 2017 is quickly coming to an end but it literally feels like it just started. It’s definitely been one interesting year.

2017 had it’s ups & downs, good times  & bad, high points & low points but with everything going on in our nation and in the world in general, we’ve seen God working and doing things at The Hope Center more than ever. God has been blessing this ministry and He has given us so many wonderful people in the community who have helped us make 2017 one of the best years ever!

From hosting another successful Rock the Run 5K in April, to Camp Wild in the summer, The Great Hagerstown Thanksgiving Feast, and all the other activities in between, it truly has been a great year and we’re thankful to each one of you who volunteered, donated, supported, and prayed for us in 2017.

But we’re excited and looking forward to all the incredible and amazing things God will do in the upcoming year. And once again we will be hosting our Rock the Run 5K in April except we’ve got a pretty big (and fun) twist on it this year! You and your friends & family will definitely want to be a part of that. And along with our 5K we have so many other activities, events, and opportunities for you to get involved in bringing hope to Hagerstown.

And as we’re on the cusp of a brand new year we want to give one final salute to 2017. And there’s no better way to do that than posting pics from all the various things that happened at The Hope Center this year. And if these pics aren’t enough and you just need to see a few more then jump over to http://www.hagerstownhopecenter.com and click on the ‘More’ tab in the upper tool bar. There you can click on the Year In Pictures gallery. Enjoy the look back at 2017! And Happy New Year!

Another Great Party-in-the-Park!

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On Saturday, October 22nd we hosted our second annual fall Party-in-the-Park at Wheaton Park in Hagerstown.

This Halloween themed event is designed to be an outreach event by going into our surrounding neighborhoods and meeting the many wonderful families and residents of these areas.

Originally meant to be an actual park party, we eventually moved our party into the Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center due to high winds. We are very thankful to the staff of the  Martin Luther King Jr. Community Center for offering the building for use for our event. We appreciate being a part of such a kind and giving community!

Even though our event was indoors, that didn’t stop anyone, including our 30 volunteers, from having fun! From games, to face painting, entertainment, food and more our volunteers worked hard to make this event a success.

We enjoy being able to go out into our community to build stronger relations with our neighbors. This may only be our second time hosting this party but it most certainly won’t be our last. We want to build strong bonds with our neighbors so that we can work together to make Hagerstown a better place.

This event was sponsored by our Ladies’ Auxiliary. All the expenses of this event were underwritten by the Auxiliary and we are so thankful for their commitment to this ministry and our community. As you can see our Ladies’ Auxiliary are a very important and beneficial part of The Hope Center. This event and many other events are sponsored by this wonderful group of women. If you are interested in being a part of our Ladies’ Auxiliary then call 301.739.1165 or email us at hagerstownrescue@verizon.net. We are always looking for more women to get involved and help us keep events like the Party-in-the-Park going year after year.

As successful as this party was, we know that we couldn’t have done it without the help from all of our great volunteers! We firmly believe that we have the best volunteers in the tri-state. Thank you to each of the volunteers who gave hours of their Saturday to help us create so much magic and fun for our guests! We welcome you back to help us with any other event or activity that we’re hosting. And we need to give a special shout out to Gene Ridenour, president of our Board of Directors, and Jeff Reed. Both of these men have been very vital to all of our party events. Gene entertains kids and adults alike with his balloon modeling and Jeff makes everyone happy by being the best grillmaster in Hagerstown! Thank you both for giving of your time to reach our community.

If you’re interested in volunteering at The Hope Center then please go to http://www.volunteerhagerstown.com and learn more about the various ways you can be involved. You can also contact us by calling 301.739.1165 or email us at hagerstownrescue@verizon.net.

 

 

Ladies of the Tri-state – We Need You!

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It’s a new year which means starting off fresh with new goals, resolutions and new opportunities to make this year better than the last.

Maybe you’re looking for a way to get involved with helping others in this new year. We have a great opportunity for you!

You may not be aware that we have a Ladies Auxiliary at the Hope Center. Our Ladies Auxiliary plans various fundraisers throughout the year. Such fundraisers include ham sandwich sales, Easter bake sale, and a Christmas Bazaar to name a few. The proceeds from these fundraisers help to underwrite the ministry of the Hope Center.

To give you an idea of more specific ways the funds help around the Hope Center, the money is used to purchase equipment and supplies, purchase Christmas gifts for the residents, purchase food for the pantry and sponsor special events such as the Summer picnic and Christmas party for the residents.

This wonderful group of ladies meet the first Monday of each month at the Administrative Offices at the Hope Center. Following the meeting, the ladies enjoy a time of fellowship and refreshments.

If you are interested in getting involved in this ministry then please give our office a call at 301.739.1165 or email us at hagerstownrescue@verizon.net.

As we look into new ways of reaching those in need, our Ladies Auxiliary is an important and extremely vital part of making these outreaches come to life.

If you are busy, like so many of us today, this is a great opportunity for you to get involved in an incredible way without making a huge time commitment. Please consider joining our Ladies Auxiliary and helping to make 2012 better for all the men, women and children in our community that we reach.