Thursday, April 8, 2010
APRIL 2010 NEWSLETTER/MINISTRY CALENDAR
Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me....Matthew 25:40
Sunny Hill Nursing Home
Paradise Park Assisted Living Senior Star @ Weber Rd. Heritage Woods, Bolingbrook.
A nurse took the tired, anxious serviceman to the bedside. “Your son is here,” she said to the old man. She had to repeat the words several times before the patient’s eyes opened heavily sedated because of the pain of his heart attack; he dimly saw the young uniformed Marine standing outside the oxygen tent. He reached out his hand. The Marine wrapped his toughened fingers around the old man's limp ones, squeezing a message of love and encouragement.
The nurse brought a chair so that the Marine could sit beside the bed. All through the night the young Marine sat there in the poorly lighted ward, holding the old man's hand and offering him words of love and strength. Occasionally, the nurse suggested that the Marine move away and rest awhile but each time he refused. Whenever the nurse came into the ward, the Marine was oblivious of her and of the night noises of the hospital - the clanking of the oxygen tank, the laughter of the night staff members exchanging greetings, the cries and moans of the other patients. Now and then she heard him say a few gentle words. The dying man said nothing, only held tightly to his son all through the night. Along towards dawn, the old man died. The Marine released the now lifeless hand he had been holding all night and went to tell the nurse. While she did what she had to do, he waited. Finally, she returned and she started to offer words of sympathy but the Marine interrupted her. “Who was that man?” he asked. The nurse was startled, “He was your father”, and she answered. “No, he wasn’t,” the Marine replied. “I never saw him before in my life”
“Then why didn’t you say something when I took you to him?” “I knew right away that he needed his son, and his son just wasn’t here and when I realized that he was too sick to tell whether or not I was his son, knowing how much he needed me, I stayed.” I came here tonight to find a Mr. William Grey. His Son was killed in
I can relate to that story with the Nursing Home Ministry. So many times when I go visit the homes and I have no clue who I will be visiting that day, but the Lord will lead me to a person who so desperately needs a friend at that moment or someone to pray with them and its such a Blessing to know the Lord directs our steps and leads us in the direction He wants us to go and leads us to the people who need the Lord.
We had great services at
We started services at Weber Place, the new Assisted Living on
The little children continue to bless our Ministry with singing at the services on Saturdays at Heritage Woods, Senior Star and
We appreciate all the Ministry Team who so faithfully gives of their time and talents each and every week. With eight homes, it takes a lot of dedication and commitment and our team is very dedicated and we give God all the Praise, Honor and Glory for all He is doing through the Ministry and for a Ministry Team that has soft hearts and willing to listen to the still small voice of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and to be willing to follow His complete Will in their lives.
Kim is back with us after a successful Mission Trip to
What a Blessing it is to walk with the Lord and you realize it so much more when you get out of your comfort zone and you have to depend totally upon the Lord. You draw so much closer to Him and the good news is, He will never let you down, and He is always by your side.
| You say: 'It's impossible' | God says: All things are possible | ( Luke 18:27) |
| You say: 'I'm too tired' | God says: I will give you rest | ( Matthew 11:28-30) |
| You say: 'Nobody really loves me' | God says: I love you | ( John 3:1 6 & John 3:34 ) |
| You say: 'I can't go on' | God says: My grace is sufficient | (II Corinthians 12:9 & Psalm 91:15) |
| You say: 'I can't figure things out' | God says: I will direct your steps | (Proverbs 3:5- 6) |
| You say: 'I can't do it' | God says: You can do all things | ( Philippians 4:13) |
| You say: 'I'm not able' | God says: I am able | (II Corinthians 9:8) |
| You say: 'It's not worth it' | God says: It will be worth it | (Roman 8:28 ) |
| You say: 'I can't forgive myself' | God says: I Forgive you | (I John 1:9 & Romans 8:1) |
| You say: 'I'm afraid' | God says: I have not given you a spirit of fear | ( II Timothy 1:7) |
| You say: 'I'm always worried and frustrated' | God says: Cast all your cares on ME | (I Peter 5:7) |
| You say: 'I feel all alone' | God says: I will never leave you or forsake you | (Hebrews 13:5) |
PLEASE NOTE: All contributions to our ministry should be made payable to “Sonshine Outreach Ministries”.
Mail your gift to SonShine Outreach Ministries, c/o Joyce Mancke,
Our schedule for April is as follows-
Lakewood Nursing Home, Plainfield –April 4th @ 2:30 p.m.
Senior Star @ Weber Rd (Saturday) April 10th @ 10:00 am,.
Weber Place (Saturday) April 10th @ 11:00 a.m.
Salem Village, Joliet – April 11th @ 2:30 p.m.
Rosewood Rehab Center, Joliet – April 18th @ 2:30 p.m.
Heritage Woods, Bolingbrook, - (Saturday) April 24th @ 10:00 a.m.,
Sunny Hill, Joliet –April 25th @ 2:30 p.m.
March 2010 Newsletter and Ministry Calendar
Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these, ye have done it unto me. Matt: 25:40
Paradise Park Assisted Living Senior Star @ Weber Rd. Heritage Woods, Bolingbrook. Weber Place
On Thursday, the 25th of February, my husband came home bringing the most beautiful bouquet of flowers and when he handed them to me, he kissed me and wished me “Happy Anniversary”. They were a mixture of carnations, miniature daisy’s and Roses which are my favorites. I love roses, however, he has given me flowers many times but this was the first time he had ever brought me roses and we will be celebrating our 30th anniversary on March the 15th. So I was in awe of how beautiful they were and my mind just started going crazy, I’m thinking, WOW, its only the 25th, its 3 more weeks until our anniversary, how thoughtful, and I wondered if he was planning to continue to build on this for the next three weeks and you can’t imagine how special I felt at that particular moment. I thought to myself, its really been a great 30 years and the flowers are such a thoughtful thing to do and they were so beautiful. At that moment he put his arm around me and kissed me again and then he started laughing as he said, “there was a funeral at the Methodist church I just finished cleaning and the pastor wanted to know if I wanted to bring these flowers home”. Well, I won’t write in the newsletter what my next thoughts were. . . . . . . and I think there are probably some of you, especially you ladies, that would not have accepted that very well and you guys may still be in the dog house, but all kidding aside, I started thinking about all of that and the Lord gave me the most beautiful thoughts. A situation had happened that brought sadness to one family with the death of a loved one, and although it was a sad day for them, God used a bad situation to bring joy to someone else. I have really enjoyed the roses (and I enjoyed the special moment with my husband before I found out they were funeral flowers). It was truly a fun moment together and we had a really good laugh and it has already been an anniversary I won’t soon forget. God is so good and laughter is good for the soul and I thank God that He brought us together 30 years ago and gave us a sense of humor and has taught us how to laugh together, cry together and best of all read our Bible and pray together. God has been so good to us.
One morning I wasn’t sure which home I wanted to visit, I kept thinking about going to one but felt a tug to go to another one. After I arrived at Lakewood, it was clear to me why I felt led to go there. Kaethe needed a friend and I sat and listened to her talk for over an hour. She has had many many years of hurt and pain as she began telling me her life story. Her mom died at an early age and she became very bitter as to why God would take away her mother. Her brother was in the service and she told about the time when her family was notified that he was “missing in action” and he never came home and they never knew how he died or what happened. She later married and had children but the grief continued, she lost a daughter at a young age, then her husband had a heart attack and died. Her son married a domineering wife and won’t allow him to visit her. She is angry with everyone and with God. I opened the Bible and shared several scripture verses with her and then presented the plan of salvation to her before I left. She was almost ready a couple of times to pray the sinners prayer but then she would stop and say, “I just don’t think I can let go of all the anger”. I told her I would be back and we will talk again, so please pray for Kaethe, she needs the Lord in her heart. She needs peace that only He can give to her and God can change her heart and bring joy.
There are so many things that happen in our lives, things that we don’t understand, circumstances change, and we don’t know what tomorrow holds, but praise God we know who holds tomorrow and we know He holds our hand. He never changes. He is always the same yesterday, today and forever and His promises are true and He will walk with us every step of the way if only we allow Him to. All He ask us to do is “be Faithful and Trust Him”.
Please continue to pray for the Ministry and all the volunteers and the many residents that we see each week. It’s a great opportunity to share the Love of Christ and many of the residents do not know Jesus Christ as their personal Savior. It’s a mission field that is white unto harvest and God has chosen all of us to be His servants.
This newsletter goes out to many people and if you are reading it and you don’t know Jesus Christ as your personal Savior, please don’t put off until tomorrow what you need to do today. Tomorrow may never come. Ask Jesus into your heart. It’s as simple as admitting you are a sinner and asking Him to forgive you for all your sins. Then ask Him to come into your heart and be your Savior and accept the greatest gift that anyone has ever given you. He loves you and He wants you to be His child. He wants you to share the joy and peace that only He can give. It’s the greatest decision you will ever make and He’s the greatest friend you will ever have. You will never walk alone because He will always walk beside you. Does that mean you will be perfect??? NO, it means you will be forgiven and your eternal home will be in Heaven.
Mail your gift to SonShine Outreach Ministries, c/o Joyce Mancke,
Lakewood Nursing Home, Plainfield –March 7th @ 2:30 p.m. Senior Star @ Weber Rd (Saturday) March 13th @ 10:00 a.m,., Weber Place (Saturday) March 13th @ 11:00 a.m., Salem Village, Joliet – March 14th @ 2:30 p.m., Rosewood Rehab Center, Joliet – March 21st @ 2:30 p.m., Heritage Woods, Bolingbrook, - (Saturday) March. 27th @ 10:00 a.m., Sunny Hill, Joliet –March. 28th @ 2:30 p.m. Paradise Park, New Lenox –March 28th @ 2:00 p.m.
Respectfully submitted by Joyce Mancke jmancke@sbcglobal.net.
Phone - 815-351-7659
Thursday, February 4, 2010
FEBRUARY 2010 NEWSLETTER AND CALENDAR
Home Rosewood Care Center Sunny Hill Nursing Home
My daughter sent me the following story because she knows I love a good laugh and the older I get and the more I work with the Nursing Home Ministry, the more I can relate to this story. It is so real and so neat how God made us.
A group of 40 year old buddies got together and were discussing where they should meet for dinner and they finally agreed that they should meet at the “Ocean View Restaurant” because the waitresses there were very beautiful.
10 years later, at age 50, the same group once again was discussing where they should meet for dinner and they agreed that they should meet at the “Ocean View Restaurant” because the food and wine there is very good.
10 years later, at age 60, the group of men met once again and after much discussion, they decided to meet at the “Ocean View Restaurant” because there is a beautiful view of the ocean.
10 years later, at age 70, they got together once again and after much discussion, they decided to meet at the “Ocean View Restaurant” because the restaurant is wheel chair accessible and they even have elevators.
10 years later, at age 80, the group met once again and after much discussion about where to eat, they decided to meet at the “Ocean View Restaurant” because they have never been there before.
Well we certainly go through different stages in our lives, don’t we? I pray that whatever stage of life you are in, that you are allowing God to use you as a vessel for His Glory.
We Praise God for all the Blessings of the past year, for His safety, for good health and all the blessings He gives us daily, both in our homes and in the Ministry. We truly serve an awesome God. As I have said so many times in the past, if you are depressed or just down and out, perhaps you feel like life has mistreated you, just go to a Nursing Home and visit with the residents and you will come away feeling so Blessed for all God has given you. There are so many sad situations there and worse yet; many of them do not know Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. There is no peace and no joy, just daily pain and frustrations.
I am thankful that once again, God has given us the start of another New Year and as we make our New Year’s resolutions, I am praying that God will use the Ministry in an even greater way this year than ever before. I am open to whatever and wherever God wants to use me. My prayer is that I will be faithful in all things and will continue to stay in the “
I got in a hurry last month and the December Newsletter went out before I received all the information for the services at Paradise Park so I want to share with you all the excitement going on there. Amanda and her family, Judy and all the teens are doing a great job and we are having lots of good comments. The Christmas service in December went really well and Amanda’s comments were as follows, “Our service went well on Sun. We gave everyone a lotion and a Kleenex box with a Christmas or flower cover. Rhys quoted Luke 2, Mr. Kochel played his trombone, Mrs. Ponce and Iliana sang, and Reagan sang. Mrs. Thompson played the dulcimer hammers. They all loved it and were excited to be there and receive the gifts. It was fun”. What a Blessing to receive e-mails like that, I love it and getting the children involved is so special, not only for the residents but also for teaching them to serve the Lord. It is such an inspiration to see the children singing and quoting scripture. Also for the many other people getting involved. I spoke with Gayle Weir this week and she was telling me she had attended the service and how much she loved it and will be coming each month and helping out. She also mentioned that one of the residents wanted to go to church with her and what a Blessing that is. God’s word is contagious, and it’s not just a Nursing Home ministry, it’s an outreach, reaching out into the communities. Thank you all for your heartbeat and for your dedication. You are an inspiration to all of us.
The services went well at all the homes this month. We had about 10 family members that were visiting with the residents who attended the services at Sunny Hill and that are always a Blessing.
Many of the residents were wearing their monogrammed sweaters that we had given them and that was good. All over the rooms, we see SonShine Ministry; it’s a great way to advertise our Ministry.
One of the residents from Rosewood, a little lady who can’t talk but is so full of joy and she tries so hard to talk, was wearing her sweater and kept trying to tell me she loves it. She would smile at me and pretend she was hugging it to let me know how much she liked it, then she always wants to hug and kiss me.
The 3 little Tovilleja sisters sang this month at Heritage Woods. What a Blessing they are. I believe they are ages 4, 7 and 9 and they do a wonderful job. We look forward each month to hearing them. Lillie, one of the residents, sang a special song that her mother had taught her when she was growing up and it was very good. We like to get the residents involved.
One of the residents that come each month to the services at Heritage Woods came with her daughter and when she came into the room she was crying and she took me by the hand and said, “My daughter says I have an appointment that I have to go to in 15 minutes but I just can’t miss this service. I want to stay, please please let me stay”. I never did figure out what the appointment was, but she was so upset that she would miss the service if she went to the appointment, that her daughter ended up letting her stay and the daughter attended as well, so it all worked out.
Well when you talk about dedication, you have to think of Midge, our Missionary to Africa. She came into Rosewood the third Sunday of January and told me she had a heart attack. I know my mouth flew open because all I could think of was, when? Why are you here? She proceeded to tell me that she had a heavy feeling in her chest on Wednesday night but waited until Thursday morning to go to the doctor, at which time, the doctor informed her that she had had a heart attack and she was admitted to the hospital and had surgery. She had a stent placed in one of her arteries. She came out of the hospital on Sunday morning, went to church and came to the Nursing Home and she looked like she felt great. We serve a Miracle working God; we give Him all the praise, honor and glory. We are so glad she is feeling better and getting her energy back. Her trip to Africa has been postponed for a few months.
I have received many “thank you notes, gifts of money and calls” this month thanking the Ministry for the gifts and for our faithfulness. The activity director at Senior Star sent a gift of money and a card saying, “Thank you for all you do for our residents. You bring so much joy and sunshine into their lives. God Bless you all”.
Food for thought: Four things you can’t recover: The stone...after the throw. The word….after it’s said. The occasion….after it’s missed. The time…after it’s gone.
“Those whose trust is in the Lord shall soar with eagle’s wings”. Isaiah 40:31
PLEASE NOTE: All contributions to our ministry should be made payable to “Sonshine Outreach Ministries”.
Mail your gift to SonShine Outreach Ministries, c/o Joyce Mancke,
Our schedule for February is as follows;
Lakewood Nursing Home, Plainfield –Feb 7th @ 2:30 p.m.
Senior Star @ Weber Rd (Saturday) Feb 13th @ 10:00 am
Salem Village, Joliet – Feb 14th @ 2:30 p.m.
Rosewood Rehab Center, Joliet – Feb 21st @ 2:30 p.m.,
Heritage Woods,
Sunny Hill, Joliet –Feb. 28th @ 2:30 p.m.
Respectfully submitted by Joyce Mancke
Email:jmancke@sbcglobal.net.
Phone: 815-351-7659
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
JANUARY 2010 NEWSLETTER AND CALENDAR
Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these, ye have done it unto me.
Matt: 25:40
Rosewood Care Center Sunny Hill Nursing Home
Heritage Woods,
Wow!! ! What a month we have had. Just when you think it can’t get any better, God opens the windows of Heaven and just pours out His Blessings upon us. It was a great month, a busy one, hauling all the boxes of gifts and sound equipment into each home was a challenge, but it was so rewarding. As I have said so many times before, we do all this trying to be a Blessing to others but we come away feeling like we are the ones on the mountain top with all the Blessings. It’s really neat how God showers His Blessings on both the giver and the receiver. Isn’t that just like our God? He is an awesome God.
We had 92 residents and volunteers at the Lakewood Nursing Home in December. The room was packed and residents were sitting in the doorway. We gave out sweaters to all the residents and that went over very well. We brought several boxes of sweaters with us but when we saw the crowd, we started praying that God would multiply the sweaters like He did with the loaves and the fishes so we would have enough and we praise the Lord that it all went well and everyone got a sweater. The
We gave out skid-free socks and anklets with a bottle of lotion to all the residents there and they loved them. We have given them blankets and sweaters the past two years and decided to do something different this year for them.
We receive lots of verbal thank yous, and many notes of thanks that people mail to me when they mail their contributions and we appreciate each and every one of them so very much. We have lots of people that tell us they are praying for us and that means so very much. We need your prayers. That is why the ministry continues to grow because of the prayers of God’s people. It’s not about us, its all about what God can do in and through lives that are willing and committed to let go of ourselves and let God work in and through each one of us. The ministry continues to grow beyond all our expectations and it’s exciting to be His servant. I’m humbled that God would choose me, as unworthy as I am, to serve Him in this Ministry. I am so very Blessed.
Angie and Karen Hanson did a beautiful job with monogramming the sweaters and we thank you so very much for all the work and the love you put into it. We appreciate your sweet sweet spirit and your willingness to serve.
After all the services in December were done, we had handed out almost 300 gifts this year. It was a great month. We have a great team of people who all work together so beautifully. It is so apparent that each one of them loves the Lord and has such a heart for the Ministry. God has truly brought together a wonderful group of people with a love for each other, as well as, for others. Ron and Barb Durham have also joined our team and we love it. We welcome you with open arms and we need you and thank you for joining us.
We look forward to even greater things in the New Year. It is so exciting to just wait on the Lord and see what He is going to do next. We will be completing our 5th year the end of March and starting into our 6th year in April. Please pray with me that we may lead more people to a saving knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. During these past five years, 13 people have been saved but there are many more that need Jesus Christ in their life. So many empty lives, they have no peace and joy. Many times people tell me, “you all look so happy” and it’s a great way to start the conversation and tell them why we are happy and that we all know Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and He gives us peace, joy and contentment.
Max Lucado wrote the following message in his book “On the Anvil”. “Thousands of years before Jesus was called the Lamb of God, God promised forgiveness. Someday, he promised Hosea, someday I will remember their sins no more. Someday, God confided to Jeremiah, these people will be my people and I will be their God. And someday, wrote David, the mistakes of men will be tossed, not under a rug or behind the sofa, but far, far away. As far as the east is from the west. And then that someday came, on a garbage heap outside of
May we ever be found faithful pointing others to the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.
PLEASE NOTE: All contributions to our ministry should be made payable to “Sonshine Outreach Ministries”. You can mail your gift to SonShine Outreach Ministries, c/o Joyce Mancke,
Lakewood Nursing Home, Plainfield –Jan. 3rd @ 2:30 p.m.
Senior Star @ Weber Rd (Saturday) Jan. 9th @ 10:00 a.m,.
Salem Village, Joliet – Jan. 10th @ 2:30 p.m.
Rosewood Rehab Center, Joliet – Jan.17th @ 2:30 p.m.,
Heritage Woods,
Sunny Hill, Joliet –Jan. 24th @ 2:30 p.m.
Paradise Park, New Lenox –Jan. 24th @ 2:00 p.m.
Respectfully submitted by Joyce Mancke jmancke@sbcglobal.net.
Phone: 815-351-7659
