Author: tbc

This year Tabernacle committed to providing Christmas Dinner to 100 of our friends and neighbors who are in need.  On the morning of December 19, 2015, about 50 people gathered in the Community Room in preparation for the delivery of 100 Christmas Baskets.  A light breakfast was provided, delivery procedures were explained and deliveries began.  The process was well organized and everything went according to plan.  All of the vehicles were loaded and on the road by 11:00 am, and deliveries were completed by early afternoon.

While the actual event was only a matter of hours, a lot of work and planning occurred long before the deliveries.  Things start in October when we begin getting requests for Christmas Baskets.  This year we changed the procedures to have all calls for requests go to a designated phone. Thanks to Priscilla Kinchen and Jerry Spiller for taking the calls and filling out the request forms.  Requests are recorded and reviewed before accepting the requests.  Then, all to receive the baskets are grouped by location into delivery routes and maps made with directions for each route.

Days before delivery, everyone who is on the list is called to ensure there are no address changes and to be sure someone will be home to receive the baskets the day of delivery.  Trying to contact 100 people is a big task, but this is necessary to ensure smooth deliveries.  Thanks to Jane Denzler for making the calls.

Non-perishable food is picked up the day before delivery in order to pack the boxes, perishables (turkey, eggs, and milk) are picked up on the morning boxes are delivered. Thanks to Bill Gradwell for getting the boxes and picking up the food.  And, thanks to all who helped with the packing.  Much of the canned goods in the baskets was from the Richmond Concert Band who contributed approximately 1200 items of food.

Only then are we ready for the deliveries.  It is easy to explain the process in words but very hard to describe the atmosphere and feeling that day.  This report is filled with thank yous because it takes a lot to make this event happen.  It could not take place without the volunteers’ time and money.  Cost of the Christmas Baskets was just over $4500. Enough money was raised to cover all of the costs with a little left over.

Saturday morning was fun and busy.  We had children, young adults, and not-so-young adults helping to make this a great experience.  I never think of this ministry as delivering food.  I think of families at their tables on Christmas, sharing a meal that they would not have had without the efforts and generosity of members of the church we call Tabernacle.  Someone made the exclamation, “WOW 100 baskets.”

I think of the WOW as how God has provided us with the resources and people to do this worthwhile ministry.  As it says in 1^st John 3:17-18, “…let us not love with word or tongue, but in deed.”

Many of the people who received baskets also come to the Food Pantry.  These are people who are just getting by.  This ministry is another example of helping and sharing our love for Christ.

Dick Denzler

During our recent Quarterly Business Meeting, Nelson Melton provided church members with an important update from the Construction & Renovation Committee.  That report gave our congregation an overview of actual costs of the project and the recommended sequence of construction events as we continue our fundraising efforts.  The committee members are very appreciative of the support received throughout this process of planning and fundraising for the monumental tasks before us.

Since that update, the Committee decided to address directly the reality that the construction and renovation costs are significantly higher than originally estimated(based upon additional plan requirements primarily to meet code requirements, asbestos abatement, and higher current market construction cost of materials and subcontractor pricing).  The Committee agreed to work with our architects and general contractor in a team effort to ensure that we are making wise choices in how we utilize the money you have generously given to this effort and will give in the future.  We believe that one of our most important roles in representing you is to be good stewards of the funds entrusted for creating a physical structure that meets the needs of our spiritual ministries.

Therefore, the Committee has agreed to move forward over the next four to six weeks with our lead architect to complete a professional program evaluation of the use of our existing space.  In this way we make certain that we are utilizing all of our available areas in the most efficient and effective ways.  This ensures that we as a Committee are more certain about the direction we are taking for the future of Tabernacle in meeting our needs as they change with our ongoing growth.  Even though you will not see construction begin in January 2016, we believe that you will see change begin in early 2016.  A presentation will be made in the January church business meeting that will provide you with more details.

We will also move forward with the removal of the asbestos from the row houses, as well as with patching the Williams Building roof.  Further discussions with the roofing company indicate that we do not need a new roof for this winter, saving a significant amount of money as we finalize our sequence of construction events.

We are encouraged in scripture to “run with patience the race before us”.  This is exactly the manner in which the Construction and Renovation Committee is working.  Every day Tabernacle Baptist Church takes patient and planned steps toward our God-Sized Vision.  Your gracious giving makes this possible.  We rely upon your continued support as we pursue a God-Sized Vision for our church and our future.  If you or someone you know would like to know more about how you might participate or different ways that you might become a donor, please do not hesitate to call one of our Construction & Renovation Committee members (Nelson Melton, Bill Welstead, Kathy McGraw, Jim McMurray, or Donna Soyars).