Austin Special Needs Ministry Directors and Volunteers

It has been a privilege and a blessing to meet with Austin special needs ministry directors for the last four months.  We are a small group of committed, humble, compassionate people growing in our understanding and support of those challenged by special needs.  As a group we represent a variety of faith expressions, suburban and urban locations, young and old congregations, as well as a variety of financial and ethnicity backgrounds.  I absolutely love it!!

We discuss a variety of topics related to special needs and share as many ideas as we can so we don't have to "reinvent the wheel" over and over again.  I am grateful for the millennials in the group that have set up a google drive to share ideas on!

If you live in the Austin area and serve the special needs community, we would love to have you join us.  We meet every first Monday from 11 am - 1 pm in the For The City Center 500 East St. Johns Ave Austin, Texas 78752.

On January 2 we will have a special speaker, Jeannette Holahan, Education Co-Chair for DSACT.  She will share spiritual and education tips for working with students with Down Syndrome.  She has a great wealth of knowledge as a professional and as an incredible mom.

If you would like to join us, contact Deana Boggess at theboggi@aim.com.

A Shot of Hope

A week ago I was in need of a shot of hope.  Thankfully I have numerous friends on standby.  Last week a dear friend and mentor sent me just what I needed.

I have known Sally for more than forty years.  God has woven our hearts tighter over the last year.  Both of our lives have been transposed and blessed by friends impacted by disabilities.  I have been involved in disability ministry in the United States and Sally has in Rwanda and the United States.

Recently I have been on a lengthy reading binge.  I mostly love to read real stories about real people and how they navigate the struggles and joys in life.  I had decided my next book, however, would be a more intellectual book and had just cracked the binding when frederick: A Story of Boundless Hope by Frederick Ndabaramiye and Amy Parker arrived from Sally.  I immediately started reading and only put it down once or twice before I finished it.  A tough story with a beautiful ending.

Frederick was a survivor of the genocide that occurred in Rwanda in the 1990's.  A genocide so horrific and of such unimaginable magnitude, yet so recent we can reach back and touch it.  The extent of evil that our world is capable of is heartbreaking, yet the endless possibilities of hope presented by people like Frederick is compelling, compelling enough to help us realize the healing power of hope.

Over the years I have read numerous books about the challenges of disabilities and each of them have taught me something new.  Frederick has touched my soul.  It is the story of a boy who suffered huge heartache but as a man turned the experience into an unstoppable power of hope, a hope that has changed hundreds, if not thousands, of lives.

If you are in need of a shot of hope, I highly recommend this book.  If you serve in disability ministry, this book needs to be on your shelf and in your heart!  This book has added another dimension to my understanding of hope in the midst of adversity.

Here is the link to purchase:   http://www.thomasnelson.com/frederick.  

Here are additional links to Frederick's story:

https://iamableucc.wordpress.com/meet-frederick/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aPPSCFyVLY0