Storyline Fall 2020
A quarterly magazine published by First Alliance Church (Calgary, Alberta) in this issue we highlight FAC people telling their stories.
A quarterly magazine published by First Alliance Church (Calgary, Alberta) in this issue we highlight FAC people telling their stories.
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would go to Costco and load their vehicle to<br />
the brim for weeks! Another mom from our<br />
church made connections to get clothing for<br />
a single mom in need. We brought hampers<br />
to some of the families who needed extra<br />
support as well. Noelle (who is part of the<br />
FAC staff) made the cutest craft kits for<br />
the kids on Canada day; an artist, Rebecca,<br />
used her gifts to create a virtual paint night<br />
for the kids in the lunch program; and<br />
DiscoveryLand made a summer craft kit for<br />
all of the kids for the August long weekend.<br />
We also handed out over 350 backpacks for<br />
kids on September 4 along with a hot dog<br />
lunch to go!<br />
We started out at 200 lunches a week … In<br />
the end we handed out over 47,480 lunches!!<br />
God’s favour was so evident in this whole<br />
season. One major example was in the<br />
beginning of this program. We had not<br />
budgeted for this cost. I was starting to get<br />
very stressed – I realized we didn’t have the<br />
money for a program like this … How could<br />
I ask for money when I knew that COVID<br />
was such an unknown? I had applied for<br />
a few grants – before ministry I had some<br />
experience with this in the US. But I was not<br />
confident – I’d never applied in Canada. One<br />
night when the stress became too much, I<br />
looked at my husband, Austin, and said, “We<br />
need to pray that a grant comes through – I<br />
don’t know how we can keep doing this work<br />
in the community.” So we prayed and asked<br />
God to make a way.<br />
The next day, I was visiting a site where I’d<br />
been notified there was a huge need for<br />
food support … The need was evident but I<br />
wasn’t sure we’d be able to help. This would<br />
increase our output by 75+ meals a day. I<br />
was about to pick up the phone to tell the<br />
Youth Centre we couldn’t respond to the<br />
need we were seeing and I thought we’d<br />
reached the maximum amount of food we<br />
could give out. I was heartbroken because I<br />
just saw how much need was in the Radisson<br />
community, and I felt particularly burdened<br />
for this community. I got in the car and cried<br />
out to God, “Why are You showing me this<br />
when I can’t do anything?!?” Before I made<br />
the call, God prompted me to check my<br />
email – and we had received a grant!!! And<br />
it was from the least-expected place, in my<br />
mind – a program I’d only ever heard of once<br />
on the news out of Quebec. I was reminded<br />
yet again who is in control – if God calls us to<br />
transform a community He will make a way.<br />
God continued to multiply the finances<br />
needed: FAC gave generously to the COVID<br />
fund, the youth group raised money for their<br />
local mission trip, and 2 more grants came<br />
in to allow us to continue to provide food<br />
support for <strong>2020</strong>.<br />
Being part of feeding this multitude<br />
of children has been such a humbling<br />
experience – there is so much need in our<br />
city. Each day at the lunch program brought<br />
so much joy as I could talk with kids who<br />
were isolated, parents who were struggling<br />
… And God slowly revealed more and more<br />
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