Summer 2023

 

WOW, is it hot in Memphis! We kept hearing, "If you think it is hot now, wait until summer." Well, summer has arrived.  Now Memphis is under a Weather Alert for extreme temperatures through the weekend.  The chart about uses the actual predicted temperatures compounded by the level of humidity to reach a "heat index".  We are thankful every single day for air conditioning....at the office, in our car and in our apartment.
A Heart Attack of the Good Kind! It is hard to be away from home and loved ones.  We have felt support and love across the miles from our home ward members in Seaside while away on our mission.  This month we received an envelope in our mailbox full of hearts with encouraging comments from ward members.   We were so touched by each thought expressed and the love we felt in reading and re-reading those individual hearts.  We thought of each ward member as we read them and how those individual ward members had blessed our lives over the 30+ years we have been members of the Seaside Ward of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.  It may have seemed a small thing to them to write a couple of sentences on a paper heart, but it was a huge thing to this couple so far from home.  We love you all for your encouragement.
A Semi-Truckload of Food A key part of our MyBaby4Me groups is that we provide a meal for all participants to enjoy together.  Ideally, we gently introduce a topic during the meal when all our moms and children are gathered around the big conference room table and we have a discussion.  Rich stories and advice being offered by one mom to other moms happen during these meals. And there are days when a fair amount of chaos occurs, especially with young children around the table.  We are reminded of days when our large family gathered around the dinner table....there were always complaints about not liking a food being served and drinks spilled, but also chatter and laughter and connection.  We are bonded when breaking bread together.  We wonder if some of our women come to class not necessarily to learn what we are trying to teach, but to be fed and have their hungry children fed. And we are good with that too! After our MyBaby4 Me families finish eating, we help them prepare to return to their home. Another part of our efforts is sending each family home with a box of shelf-stable food that we obtain through the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints Bishop's Storehouse system.  The box may contain pasta, spaghetti sauce, canned fruits and vegetables, peanut butter, dish soap, laundry detergent, etc.  Our goal is to provide a little extra for families to make it through the week until our next class.  We store cases of these supplies here at the NAACP offices, and more is stored at a partner near us called Vance Avenue Youth Development Center.  Sister Jean B. Bingham, the General Relief Society President for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints said recently that "Food is more than just a means of satisfying hunger; it is also a metaphor for love and comfort." At the end of May, a semi-truck load of 13 pallets of groceries from the Bishop's Storehouse arrived on Vance Avenue in Memphis.  Food given freely to those in need, with labor provided by local missionaries to unload the truck and then load things into our car to take it back to the NAACP offices for our families.....to fill empty stomachs and convey love, comfort and caring.
Build A Kitchen (or bathroom or laundry room or living room) Living in poverty is hard.  We have women who have lost their housing and are homeless when pregnant, with an infant and possibly older children.  When we support them to get housing again, they may have nothing except the clothes they are wearing to move into a home.  At the same time, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints has over 75,000 missionaries serving world-wide, and have a well-developed system of furnishing apartments for them.  So, we got the list of what goes in a kitchen, what goes in a bathroom, what goes in a laundry room, etc. and have distributed those lists through the members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.  We now have units of the Church gathering furniture and essential household items for when our women move into a place without what they need....like "Build a Bear" but "Build a Room"!  These pictures represent a new apartment for a family where that all came together.  We were able to join with those who donated items and those who donated time to gather, transport, load, unload, carry up to a 3rd floor apartment, and then arrange with love. The items donated included a washer and dryer as well as beds, shower curtains, pots and pans, knives, dishes....even a quesadilla maker! Each used piece of furniture or household goods item donated blesses our women and their families.  Can you imagine moving into an apartment that looked like this due to the love and efforts of people you don't even know?  Marquel (in the yellow T shirt and braids) and his fiance Dominique were so happy and grateful on this Saturday. They have 6 children....we have since located 2 sets of bunkbeds including mattresses and bedding for 4 of the children.  Those bunk beds and how they came to be donated went on to our list of mission miracles.
Dr. VanCleave, Pediatric Dentist from the UT Dental School After several months of effort, we were able to connect with dental professionals to bring an educational session on oral health to our women.  Did you know that if pregnant women have inflamed gums, they are at higher risk of pre-term labor and delivery?   Dr. VanCleave was an amazing educator with our women....helping them to know about healthy practices for them, their babies, and their toddlers.  She brought infant and toddler toothbrushes and toothpaste for everyone.  She actually got down on the floor and demonstrated how to properly brush the teeth of a pre-schooler who was a cooperative patient.  We value these connections and partnerships so much; Dr. VanCleve is excited to come back and will bring dental students the next time.  In the meantime, our women have a new "friend" and a resource for establishing a dental home for their children at the UT Dental Clinic.
History project documenting MyBaby4Me We were contacted by the Church History department several weeks ago to discuss capturing an audio history of the beginnings of MyBaby4Me.  We had the privilege to meet Ray and Kay Luce, who have a church calling to travel across the South doing interviews and then sending that audio content to Salt Lake City to be archived for historical purposes.  The Luces came to Memphis the last week of June, interviewed some of the leaders of MyBaby4Me and interviewed some of our women about their experiences with the MyBaby4Me program.  They stayed to observe one of our lively classes and were so wonderful to engage our women and help them feel comfortable in this process. What a service they are providing with their skills and experience in documenting efforts.
Another Baby Shower and Layette on June 17th  On Saturday, June 17th, we had a Baby Shower for our youngest MyBaby4Me participant.  Marcalah is 15 and we are so excited that she was able to carry her baby to term. It was a special baby shower because in addition to Marcalah, her mom and sister, her grandma and some of her other relatives, we had the Church Communications teams with cameras and microphones and some of our other MyBaby4Me moms.  We enjoyed, food, baby shower games, and all things baby boy.  This is a picture of a full "Layettes With Love" donated by one of the Memphis area LDS wards for Marcalah's baby. Marcalah ending up being induced for labor after her due date, and then delivering this beautiful 7 lb 5 oz healthy baby boy on the 4th of July!
Juneteenth (June 19th) We have saved the best for last in this blog issue.  We had the blessing of meeting Elder Matthew Holland on June 19th as he came to Memphis for a special occasion at the NAACP office.  It was the official groundbreaking and announcement by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints of a $500,000 investment into a construction project at the NAACP offices.  The renovations will benefit the NAACP branch membership as well as MyBaby4Me and will provide a larger conference room space equipped with technology for onsite and virtual meetings as well as a commercial kitchen to allow food storage and preparation to happen on site. This event allowed the media to hear more about MyBaby4Me, to interview some of our participants, and have access to Elder Holland, Elder Beheshti, NAACP leaders and some of our partners.   The public event was followed by a private lunch with Elder Holland and the MyBaby4Me leaders.  We felt blessed to sit across the table from Elder Holland and have a discussion about our work.  Being able to spend time with a General Authority will be one of the most special memories of our mission and time in Memphis.  Here are the links to the news stories from Juneteenth:  CBS - NAACP marks Juneteenth with renovation of downtown headquarters (wreg.com)   ABC - Memphis NAACP fights infant mortality with classes for new moms | localmemphis.com   Fox - WATCH: MyBaby4Me aims to help new moms in the Mid-South through pregnancy | News | fox13memphis.com   NBC- Organization ‘MyBaby4Me’ works to fight infant mortality in the Bluff City (actionnews5.com)   Church Newsroom –On Juneteenth, How the NAACP and the Church Are Carrying Out a Prophet's Vision (churchofjesuschrist.org) YouTube – On Juneteenth, How the NAACP and the Church of Jesus Christ Are Carrying Out a Prophet’s Vision - YouTube   Church News - Church donates $500,000 to renovate Memphis NCAAP for MyBaby4Me - Church News (thechurchnews.com)
We close with this scripture: "Think of your brethren like unto yourselves and be familiar with all and free with your substance, that they may be rich like unto you.  But before ye seek for riches, seek ye for the kingdom of God. And after ye have obtained a hope in Christ, ye shall obtain riches, if ye seek them; and ye will seek them for the intent to do good--to clothe the naked, and to feed the hungry, and to liberate the captive, and administer relief to the sick and afflicted." Jacob 2:17-19 Love, Elder Lynn and Sister Joell Archibald