NEWSLETTER - FEBRUARY 2021

February ASeatAtTheTable.org 2021 A Spectacular Donation and May 6 Give STL Day Building on the initial successes with our first three male A Seat at the Table residents in our Shaw neighborhood home, a donor couple has stepped forward to make a spectacular donation.  They're contributing up to 50% of our next A Seat at the Table home into which we'll then move up to 4 young women to live with our second host couple.   With pending A Seat at the Table nominations of several young women, this year's May 6 Give STL Day then becomes all the more important for us. Give STL Day, operated by the St. Louis Community Foundation, makes a way for generous people to support their local STL-area nonprofit organizations.     With your help, we could secure our next A Seat at the Table home, as we already have a second set of house parents for young women waiting in the wings!  Early Give STL Day donations start as of April 5.  Look for more details in the coming weeks. Welcome to our 3rd Resident, Larry Hearn In late January, A Seat at the Table welcomed in our 3rd resident, Larry Hearn.  Nominated by his Midtown Church Pastor Aaron Turner, Larry will be transferring to Missouri Baptist University in the fall after completing his first year at Webster University.  Following a ministerial calling evident to many, Larry will major in Ministry and Leadership.   Midtown Pastor Mark Tucker reinforced that calling:  "As soon as I met Larry, I could see that he had a genuine passion for God.  Since then, he has become like a theological sponge.  He thirsts for deeper knowledge of biblical truth to accent his love for Jesus.  This is helped by his teachable spirit and desire to serve others.  He will certainly flourish at A Seat at the Table."    Fellow Midtown Pastor Aaron Turner reflected on Larry's participation:  "I am so glad that Larry is now living with host parents Bob & Chrissy Stergos and residents Joe Lewis (Resident Intern) and Jamel Williams at A Seat at the Table.  After talking with Larry, he is so excited, and I share his enthusiasm, for I have no doubt that this program will be a blessing to Larry and that Larry will be a blessing to the program.  'Thank you' A Seat at the Table for being the hands and feet of Jesus, loving His people so well both physically and spiritually." ABOVE LEFT: Larry reciting one of his poems, "Crippled Society."  Check it out at: www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Kt4Cqvxu40 ABOVE RIGHT:  Larry with friend of the organization, "Butters"    BELOW (L to R): Joe, Jamel & Larry at Boardwalk Waffles & Ice Cream listening to Nick Stergos play guitar A Look at A Seat at the Table Life Skills & Spiritual Development In addition to college or work responsibilities, most days for A Seat at the Table residents include a myriad of job/life skills and spiritual/personal development discussions led by house parents Bob and Chrissy Stergos, as well as with other mentors and pastors in the lives of our residents.  Here’s a sampling of learning activities and discussions to-date: Job & Life Skills Weekly music or foreign language lessons     - Joe Lewis: piano     - Jamel Williams: guitar     - Larry Hearn: speaking French Car driving lessons How to build a network of mentors How to use LinkedIn How to be a good conversationalist Effective communications Job search and interviewing tips Personal finance/budgeting Credit Scores & How to Establish Credit, Your Paystub, W-4 forms, Taxes Common Home & Auto Repairs Spiritual/Personal Development Weekly counseling sessions Weekly church attendance Weekly bible studies Book study: Purpose-Driven Life Participation of The Crossing church’s Exploration and Body Life classes Watching and discussing sermons from several churches (Midtown Church, One Family Church and The Crossing, thus far) Studying the authenticity of the Bible Watching thought-provoking & uplifting movies together as a family Learning effective Conflict Resolution techniques Structured study sessions aside, perhaps some of our most meaningful moments come with Chrissy's cooking lessons and family meals around the dinner table...often followed by some fun games of Uno, Exploding Kittens and Pictionary!  In short, we’re having a ball doing life together! LEFT (L to R): Jamel Williams, Joe Lewis, Larry Hearn, Chelsea Boon and Chrissy Stergos Recent House Improvements Thanks to our donors' generosity with last fall's GivingTuesday, we were able to secure our backyard with a new red cedar fence installed by Affordable Fencing. As you can see in the photo below, owner Stephen McAllister and foreman Casey Arnold do excellent work! And thanks to a volunteer's skilled electrician's work, we now have numerous electrical outlets and improved overhead lighting in our basement.  That improved lighting has made ping pong matches on the recently-donated new table all the more competitive!   Get Involved by Becoming a Monthly Sponsor Many thanks to those of you who have now signed up to be a Monthly Sponsor!  Your consistent support helps us build a stable, ongoing operating budget from which we can meet the educational/vocational, life & jobs skill, transportation, counseling, healthcare and developmental needs of our program participants.   If you haven’t already, please consider becoming involved with A Seat at the Table by donating on a monthly basis...even if it’s just $10, $25, $50 or $75 a month.  Here’s an example of how that could help us build that consistent operating budget: Your monthly contribution communicates to our participants that they are supported by an army of people who believe in them and want to make a difference in their lives!  Simply click on the "Become a Monthly Sponsor" button below to set up your monthly donation amount.   On behalf of all A Seat at the Table participants who will benefit, thank you for your monthly donation!  Become a Monthly Sponsor The mission of A Seat at the Table The mission of Seat at the Table is to help at-risk 18 to 25-year olds better transition into adulthood by providing parental presence and community support via residential mentoring in a Christian family environment. We'd love to hear from you!   Do you know of individuals, companies or foundations for whom serving the under-resourced would be a common passion?  Or, do you have an email address for someone whom you think would like to hear about A Seat at the Table? If so, please contact us HERE and let us know those names and/or email addresses! We are always looking to talk to those who have a similar heart to reach across racial and economic divides in our city and beyond.  Our goal is to have A Seat at the Table chapters in major cities around the country!   Also, if you have questions about A Seat at the Table, contact us HERE as well. We want to hear from you! Donate Here   Email not displaying correctly? View it in your browser Unsubscribe