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Fall 2008 newsletter
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L i g h t h o u s e I n c . • 1 3 6 0 E a s t 9 t h S t . S u i t e 8 4 0 • C l e v e l a n d , O h • 4 4 1 1 4
Two young boys join our Heaventrain staff.This summer Lighthouse Inc. welcomed two new volunteer staff. Mike and Bryant are residents of Garden Valley and King Kennedy Projects. These communities have rival gangs that defend each territory, but on Heaventrain they have come together. Mike said, “where else can a kid from the Valley go to King Kennedy and feel safe, only on Heaventrain”. These guys represent hope.
BEACON OF HOPELighthouse Inc.
N e w s l e t t e rReality Check update
In consectetuer Proin in sapien.
Fusce urna magna,neque eget
lacus. Maecenas felis nunc.
Page 2
Fall Events
Maecenas non quam. Cras erat.
Aliquam pede. vulputate eu,
estmorbi tristique senectus.
Page 3
A Volunteer’s Day
What is a “typical” day on
Heaventrain like? One of our
volunteers speaks out.
Page 3
Updates
Some tough days lately, but so
much to be thankful for. And a
calendar note.
Page 4
FAILURE, IS PART OF REALITY!One of the tough things to realize is that in spite of your best efforts, the world continues to tear apart the lives of our kids.
At times you feel lost, and want to give up hope. How can you reach a child as the promise of hope fades?
For the last two years we have sponsored a basketball team. The first year, our boys went
undefeated and last year we fell just short. The whole point of the team was to build a
relationship with just a handful of the Heaventrain boys as they grew towards adulthood. I
wanted to get to know them and to see what we needed to do to help them at this critical
time. Over the corse of the two years, there were some real heart to heart talks about the
issues they faced and the real challenges that seemed too big to conquer. Most of the boys
were 16-18 years old and have seen more in their lifetime than two or three generations in
most families have. All of them have had friends killed. Most see drugs as a recreational
activity, and a possible job opportunity. Sex is a favorite pass time, and a way to prove how
manly you are. Many of these young men face unstable and often volatile home lives where
they are forced to earn money to put food on the table or to pay the heating bill. Only two of
the twelve have graduated and only two more have a realistic shot. With so many challenges
we are faced with the reality that something has to change, someone is going to have to
intervene. We need people who want to make a difference. But unfortunately we don’t have
time, the situation is at a crisis point. This past week two of our players were involved in a
shooting that left a 17 year old girl dead. The issues are much deeper than I can explain, but
in the end, it could have been avoided. After two years, there is nothing, but a feeling of
failure. We should have done more, we have to do more if this is ever going to change.
L i g h t h o u s e I n c . • 1 3 6 0 E a s t 9 t h S t . S u i t e 8 4 0 • C l e v e l a n d , O h • 4 4 1 1 4
DeVos classmates becoming partners.
In 2007 Andy Batten entered a 15 month intensive leadership
training program. To date Lighthouse Inc. has partnered with
four of the 12 DeVos teammates. In 2008 Mildred (pictured
below) and her crew from Bethany Baptist Church joined the
Heaventrain team. In 2009 we have hopes of expanding this
partnership and others to better serve the children and youth in the
city of Cleveland. Together we can touch the lives of the young
people who can Change the world.
REALITY CHECK SUMMER 2008
LaShunda Lee is a special friend and partner. We worked together this summer to build friendships and to tear down walls in the community.
In 2008 a dream became a reality.This summer we planned to host two work teams as part of
a new pilot project. The idea was to combine a work and witness week, with an intense social justice emersion experience. For one week kids from suburban and rural churches would live
the life of a urban youth. Real life object lessons challenged the youth to see poverty through they eyes of Jesus and to better understand the challenges our Heaventrain Kids face. The
object lesson was followed up by a lesson from Jesus on how His Kingdom is supposed to be.
This idea got away from us this summer as we hosted 6
teams instead of the 2 we had planned. We had a very exciting summer and look forward to next year as we expand the program and implement what we have learned from this year.
In total we hosted 342 youth from 6 churches. We repaired
the porches and roofs on 12 homes on one Black on Cleveland;s East side tallying the neighborhood to build a model block club.
We also have begun rehab on two abandoned crack houses
to become home to tow ministry leaders for the Central Community. One will be ready sometime late October, Lord willing. One team focused on Victory church and it has
transformed over the past summer. In addition to these events the kids ate dinner with
homeless adults, tutored at rick children, and worked all day on Heaventrain. As the summer comes to an end, we have seen
the lives of hundreds of kids changed, and our community has seen God;s Kingdom as we share life together.
Building on what we learned for ’09.This past summer was as much a learning experience as it was a mission program.
We have tried four or five different approaches with the various teams based on what their youth leader felt would work based on what the other groups experienced. Today we have six slots open for groups of up to 40. The Reality Check experience will start on
Tuesday night and end either Saturday Evening or Sunday morning. The cost for the trip is $310 per person and includes food, lodging, materials, site seeing, etc. The only costs above and beyond this would be for fuel and recreation. The exciting thing, is that as this
program grows, it will prepare the hearts of future leaders so that they can better understand the challenges of poverty, and what our responsibility is in helping our neighbor. If you would like more information on reality check, please watch our online
information resources for the latest updates. We will be sending out information packs, in the next few months. Space is limited.
L i g h t h o u s e I n c . • 1 3 6 0 E a s t 9 t h S t . S u i t e 8 4 0 • C l e v e l a n d , O h • 4 4 1 1 4
A SATURDAY FOR A H.T. VOLUNTEERWet Paper and PensToday was rainy and cold all day and
pens don't write very well on wet paper. So I tried to find out how to cover the sign-in
clip boards under an umbrella. Any suggestions how we can keep our papers dry when its raining? Sometimes the signatures are barely legible and require
being separated and laid out on the dash of the van. The bus holds 80 people so the first eighty five in line escape the
downpour. The second group waits patiently. There were not enough umbrellas for 150 people to be out of the
rain at each stop. The people of Heaventrain are kind of like the postman. Rain,sleet or snow they still come to church and wait patiently in line. Depending on
the stop this can sometimes be at least an hour.
I can learn a lot in an hour
Before a church service you get together and fellowship...well we do this on
Heaventrain too. One little girl starts singing and clapping her hands, I bend down and hear the familiar words, "Heaven is a wonderful place filled with
glory and grace..." Its a though she is practicing before she sings in the choir.
It is difficult to try to remember 1,500
names. Well, I'm still trying to master this feat and failing miserably. Imagine attending a church for 25 years and not
sure if anyone remembers who you are. So you know what we do we treat everyone like family! The staff also try to learn about three names a week at each stop
because we like to know our family by name.
Super Heroes
The children love to talk about themselves and how in their eyes they are
like "super heroes." They can now control
their own fingers and tie their shoes and proudly display their talent. No longer is the world a mass of strange colors for now they can say...red, white and black. When
this talent is shared the whole church shares in the excitement and the questions start coming. "What color is the van?
Grey" "What color is this hoodie? Black" "What color is your face? Dark skinned" For those of you who wonder the color of
my face according to a little four-year old is...light-skinned. Isn't it amazing how children don't see people in color they are either..dark-skinned or light skinned.
The Heaventrain door opensSuddenly the conversation stops as
their attention is now diverted to the bus door that has now opened. Pastor Phil was back and "the church" was so glad to see
him. Pastor Phil spoke on a message that he hadn't shared in 20 years. He talked about "Heavenly Super Heroes-Angels" The children listened intently an he spoke
about angels. There are 10,000 x 10,000 x 10,000 angels. In particular he shared the story of King Synachrid as he was on his
way to fight against Israel. He commanded 185,000 soldiers and in the morning his army was down to 1 person-himself. The
soldiers were killed by an angel in the night. Then Pastor Phil shared about a battle he experienced one afternoon on the road where he felt God's protection.
Peanut Butter M&M's
Today on Heaventrain we shared just a snack. Imagine the face of a little two
year old child as they are handed a large family-size bag of peanut butter M&M's. She looks up and her mother has one in
her hand too. One little girl asks,"Is this whole bag is for me?"
Goodbyes and Hugs
The service is finished and its time for the bus to travel and the staff to see our next church family. "I wonder if so and so
is gonna be there today?" Do you ever have this conversation as you are going to church?" And just like at your church...on
Heaventrain we sometimes never know if we will see our church family the following week. At one stop we have a little boy who
calls us his family. There's mom (me), dad (a senior volunteer), bro(a fourth grade volunteer), and then aunt and uncle's who are teens in high school. He makes his
rounds each week greeting his family with a smile and a big hug :)Now that's what I call a Heaventrain family..we're all part of
God's family. After 12 services the numbers are counted..we had 780 at church this week in the driving rain. If you live in or
around Cleveland you are invited to join us for church each Saturday on Heaventrain. We promise you, It will change your life.
L i g h t h o u s e I n c . • 1 3 6 0 E a s t 9 t h S t . S u i t e 8 4 0 • C l e v e l a n d , O h • 4 4 1 1 4
FALL AND WINTER EVENTS
Christmas can be tough!For little ones that see the big difference between the haves and have nots, Christmas can be a difficult time. Try explaining to a little one why they did not get anything for Christmas, they wonder, was I bad this year. On Heaventrain we try our best to make sure everyone gets something for Christmas. Moms and dads are so appreciative that someone wants to help.
Candy, Coats, and Christmas .
Last year Lighthouse Inc. expanded our Heaventrain
Christmas to include coats,
gloves, hats, toys,
and candy. This
year we are on the look out for
toys for our
children. It is a
challenge to find
1200 gifts that are inexpensive and
yet nice enough to
make a little ones Christmas a
little brighter. This Christmas
we are hoping to raise $6000.00 to allow us to bring
Christmas to 1200 children. Thats right, for $5.00 per
child we can provide a coat, a
burger, candy, and a small toy
to bring a little Christmas
Cheer. If you have a group that is
looking to invest in a
child this year, then
we think the
Heaventrain Christmas is one of
the best investments
you can make. If
you have a lead on where we
can get 600 toys for boys and 600 for girls, we would love to
get any ideas. You can come
and help, it’s a blast.
HEAVENTRAIN CHRISTMAS 12/20/2008
Location # of Children Average age Time of arrival
King Kennedy 225 7 10:00 AM
Woodhill 150 12 11:00 AM
Garden Valley 225 10 12:30 PM
Cedar 400 8 3:00 PM
Outhwaite 300 10 4:30 PM
L i g h t h o u s e I n c . • 1 3 6 0 E a s t 9 t h S t . S u i t e 8 4 0 • C l e v e l a n d , O h • 4 4 1 1 4
Issues with the mail:
A few months ago we changed our mailing address. There have been a couple people that have called about checks that did not get deposited. We have been having a problem with the post office box. It seems that the Post office has lost our box payment records (2nd time) and have held the box as locked. We have retrieved most of our mail, but it seems that some has been misplaced, and they are not sure if or when we can get it. We apologize to anyone that has experienced this, we would suggest canceling those checks to be safe.
NEEDS AND PRAYER REQUESTS
As we are growing we are also facing new challenges.
For years Lighthouse inc. has worked to stretch every dollar we can to impact the life of the children we serve. This has served us well, but todays world requires a more sophisticated
approach to not only keep our current ministry operating, but to expand to meet the ever growing need within the community. We have
been blessed with hundreds of dedicated volunteers, but need to add staff to cary the growing work load in the office and
administration of the program. This is a big step toward insuring Heaventrain and the other ministries are here for years to come. We are looking for help with this endeavor, so if you
have and office or admin background, or a finance./book keeping background and are looking for a ministry to invest your time, we
have a place for you.
Other needs:• Office equipment, fax machine, color copier
with document center etc.
• Safe reliable transportation (Our van has over 200k miles)
• Portable LCD projector • Toys for Christmas (600 for boys 600 for girls)
• Gas cards, fuel continues to be a huge expense• Airline miles, for travel to training and other
ministry development events.
• Drywall team (For ministry house)• Speaking opportunities• Plumbers, electricians, carpenters, cement
guys, etc. • Work and witness teams, we are getting dozens
of opportunities that could have a huge financial impact on the ministry. The harvest
is ready, but the workers are two....
L i g h t h o u s e I n c . • 1 3 6 0 E a s t 9 t h S t . S u i t e 8 4 0 • C l e v e l a n d , O h • 4 4 1 1 4
Hamburger Update
Thank you to everyone that stepped up to
the plate to help with the Heaventrain food
shortage. Thanks to everyones kind gifts,
we should be good for the rest of the year.
Special Gift
We have a new (to us) bus that is the exact
match of our current Heaventrain. Plans
are underway now to renovate this bus as a
backup and to allow us to run a 2nd rout.
Christmas is coming
We are planning on another special
Christmas on Heaventrain Dec. 20th. We
will be delivering hats, coats, gloves and
toys. Come share in the fun.
The Goings Been ToughEphesian's 6:12 says, 'For our struggle
is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the
world forces of this darkness,against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.'
With that being said I want to thank
everyone that did battle this week in the spiritual realms on our behalf. It has been a crazy few weeks to say the least, but God
has been faithful and we are still standing. Many of you know that we had a
shooting at our first site on this past
Saturday at King Kennedy. It was a crazy scene as we had hundreds of children standing only yards from the shooting. We stuffed the bus with almost double our
typical 75 to keep kids safe. We had a youth group visiting that was visibly shaken by the events. Our staff jumped into safety
mode and made sure order was kept during moments of chaos that followed.
When the smoke cleared a 17 year old was shot in his backside and all of our Heaventrain kids and staff were safe. When our visiting youth group prepared to
head home, the community stood outside to make sure they were OK and to make them feel a bit safer. One mother
apologized to one of the groups adults saying, 'I am sorry that you had to be exposed to this, but my kids live with this
all the time and we don't get to drive away because this is home.' As we drove off our Kids were concerned that our staff would be too scared to come back. 'Is
Heaventrain ever going to come back?' they asked.
For the rest of the day we almost had
1300 children that came. Our staff, our kids, and our community kept moving forward with quiet determination that now
more than ever Heaventrain is needed. Thank you to all our staff who give up 40 Saturdays a year, to our donors who allow us to keep up the fight, to the community
for accepting us neighbors and teaching us so much, to our children who carry with them the hope of a bright future, and to our God who allows us to do the
impossible and see Him in the midst of it. The CMHA police work so hard to keep the community safe, for the rest of the day
they made sure our kids were protected. Please keep praying so that the battles
can be won, before we ever hit the ground.
We need it more now than ever because 10 foot angels don't back down to any fight.
Contending for Christ,
Rev. Andy Batten Executive Director
Online info @• www.myspace.com/heaventrain• www.heaventrain.org