Thrift Store Open Jan 2!!

"Lifting families out of poverty, with your support."

Opens THIS Saturday!

Awesome Name Brand Clothing, Household Items, Electronics, Books, Furniture, Mattresses and so much more

January 2nd 9am - 4pm

Located 3 miles West of Wautoma on Hwy 21

next to Country Discount Grocery Store

Phone 920-295-8214

Business Hours for January

Wednesday - Friday 9am-5pm

Saturday 9am-4pm

Please join us in celebrating the Lord's provision in opening Naomi's Blessings Thrift Store

Many volunteers & supporters have come together with their gifts and talents to make this store possible and we are so very grateful. As we have stepped out in total faith with no money (yes not a dime) to open this store the Lord has provided every step of the way.

Many of you have been part of those provisions and we want to say THANK YOU!!!!

We Have Hired A Store Manager

We are pleased to announce that Mary Frederick has been hired to manage Naomi's Blessings.

Mary comes with many years of experience in the business world and in

serving our community on the Wautoma School Board.

We are very excited to have such a qualified manager with such strong ties to our community.

Thank you Mary for stepping out in faith with us and joining in this worthy ministry.

Volunteers Needed

Our store will be completely staffed by volunteers with the exception of our manager.

We need volunteers who are available occasionally, we need volunteers who will commit one day a week, we need volunteers who will commit to one day a month, basically we need any and all help.

What ever time you can fit into your schedule we would greatly appreciate.

Please call Mary or better yet stop out to see the store and let Mary know if you are interested in helping.

DONATIONS

Currently donations will be accepted at the thrift store during business hours

& at the Detjens Warehouse Corner of Hwy 21 East and 21st ave 1 mile East of Silvercryst - 920.787.3925

We will do our best to pick up items

Please call Mary Frederick for picked up 920-295-8214

Items Still Needed

2 Floor mats

4 Fatigue mats

Dorm size refrigerator

Small microwave

Apartment sized stack washer and dryer

Giant trash bags

2 Trash cans

Storage Shed

2 bags Ice Melt

Mop

Goo gone

Donation box built

4 sheets of 3/4" plywood, 8 sets of large hinges, 8 2x4

Set of 4 heavy duty casters for a moving cart & 1 2x4

Funding for the following

$100 huge light bulbs for our lighted outdoor sign

$800 total for our winter supply of propane

$400 for our security deposit

$40 In store sign holders

$100 Wall mount hanging racks

$25 for miscellaneous pricing supplies

$20 Clothing rack size hooks

Please feel free to pass this email on to your friends, family, co workers and

Be sure to come shop our store.

I think you will be pleasantly surprised.

Have a Blessed day!

Misty Detjens

Thrift Store

We are so excited to be opening a thrift store called Naomi's Blessings. This store will provide job skills to residents that might need them, give us an outlet for all the wonderful donations that we have run out of room to store, and fund the ministry. It will really be a place you can feel great shopping at. While finding great deals!
God has been providing what we need as we need it-- as usual.
So far we have been given a cash register, some shelving, a sign for the outside of the store, and the first month's rent and security deposit!

Here is a list of the other items we need to open:
Shelving: grocery type
Clothing displays
Spinner displays
Large bulletin board
Small bulletin board
4 3’-5’ floor mats or runners for winter
Computer
Printer
Copy paper
Tape dispenser & tape, stapler & staples, sharpie markers
Mop, broom, dust pan, bucket
Snow shovel
2 Step stools
4ft-6 ft ladder
Cleaning supplies
Lighted open sign
Hours sign
New skins for lighted store sign
Propane for winter $
$500 rent for first 6 months
Storage Shed for storage
Semi trailer for storage
Part time manager

An Apprenticeship in "Family 101"

I was realizing today as we hung out with the guests at Naomi House, that our ultimate goal is to provide a real-life model of healthy, loving, family relationships. We have parenting classes yes, but we also provide a glimpse into the lives of real parents with real children. The good moments and the bad. I have four little girls, so when our family comes to visit the women and their children in the home, I can't fake it. I have to put my children in time-out, and get frustrated when they are not listening, and deal with whining, and fighting over toys. But I realized that I am also able to provide an example of "normal" mothering-- though "normal" is a very relative term!! Normal moms get tired, normal moms burn dinner once in a while, normal moms have bad days. Normal moms need God's help just as much as anyone else.

It is such a simple concept, and many people grew up with this healthy model without really thinking about it. But for those who did not, that foundation was not laid and it makes it tough to deal with the everyday realities of parenting- let alone the added stress of having no money, no place to call home, and no father to help shoulder the responsibilities.

What is so cool about Naomi House, is that God has led us to be family. The women learn how to have healthy family relationships when they leave, because they learn how to have healthy family relationships each day that they stay. They learn to discipline in love, be frustrated but not flip out, be sad but not check out on reality, and most importantly how to trust God for all their needs, big and small. Because the volunteers and staff are women and mothers who do the same.

Check this out!!

This story show's how Christians can be operating in these times.

(CNN) -- The pastor of a non-denominational church in Argyle, Texas, passed around the collection plate to his congregants earlier this year -- and asked them to take money from it.
Donations at the Cross Timbers Community Church had slumped because of the economic downturn. Pastor Toby Slough thought that his congregants had to be hurting, too.
His gesture, instead, was met with an unexpected response: The church had its highest offering ever.
It was a eureka moment for Slough: Give away money to those who need it, knowing his church members will help fill the need.
"In these economic times, we can't be so into church business that we forget what our business is, and that is to help people," Slough told CNN television affiliate KDAF in Dallas-Forth Worth, Texas.
In the past two months, the 9-year-old church has done just that: handed out a half-million dollars to members and non-members who are struggling.
"We've taken $200,000 and spread it out to organizations -- four local, two missions that are feeding and clothing people in these tough times," Slough said. "We've paid utility bills for members of our church that are unemployed or under-employed."
His favorite giveaway came three weeks ago. The church gave 1,400 families $50 each and told them to hand it out to someone else.
One of the recipients was Katie Lewis.
"I've been alone so long. Just to be thought of and to be remembered, to be welcomed -- it's amazing," she said, crying.
Church members are pleasantly surprised.
"You don't hear about a church giving money away," Amy Sullivan said.
Slough said he is not concerned if people try to take advantage of the church's generosity.
"I told my church a couple weeks ago, if I'm not being taken advantage of, I'm not being like Jesus," he said.
The church has now formed a group to look into the best ways to give out money. And, Slough said, it plans on doing so as long as there is a need in the community.

2nd Annual Benefit Rummage Sale

Last year we were blessed by the Master Gardeners in Waushara County with a whole bunch of beautiful flowers. Now we need some help taking care of the garden! Let us know if you can help in this way. We'll be doing weeding with the residents on Saturdays, but any time you can come is great.

We are praising God for our recent Rummage Sale success. We made more than expected and had wonderful help with donations, set up, and manning the cash register the days of the event. Thank you to all who gave so generously!

Thank you to our awesome volunteers!

Symantha,Connie, Doris, Heather, Cindy, Sharon, Nancy, Larry and Kathy, Diane, Sam, Tobi, Sandy, Chris, Virginia, Myrt, Terry, Jean, Barb, Deb and Lynn.

And a huge thank you to Misty for putting it all together!

When Times are Tough

When Travis, myself, Deb Kufner and Tobi Bertzyk, felt God leading us to start Naomi House, the economy was fine. There were single moms in our area who needed our help, but we never imagined how bad the economy would get. Or that we personally would be impacted. Each of us has been in one way or another.

In our small town, a major employer is closing down this month. Leaving almost 200 people without jobs, with gloomy prospects of finding new employment. It has been a shock to so many.
But it has not been a shock to God. He's very smart you know. And the message that we have been sharing with our residents for the past year, is now applicable to many more people.

"God is in control and has a plan and loves you enough to take care of you."

This message has brought comfort to the women who have stayed with us. We don't know HOW God will make it all right, and we never promise it'll be easy. But we do know that when we trust in Him, we'll never be put to shame.

I was listening to a message by Joyce Meyer and she asked "Do you ever see a bird on a branch having a nervous breakdown, wondering where the next worm will come from?" It made me laugh, because many times I have wondered 'How will we pay for this?' or 'What if we don't have that?'

Matthew 6:26 says "So I tell you, don't worry about everyday life-- whether you have enough food, drink, and clothes. Doesn't life consist of more than food and clothing? Look at the birds. They don't need to plant or harvest or put food in barns because your heavenly father feeds them. And you are far more valuable to him than they are. Can all your worries add a single moment to your life? Of course not."

I personally think that we all may find ourselves living without some of the luxuries we've always enjoyed. But God will take care of our needs. When we ask Him and trust Him. Which is much easier said than done. In these times our faith is being tested and once tested, growing stronger. I'm so thankful to serve an intelligent, powerful, loving, and real God.

What we're up to

This is so scary to me. I'm on facebook, that was advanced enough for me. Now you can come and read our blog. I can keep you informed about what we're up to at Naomi House. Hopefully I don't mess it up! I actually messed up signing up for the site. I hit the back button and had to spend 10 minutes fixing it... I'm not good at this up-to-the-minute-info-sharing stuff.
But I will give it my best shot for all of you who will benefit from it. And I do love writing so maybe it'll work out really well.

Naomi House is looking for Volunteers. Women to come and encourage moms who are in a difficult place to make good decisions and know that God has not forgotten them.
I did some calculating to see how much money our wonderful Volunteer Day Staff have saved our ministry.

If we paid $10 per hour, and you volunteer four hours per week. You have, in effect, donated $160 to Noami House per month.

Your time is worth sooo much!

We also have needs for help with fundraising. We do about 4 events per year. In April we are having a rummage sale. We could use help at the cash register and setting up.

If you are interested in this please let me know!! I'll send you a volunteer application and we can set up a time to meet in person.

Depression Quotes from Wisconsin

My mother got me this wonderful cookbook called "Stories and Recipes of the Great Depression of the 1930's" by Rita Van Amber.
The neat thing is that it's still for sale and is published right in Neenah WI.
I use it for the easy-to-make recipes with ingredients that I usually have on hand at home. I want to share some of the quotes from the book as an encouragement. Mostly because I watched the news this morning and it was anything BUT encouraging.

"Your children and grandchildren, I'm sure today, can't believe half of it. Many times I think it would make better homemakers, better marriages and less divorces if things wouldn't come so easy. Nothing was thrown away, like now, and we ate what was fixed. We never said "yuk" about food or we would have been disciplined. Gardening was the main source of one's living. The whole family worked at it, too. I'm glad I was brought up in those times, as you really learn to take care of things and appreciate them. A product of the Depression. Alma Smith Woodville, WI

"The Depression was a good education." Virginia Fyksen, Eau Claire WI

"We all wore the same dresses at school. They were made out of feed bags and only one neighbor had a pattern. So we all used the same pattern with the same rickrack around the neck, sleeves, and hems." Gwen Manske Menominee WI

"The gas tank was getting low and we couldn't make it up the steep hill in the model T so we turned in around right there and backed it up all the way. Gravity-feed gas tanks were under the front seat.

We coasted down every hill so the gas would take us there and back. It was 19 cents a gallon.

Soda pop was 5 cents a bottle and it was real genuine grape. We never got any." George

The address and phone to purchase this book is:
Van Amber Publishers 862 E. Cecil Street Neenah WI 54956 Ph. (920) 722-8357