LIGHTHOUSE OUTREACH

Good morning, good morning, good morning. Welcome, welcome, welcome.

It is time now for our community connection right here on K one, the one you trust.

Errol is in here from Lighthouse Outreach and.

Errol by golly, it's always a good day when you show up here because you usually got some pretty darn good news.

It's good to be able to share. I appreciate the opportunity. You brought a friend too, brought Lewana Allen with us.

She's a volunteer and a donor at the lighthouse, and so later on the program we have her share a little bit what it means Sara, why she does what she does.

First of all, lighthouse has been going strong for a good long time, a little over what thirty thirty about thirty three years, thirty three years now. But the times when they start getting a little challenging for the rest of us, it get really challenging for the Lighthouse, and we kind of need a little leg pick me up, don't we.

Right, And this is something I've never done before, has gone on the radio asking for funds for the lighthouse. But I'm on the Homeless Task Force here at the City Council, appointed this last few months ago, and according to the police report, there's thirty five to forty five homeless people outside of the lighthouse are not being.

Sheltered, but we have eighty there at the lighthouse.

Over half the people they are homeless and Bartlow being sheered at the lighthouse three meals a day, place to stay warm, a bed for laundry, facilities, transportation to and from doctors and appointments. So we're helping about eighty people a day right now at the Lighthouse.

And what you've done is you've got a pretty good success rate there turning people around and getting them back into society. You got some numbers you'd like to share.

I know that we last year from Impact Report, like ninety six of our people that last year found work, you obtained housing, this is important.

Twenty three renited their family.

A lot of times there's a disconnect with the family because they pulled away from the family or the family pulled away from them, and some of them being rennited and that's beautiful. We've had kids actually given back to their parents through DHS by their parents being at the Light House, and that's a beautiful thing when that you

And we have a budget shortfall.

Right now, and it's about ten to fifteen thousand dollars a month short, and we have a little savings. We had about fifty thousand left, but if we take out fifteen to twenty thousand a month the next two to three months, that's all gone. And then we head into the dry summer seat and giving typically windows down anyhow, So we're really trying to make some changes and the boarder. We looked at our budget about six months ago and the projected amount of income hasn't been as high as.

We were expecting.

And so you've got two problems in your budget doesn't amount either cut experienses or increase income. Okay, you look at cutting expenses. Okay, utilities are pretty much established. Even though we go on hutting off lights and things like that. You got eighty people, it's going to not make much difference. And then the water bill is higher because we've got more people there. And so we looked at, well you maybe cut staff. Well, everybody there is doing all they

To do more work or else that job doesn't get done. We don't meet that need.

So we're looking the other option is increase income and that's what we're trying to do.

Well, you've gotten some really nice donations here recently, you packed, you just got one this week.

Last week we got a ten thousand dollars check and that was wonderful when we weren't expecting it, totally out of the blue, and that was wonderful. And then you start sitting on the math at seventeen hundred dollars a day, that would last five and a half days.

Wow.

So the big check was wonderful, very much appreciated. But the expenses are such and we're trying to be very frugal with what we do. We get food from the food bank and places like that, so we have not much money we've spent for food, but other expenses we can't do much about.

Hey, you got a great track record there. How can people invest in the Lighthouse so that we can keep things going well?

If right now we're needing about one hundred thousand dollars to finish out the year September thirty, first end of our fiscal year. And I'm sure there's somebody right now listing that could write a check for one hundred thousand dollars and.

Solve that problem.

But that's not what we're asking for because if one person pays the whole amount, only one person gets blessed. But if for people we gave twenty five thousand apiece, there'd before people blessed because the Bible said it's more blessed to give them receive.

Oh it is.

And then you take a little further, if one hundred people gave one thousand dollars, one hundred people get blessed. So when you break it down into I believe people in Bartlesville want to give their money.

Where lives are being changed.

They do.

There's so many opportunities and so many organization and ministries calling for you're helping your support, and that's why we want to try to let you know we're using the money wisely and carefully and lives are being changed.

And that's why I brought Luanna with me. She's a volunteer.

I wanted to share about being a volunteer, what that's meant to her, and then also why she is a donor also at the White House.

Luenna, Well, I've been volunteering for over two years and it has changed my life. God has just given me such love and compassion for the residence that it's just been such a blessing to go there and be with the residence, to visit with them, to hear their stories, help with lunch, and excuse.

Me helping with lunch.

Each person that goes through the line, I get to see them face to face and speak to them, and I think that's really important for them to be recognized as a person not being transparent, but being seen and loved. And that's what I see at the Lighthouse is loved every day being manifested through the employees. And I know what God has done for me in the time that it's just been such an overwhelming I can't even begin

One of the things you said before we went on the air was I'm witnessing love.

And action, Love and action exactly.

And then that's truly what it is, erl that you couldn't have asked for a better person to testify today.

She's gonna blessed us.

She came to us a couple of years ago and wont to where she could help, and we'll usually with volunteers. Serving in the kitchen is one way to get started, and he gives you something to do physically, but also contact with the residents.

And then she just expanded from there.

I see LouAnn sitting in the lounge talking to ladies and listening to the ladies mainly, and they need somebody they can talk to to. And so this is, like she said, seeing as a person, not just as assisting or in some case a nuisance. And that may be viewed that way as we look at people that are homeless sometimes.

Wow, how can we help? Do we just drop by and write you a check? Or can we do that, buy the mail or how do you.

Perform There's a variety of ways. You can write a check and mail it in our mailing addresses, Box one twenty four, Bartlesville, Oklahoma. You can come by bring the check in person. We'd love to visit with you, or there are options.

Through PayPal and some things like that.

Just call the office and ask for If you want to do it over the phone, there's the ways we can get that also.

But whatever it can be done.

Maybe you want to in your Sunday school class take an offering for the lighthouse is Sunday? Just something about that, just a spontaneous thing like that. But every little bit helps. We have we have a direct mail every month. We get letters from people give to or three hundred dollars some people. We got a man up in Sedan, Kansas sins. It's a dollar bill every month and that helps out.

Wisely Outreach Center they asking for your help. They don't do that very often. In fact, this is the first time I can remember. So, folks, if you got a little extra, let's put it to good use. Let's put some love and action with Thank you, thank you for being with us here. All right, folks, you've been listening to our community connection on K one.