Parties, Hot Dogs, and Fun -OH MY!

Over the last 12-15 months, we have thrown quite a few parties in Green St. park in downtown Danville, Virginia, as our little way of saying that the Kingdom of God is most at home in the places where the need is most profound. This particular park is one of the public places to which Grace and Main has made a commitment. We believe that parties are a fantastic instrument to spread grace to those who most sorely need it. If you stand in the middle of this park, you’ll see need all around you and if you spend much time in the area you’ll soon learn which houses have been used to perpetuate the crack cocaine problem that plagues downtown and the Northside and which houses have been lost to blight or prostitution–you’ll also notice the many children who call this neighborhood home. At these parties, we asked families what we could do with them to make this little corner of the world a better place. We heard two things over and over: 1) we need more celebrations, and 2) we need something for our children to do over summer vacation. The second request was especially loud in our ears, when we’ve recently learned that 41% of children in Danville fall at or below the poverty line. We know all too well how gangs and drug dealers prey upon our beloved and offer the illusion of escape. In the face of such need and such difficulty though, what can we hope to do?

Grace and Main decided to do the two things we heard most clearly from our dear ones downtown. This summer, we will resource and support two significant projects in Green St. park: 1) we will make sure there is a party in the park every Saturday during summer vacation from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. We will eat lunch, play games, and clearly communicate God’s love and grace through our presence and actions, and 2) we will provide daily activities for the children around Green St. park Monday-Friday from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. starting June 25 and ending August 3…READ MORE IN TODAY’S NEWSLETTER FROM THIRD CHANCE MINISTRIES.

(http://us4.campaign-archive2.com/?u=565bbb96d86013f8ac53e4f4d&id=637c47a89d)