The following is a story of helping a single parent in Lakewood through connections made by Lakewood Connects.

The Community and Family Connections Department at the JeffCo School District supports families who are experiencing housing instability. Through our intensive outreach since Covid-19, we have heard from many families who are struggling with food insecurities.  On a recent call, I spoke with a single mom struggling financially to put food on her table and just making it to pay housing bills. Mom has an immune compromising health issue, which is a barrier to her working as she cannot be in the public at this time. Her daughter has gluten and dairy limitations, limiting food that can be purchased. With finances being so tight, mom stressed how she would afford the gluten free and dairy free diet her daughter requires.

Through my connections with Reg Cox with Lakewood Connects, we were able to connect the family with The Bridge Church at Bear Creek.  The group at The Bridge, did an amazing job to fill this need. Not only did they provide some of mom’s wish list items but also way above and beyond.  Mom called after the delivery, crying tears of joy. She stated that it gave her some light and relieved a little stress off of meals for the week.  Her daughter was even more excited because her favorite gluten free baguettes were in the box. Thank you team for wrapping your arms around this mom, we cannot express our gratitude.

Naomi Xayavongsa – Community and Family Connections Coordinator, Jeffco Schools – Title I office

Especially in these times it’s vital that we make like the Beatles song and come together. Churches, schools, and the communities they serve ought to be working together to address the needs of their families. I’m the new Jr. High director at our church and, though my responsibilities are often tied to the students and families of our church, I believe that I’m here to serve and work with the larger Bridge Church community.

As soon as I was informed of Jennifer and her child’s situation I was ready to drop what I was doing and do some grocery shopping. I dropped off everything from pasta to gluten free breakfast bars. Jennifer texted us letting us know how excited her child was and I know that this would have never happened if it hadn’t been for the teamwork between the church and the school. Our church and the school are firm believers in working together to serve the greater community. Though this may have been a quick grocery run I know it means so much more to Jennifer, her family, and our community to know that we’re coming together, right now, to serve our families.

Matt Bowen – Jr. High and Community pastor / Bridge Church at Bear Creek