A second presentation was given by Pastor Rod Armon and LCC K-9 Comfort Dog Candace (LCC Staff) about the LCC K-9 Comfort Dog Ministry and the uniqueness of this ministry in reaching out to share the presence of Jesus in times of stress through the unique gifts that comfort dogs bring. The mission and ministry of LCC to law enforcement and to military members both active and retired was given. Additionally, discussion was held on how to introduce Candace Comfort Dog to those who are housed within the confines of FCI Oxford. Since those who are housed at the facility usually only have negative interaction with dogs, the presence of Candace Comfort Dog will provide the inmates with the opportunities to interact with her in a different way then might be normal to them. Candace Comfort Dog will be making a visit to the facility in January during the worship time to provide comfort to staff and those housed there.
Praise God, in November, Marybeth found a studio apartment that she could afford that was in walking distance to her job and would accept her 10 pound dog. On December 1, friends and members of St. Paul Lutheran Church in Norwood Park, with the assistance of a truck from Lutheran Church Charities, helped Marybeth move into her new apartment.
Once in the cardiac unit, we passed a man on a cell phone. He looked at us and immediately hung up from his call. “Can I pet your dog? There is boy here that needs a visit from a dog, his brother is dying.” We followed God’s plan instead of ours. The gentleman led us directly to the waiting room a few doors away. We turned the corner to enter the room where there were about 25 people in that small waiting room. All of them had tears in their eyes. There was no hope in that room at all. Curled up on the couch, wrapped in a blanket, crying, was a boy (about 10-12 years old). He sat up immediately and put his arms around Cubby Comfort Dog as she went in for her signature hug. The next 1/2 hour we would spend in that room ministering to the family and friends of the dying boy.
Cubby was awesome … doing her commands of “laps, rises, and hugs.” When lunch arrived, we stepped down the hall to visit the cardiac patient, who we originally intended to visit first that day, his wife, and his son. We had a very nice visit. He spoke of the dogs his family had and growing up on a farm, while petting Cubby Comfort Dog the entire time. After that visit, we headed back to the waiting room where we were intercepted by a nurse who said, “We just called the volunteer coordinator to see where Cubby was. The young boy she just visited would like to spend more time with Cubby.” We spent another 20 minutes in the waiting room. There was a definite change in the room from our first entry to our final exit. The boy smiled a lot and the air in the room was definitely lighter. God’s plan is always best! Please pray for this family and all of the families who are coping with the loss of a loved one during the holidays.
LCC looks forward to the many ministry opportunities that God has prepared for both of these LCC K-9 Ministry teams
Trinity Panama City supports this charter school located across the street from the church with students from 6th to 12th grade with requested services and supplies throughout the school year. Through the generosity of Trinity Lisle, team leaders were able to purchase backpacks and fill them with needed school supplies and personal toiletry items for the school’s 300 students as they returned to school.
Dr. Fontaine contacted Jan Boerman, Trinity Lisle team leader, last week to ask if any other assistance could possibly be provided to her students. She stated that these children are in desperate need of shoes, socks and underwear. She asked if it would be possible to provide a $50 Walmart gift card for each student to purchase these needed items. Walmart is the only large department store fully stocked, open, and accessible to students families in Panama City at this time. Lutheran Church Charities is supporting the Trinity Lisle LERT team in the purchasing and delivering of gift cards to Pastor Paul McComack to give to Principal Fontaine for her students by collecting monetary donations for the purchase of the gift cards. |
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