Back to the farm!

The Spirit Riders are back on the farm! For the next six weeks, twelve excited Granny's House youth will participate in horseback riding lessons and will learn everything from basic riding skills, to how to properly clean out a stall and care of a horse! Many of the riders have participated in the program before, and are building upon previous skills, but for four new riders it is the beginning of a new adventure!

None of the four new Spirit Riders have ever been on a horse, and although most of them were very nervous and literally shaking as they mounted their horse for the first time, within minutes they were smiling and looked confident riding around the round pen!! In fact...they didn't want the lesson to end!

At the beginning of each lesson, the riders are required to set goals for themselves, and each week they state which "Fruits of the Spirit" they want to work on for the day. It never fails that the top two thing they all want to work on is "self control" and "patience."


The more experienced riders were able to ride freely in the pasture and are even thinking about setting a goal to see how many miles they can ride each week!


We will keep you updated on the program as the weeks progress!

Mother's Day

If there is one thing the kids at Granny's House love to do...it's make things for their mom! On a daily basis, I hear "Can I paint a picture for my mom?" or "Can I make an extra craft and give it to my mom?" It's pretty sweet.

Altrusa International for two years now has captured this idea perfectly by providing (for lack of a better term) a "picture studio" in which they take pictures of each child and allow the kids to decorate a picture frame for their mom! The kids love that they have a gift for their mom on Mother's Day, and usually end up running home right away to give it to their mother early!

A big thank you to all the women of Altrusa who not only provided all the materials and "man power" but also provided pizza for all the kids (which if you know our kids...is a HUGE deal!)


Thank you again to everyone who showed so much love to the kids!

Graduation Time!

On a daily basis, the staff and volunteers of Granny's House get the opportunity to see into a child's heart. Sometimes it's seen in little love notes left on the floor at the end of the day that read "I love Granny Vance because she makes me nachos." Other times, it is seen as we are pulling out of the parking lot and hear "WAIT!!! I need to get a hug before you leave!!" I'm pretty sure we get to work with the most loveable kids in Columbia :)

On April 26th, family, friends, counselors, teachers and even principals got to witness what we experience everyday as the young men of The Son's of the King, and the young ladies of The Princess Academy shared what they have been learning in their programs during our annual graduation ceremony. Each member of the groups spoke about what God has done in their life this year, and what they have learned about honor, strength, courage, purity, dignity and integrity. We got the opportunity to see into their amazing hearts and got to witness all that God has been doing this year.






We are so very proud of all the young men and women who were a part of this years programs. The girls looked beautiful in their graduation outfits and the boys never looked more handsome. They are all such incredible leaders...

Extreme Makeover…

I've always wondered what it would be like to be on one of those cable television home makeover shows. Well, today I got to find out.

As I walked into the newly renovated “Learning Loft” at Granny's House for the very first time, “Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh! Oh my gosh!” just kept spilling out of my mouth. “Oh MYYYYYYYYY gosh… OHHHHHHHHH my gosh,” then came one long “Ohhhhhhhhhhhh!”

I had trouble taking it all in: the new chalkboard painted onto the wall, the brand new computers and printer… the well-stocked bookshelf, the posters, the dry-erase board… every single thing that was on our “wish list,” with lots of extras tucked around every corner. I finally plopped down onto the new cherry-red beanbag chair and laughed hysterically. I simply couldn't believe the transformation.

Then I stood up, flung my hands into the air and shouted “THANK YOU GOD!” For the past year, we've been helping Granny's House kids with school projects in any empty corner we could find, often using our crowded storage room amidst bags of rice, cans of tomato sauce, and reams of computer paper. We dreamed of the day when we'd have an uncluttered space where we could help the kids with their school work. Today, that dream came true. (See our Friday, October 24, 2008 blog: “The Learning Loft”).

Ashton Honeycutt and her S-MSTA (Student-Missouri State Teachers Association) colleagues and faculty advisors did a beautiful job of transforming our former storage room into an “effective learning environment.” They raised the money, planned, shopped, and came to Granny's House this weekend to transform our bare-bones room into a cheerful place for kids to learn. I can't wait to see the kids' reactions when they first see their brand new “Learning Loft!” -Granny Pam