CPR is as Easy as ABC...

During the September session of CALEB the Science Club, Granny's House kids and other Columbia youth learned the basics of CPR and first aid. The MU chapter of Student National Medical Association (SNMA) led the workshop. Although cardiopulmonary resuscitation might sound a little intimidating, the children learned it was as easy as airway, breathe, circulation.

Pictures to come...

CALEB the Science Club is an extracurricular academic program hosted by the University of Missouri-Columbia that involves students at all levels. Although there is a very important emphasis on the middle-school age, students at higher levels of education are actively involved. The older students help to nurture the younger ones, providing extremely valuable input while gaining invaluable mentoring experience themselves. Usually there are Medical and Premedical students in attendance. Their presence models what the younger students can achieve.

For more information, visit the CALEB the Science Club website.

KAA-2011!

It's that time of year again! Tomorrow morning 31 Granny's House youth and 6 Granny's House staff and volunteers will travel to Golden Missouri to take part in an amazing week at Kids Across America camp! Please pray for safety (especially in this heat), changed hearts, and a TON of fun! We can't wait to update you when we get back!!!

Another Granny's House Super Mom...

We first met Melissa, thirty-one-year-old mother of five, when she moved across the street from Granny’s House nearly three years ago. She ran a tight ship at home, expecting good grades, on-time homework assignments, finished chores, and respect for grown ups.

It wasn’t until she came over to help us plant flowers at Granny’s, however, that we got to know, not only “Melissa-as-Mom,” but “Melissa-as-History Buff.”

“I love watching the History Chanel,” she said, “cause that’s where I learned how all the states got their shapes.” While scooping black dirt and fertilizer pellets into flower pots, she talked and talked and we got a taste of her keen intellect and desire to make things better for her family.

I began wondering just how far she’d gone in school, but wasn’t quite sure how to broach the subject. I finally took a chance and asked, “Hey, you’re so smart! Have you ever considered going to college?”

She had, in fact, considered the prospect of college but, first, had to conquer the GED, she said. She enrolled in GED classes a few weeks later, and passed the GED exam not quite a year after the day we planted flowers together. Unlike her stint in high school, this time around, she loved it:

“It’s as if my desire to learn went from fifteen miles an hour to a hundred and fifty miles an hour…I so loved soaking it all up.”

She obviously soaked up a lot while at Douglass High’s GED classes. She was an exceptional student and was asked to give the student speech at graduation. In her speech, she told of her attempt to return to school with the responsibility of a new baby - the difficulty of balancing homework assignments and late evening work at a car wash:

“Most eleventh graders had lots of time to hang out with girlfriends, but not me…

All that came to a screeching halt when I had the baby.”

Now, Melissa can hardly wait to enroll in classes at Columbia College this fall:

“When I was in elementary school, I used to dream about going to college. I always wanted to make my parents proud… Now I want to go to make my kids proud.”

Congratulations Friend!! We’re so proud of you!!

I still remember my first day- Jon Moe

Jon Moe. A tall, lanky, blonde kid who was just beginning his college career at Mizzou. He was an instant hit with the kids, and for sure, one of the most effective male volunteers we've ever had!

I’ll never forget the day that I stood watching Jon from the dining room window as He arrived at Granny’s House. What I saw melted my heart! As Jon got out of his car, one of the kids ran, with outstretched arms, to meet him. Jon greeted that kid by picking him up, swinging him around just like a lot of dads do with their small children. For years, something like this happened every time Jon came to Granny’s House. Here are some of Jon's memories from his days as Granny's House Volunteer:

What Do You Remember About Your Time at Granny’s House?

“I remember the first time that one of the kids called me ‘Daddy.’ I was both pleased and proud, but also deeply grieved. I only volunteered one day a week, but apparently even that much consistent male presence classified me as a father figure.”

“I also remember picking up one of the kids and taking them to Cosmo Park with another volunteer on a Saturday. It was so much fun to see how excited this kid was. They had been looking forward to the outing for the whole week and talked about it all the next week.”

How Does Volunteering at Granny's House Impact Lives?

“It’s especially important for men to volunteer and to provide at least a taste of what having a father is like. You may just be able to point these precious kids to their "Real Father." Bringing joy to a child's heart is one of the most enjoyable things I think we can do this side of heaven!”

What Are You Doing Now?

After graduating from Mizzou, I moved to Minnesota to work as an engineer. I am married and have a toddler son…

Do You Have A Prayer For Granny’s House?

“I pray that God will continue to use Granny's House to radically change lives - the lives of the volunteers, the kids, and their families. I pray that Granny's House will continue to be salt and light, spread liberally, and shining brightly in the projects of Columbia…”

Granny's House Store!

One of our goals at Granny's House, is to teach the kids that hard work...equals provision. They all have such amazing gifts and talents, and we want to show them that they can use those gifts to glorify God through their work!

Because of this, for the past few months, the kids have been earning "points" at Granny's House by cleaning, taking out trash or helping with random chores we might have. Their points are posted on a wall, and everytime they complete a task, points are awarded!

Recently, the children were given "paychecks" based on their points, which could be "cashed in" for Granny's House dollars to be used in a Granny's House store! The store featured toys, clothes, balls, and several household items, and the kids were really excited to purchase items for themselves using their hard earned cash!

We are hoping to provide a store every month for the kids!!!

Granny's House kids in Jamaica!

Three Granny's House youth (Kenny, Kiona and Starr) are currently on a Mission Trip in Jamaica! We are so excited for them, and can't wait to hear all about their amazing experiences! Feel free to follow their trip on the "Won by One" website which will post photos each night of their daily adventures! Click on the "Crossing Church" photo and you will see what they are up to!!

I still remember my first day- Rachel Niewoehner

Ten years ago, Rachel Niewoehner stepped onto the Granny's House property as one of the first volunteers to cross the threshold! Her love for the children and genuine spirit blessed many children, and her energy drew many kids to the Granny's House doorstep! Ten years later, Rachel remembers her time at Granny's House, and lets us know what she is up to now!

Do you have a favorite memory of Granny's House?

Oh goodness, how to pick a favorite memory?! I have so many treasured memories from my years at Granny’s House. From Princess Academy, to field trips, to the funny things the kids would say, the funny moments shared with fellow volunteers. I have albums filled with pictures. And my mom has a picture of me with two of our first GH kids, De’la and Ton-Ton. I still tell stories about those hilarious, wonderful, loving kids.

What do you remember from the first week we opened and you were a volunteer?

I remember being so excited! I remember getting the space ready and feeling like it was this big adventure that we were embarking on. I remember wondering how big of a difference we would make and I oddly remember setting out a box of books and “free stuff” on the sidewalk. I remember those first few kids coming up to talk and investigate; I think I was as nervous and curious as they were!

Did Granny's House impact your life, career choices?

Granny’s House changed my life in so many ways. It is no exaggeration to say that I am the person that I am today in large part to Granny’s House. The children and families I met in Douglass Park changed my perceptions of need and poverty. Public housing became a human place, full of beautiful faces and dreams. Granny's House helped to shape how I view the Kingdom of God, and our responsibilities as Jesus-followers in bringing it here to earth. After initially following a path towards events planning, I decided to pursue a path in nonprofit work. I got my Master's in nonprofit management and urban affairs. For the last three and a half years, I have been working at Catholic Charities in Kansas City, Missouri helping small nonprofits, like Granny's House, serve more people.

What are you doing now?

I am living in Kansas City, Missouri, and I work in social service. I work for Catholic Charities here, helping small, grassroots nonprofit organizations, like Granny’s House began ten years ago, do what they do better and serve more people. I’ve been fortunate to work with nearly fifty organizations here in the Kansas City area over the last three and half years, and have been able to have a small part in some incredible stories.

Do you have a prayer for Granny's House?

I pray that Granny's House will always be a safe place, the type of safety that spreads like a little light filling a dark room until fear is driven from every corner of that room. I pray that the presence of God dwells there richly and tangibly; that children and families are made new and whole; that Granny's House becomes a birthplace of a disciplining culture in Columbia Public Housing. I pray for flowers and plants and toys and books and kool-aid, and always an abundance of open-hearted volunteers.

EXTREME WEBSITE MAKEOVER!!

HAPPY 10TH BIRTHDAY, GRANNY'S HOUSE!!

It's hard to believe that Granny's House first opened it's doors to public housing children 10 years ago...

Ten incredible years of hugs, and love, and laughter as we constantly come up with new ways to "smear" the love of God on the children cross our threshold on Trinity Place each weekday afternoon.

To celebrate this milestone, we have a summer-long "Online Birthday Party" planned via, this blog, Facebook, and our soon-to-be-unveiled renovated website.

Check in often for leisurely strolls down memory lane to learn about kids who, literally, grew up at Granny's House; read about refugee kids whose lives are being transformed in our midst; meet volunteers and staff members whose passion for the Lord and children have made Granny's House kids' favorite place to be after school.

In the meantime, we couldn't wait for you to get a sneak preview of our all-spruced-up website which will go "live" any day now...

CONGRATULATIONS GRANNY'S HOUSE MOM!!

When Katrina (we call her “Trina”) recently walked across the stage at Columbia College’s Graduation ceremony, we were thrilled that another Granny’s House mom could now claim that lofty title, “College Graduate!”

As if working a full time job to put food on the table for her children, managing their meals, school projects, and afterschool activities weren’t enough, she had the grace, grit, and perseverance to plough through years of homework assignments, research papers, and late-into-the-night study sessions to get that coveted degree: Bachelor of Arts in Criminal Justice.

And we were not the only one’s who are proud of her. We joined a host of family and friends who traveled to Columbia to congratulate this huge accomplishment. Her children were beaming. In fact, one of them said, “I’m glad she did it! Now I know that I can do the same!”