September Newsletter

September 2014
Helping Hurting Families
8th Annual Golf Tournament
Our biggest
fundraiser of
the year is
coming up
soon. Mark
your calendars for Friday,
November 7,
2014. Pinewood
Country Club in
Slidell will host Savannah Smiles 8th tournament. It’s always a great day for golf and a good cause!
Included in this newsletter is the registration form. Reserve a spot for your team.
Giving Back
In 2013, Savannah Smiles
was able to help 89 families with burial assistance
for their children.
As of this newsletter, we
have given to another 72
families.
Since our inception in 2007, we’ve
given over $200,000 towards final
expenses for children. That is an
unbelievable number!!!!
Your support is truly making a difference to hurting mom’s and
dad’s!
Inside this issue:
Rotary club skeet shoot
2
Thrivent “Share the
Vote” campaign
2
Savannah Manor update
3
In Memory
4
Contact Us
4
Savannah’s Smile
4
Coming up in 2014
Northshore Skeet Shoot
The Rotary Club of Slidell is hosting its annual skeet shoot to
benefit four local charities. It’s the 4th year Savannah Smiles
has been chosen as one of those four. It will be held at Covey
Rise Lodge in Husser, LA, Friday, September 12 from 10am4pm.
The Rotary is also raffling off a C-Z-USA Canvasback 12
Gauge Over Under Shotgun. If you would like to purchase
tickets for that drawing (you need not be present to win), they are $10 ea. Or 6 for $50. You can
call Jody Scharfenstein if your interested @ 504-450-3306
Contact Dave Kaufmann for sponsorships and/or team registration. [email protected] or
985-649-7381
Thrivent Choice Share the Vote Event
Savannah Smiles is the
charity chosen in all of St.
Tammany parish, by Terri
King and Karen Gould,
local Thrivant representatives, to participate in
Share the Vote for
Louisiana, sponsored by
Thrivent Financial.
Share The Vote allows
community members to
vote on where Thrivent
distributes $20,000 of its
grant funds. The money
will be split among 5 chariPage 2
ties here in Louisiana
and will be awarded
based on the percentage
of votes each charity
receives.
Voting will start
September 22 and will
end October 12.
What I like most about
this event is that you
only vote once! It’s
about spreading the
word, sharing on FB and
twitter, what Savannah
Smiles is doing in this
community. Be on the
lookout via social media,
radio spots, and emails
for this event to start. It
is exciting and encouraging to have been chosen.
You don’t have to live in
Louisiana to vote so let’s
share and see what God
wants to do!!!!
-Jennifer
Savannah Manor:
Savannah Manor has seen a lot of changes over the last year with different families moving in
and major changes being done to the property. The journey that we all live in this life is full of
different paths and just when we think that we have made our own paths, God quickly reminds
us that it is He that directs our paths. We have been able to minister with two different families
at the very beginning of the Manor journey, and over the last year we have seen a change of
direction that God has led us to minister with single moms and children. As of today, both
homes are now occupied with moms and their children. It has been very busy around the
Manor lately as, along with our household, there are now 12 children running around playing
together daily. It is great to see children playing together and we pray as our family is here
on site, that we can just be a listening ear to these moms that are hurting in their journey of life.
Please pray for these families as they seek counsel, wisdom and guidance as their lives are
now changed from what they have always known. As for construction around the Manor, this
summer we had World Changers come through and do some major work around the property.
We have cleared some land for a future playground area, designated some parking areas and
built a covered walkway that goes back to house number 2. We also had some friends of ours
from Arkansas come that same week to help with the projects as well. The property is looking
amazing, but we still have some needs so please pray that we can finish a playground area for
these children. We are also hoping to fence in the property for the safety of the children.
Thank you for all the prayers and support for Savannah Manor!
Nick Church
-Resident Manager for Savannah Manor
Students on a
mission trip
through World
Changers,
donated their
time for one
week, working
on projects here
at Savannah
Manor.
Volume 1, Issue 1
Page 3
Helping Hurting Families
PO Box 2103
Slidell, LA 70459-2103
985-690-7444
[email protected]
www.savannah-smiles.org
In memory this year:
Jordan, Winter, Meelah, Njeri, Nathaniel,
Jermany, Dream, Ashley, Leon, Kindall, Zion,
Kodi, Baby Boyd, Quran, Zalayah, Mikell, Terry,
Shakira, Angel, Alphonso, Natalia, Tyler,
Malachi, Ti’mya, Harper, Macy, Arthur, Connor,
A.J., Drew, Aiden, Christina, Isaac, Payton,
Like us on Facebook!
Baby Padilla, (Bryson, Bryce and Braylon),
Ricardo, Brylon, Isabelle, Baby Zenon, Maddox,
2014 Board of Directors
Amelia, Joseph, Chyna, Sanya, Emery, Aristal,
Ginger Seaton
Jamyra, Zion, Indie, Nathaly, Kason, Jessica,
Jody Scharfenstein
John Woodfin
Jennifer Scharfenstein
Karen Groom
Ted Morrison
Tim Walker
Donovan, Bladen, Dyamond, Ma’Kiah, Joshua,
Ramseies, Gracie, Jayden, Juan, Mit’chell, Isaac,
Boniespy, Torraj, Romelo, Layla, Denarryon,
Gabriel
Savannah’s Smile
Savannah’s Smile…
on December 10, 2006 at 2:30 in the
afternoon, God was going to call Sa-
that will matter forever. Not just a
head knowledge of who He is (“even
Savannah would be 17now. That
vannah’s name and she wasn’t going to
resist. In the same way, He will call my
the demons believe and they tremble”
James 2:19) but confessing that He is
seems impossible. She’s frozen at 9
years in my mind. I do wonder what
name one day, on the day that is
the Son of God and making Him Lord
ordained for me to come HOME, and I
over your life. We all have one thing in
17 would have looked like but my next
thought is one from my Heavenly Fa-
will not resist!
common and that is death. Jody likes
to say, “At some point, we all come to a
ther. “Jen, I ordained Savannah’s
days just like I have ordained your
complete satisfaction of being at Home
days.”
Philippians: 1:21, “To live is Christ, and
I know this because His Word says
to die is gain. If I am to go on living
in this body, that means fruitful
labor for me.”
I miss her smile, although I do get to
see it in pictures all around our home.
so in Psalm 139:16
“All the days Ordained for me were
written in your book before one of
them came to be.”
I take comfort in that. That settles
the huge “what if” questions for me.
It didn’t matter what we were doing
In the meantime, Savannah enjoys the
with Jesus. For me, like Paul says in
place of questioning why we’re here and
what is our purpose.” In great loss, we
also come face to face with what we
believe happens when we die. God’s
word is very clear.
Everything I do, from continuing to
John 14:6 And Jesus said to them,
raise my girls, to running Savannah
“I am the way, and the truth, and
the life. NO one comes to the Father except THROUGH Me.
Smiles, will be fruitful labor.
Life is so fragile and short. A relationship with Jesus here is the only thing