Tuesday, June 30, 2009

Volunteers

We just wanted to send out a thank you to all our wonderful volunteers. Many people have labored many hours to help make the ranch a success and accomplish its goal:
touching a child's life; one child at a time. This mission is not mine or Bill's. It is God's and all the people He has assigned to this task. Seeing the smiles on the kids is what makes all the hard work worthwhile. Our volunteer list is growing, and when we see that we have enough help we offer "a regular" the day off, they say "no", I still want to come and help. I know it is seeing the kids!
Thanks so Much!! God Bless you in all you do!

Cub Scouts


Saturday we had fun showing some cub scouts around the ranch. They too enjoyed a nice trail ride on a beautiful Saturday afternoon. The sky was so blue and there was a soft breeze blowing. Archery was a favorite for the boys also. The kids like the archery as much as they like the horses. We had a lot of fun with them, even cousin Russ!

Behavior Educators


For the past three Mondays, Behavior Educators from Adrian came for a visit and took advantage of what we have to offer kids and their mentors. We took the kids on a trail ride, played yard games, and learned archery from our very own expert, Chris. We have been having a lot of fun with these kids. Just seeing the smiles on their faces is payment enough for us. I shot a bow and arrow yesterday for the first time, and hit the target the first time!! I wish I had a picture of that, but oh well, it's all about the kids, right?? All the kids had a great time and want their mentors to bring them back to the ranch. I am sure we will see these kids again.
These are activities that mentors and mentees can do together at no cost but the gas to get here. Here is a picture of Tiffany enjoying Paint.

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Are We Having Fun Yet??


The boys from Kids Explosion visited the ranch this past Sat and Sun. Saturday morning looked a little gloomy as we watched storm clouds pass around the ranch all morning. It never did rain, the sun came out and the wind blew to cool things off.
It must have been Jan's opening prayer!! God really listens to her!!! We had a great time and the boys were really well behaved. Heather and the boys plotted against Chuck and drenched him with buckets of water after our water gun battle!! Chuck took it all in stride and laughed about it. During our campfire activies, the kids continued to plot against Chuck, but Heather decided against another attack because she wanted to stay dry!!! The seven points were discussed and Bill lead the discussion. He really likes persistence, so he really wants the kids to remember to "never give up". The kids really like Bill and respect him. Today, when he was walking into Menards, he overhead a kid yelling "Hey Dad, that's the cowboy from the ranch"! Bill got a kick out of that!! Lots of pictures to see, so click the link to the right called Boys Kids Explosion June 20

Kids Explosion Girls Trip


Well, we had our first overnight trip on June 6th and June 7th. The weather was great and we all had a good time. The girls had no problem having fun and the horses did their job without question! Our herd is getting used to their jobs and really liking it. City Cab from Jackson provided transportation and we really appreciated it. Cab driver Lee and cab driver Vicki were awesome. You guys rock!!!!
The girls were a little afraid of the night noises, but Lizzy and Casey put them at ease. They slept thru the night and were up on Sunday in time for breakfast. Brian Williams lead worship with some of the girls favorite songs. Jan prayed over the girls for God's blessing the guidance in their lives. It was a successful weekend.
To see pictures from the weekend, just click the link to the right called Kids Explosion Girls June 6. God Bless you all and "Get Ready to Ride"! at the Lazy B's.

Tuesday, June 2, 2009

New Jackson Celebration


This past Saturday we attended the New Jackson Celebration. This was an event that brought area churches, businesses, and non-profits together. What an amazing day it was! I know God was smiling on us for uniting together for one purpose: to see a positive change in Jackson County. We made a lot of new friends and contacts and I am sure others did as well. The praise music was awesome and the declarations were right on target; families, education, business and finance, church, government and law, the arts, and the media. As we give all this back to God, He can transform our community. All it takes is faith to believe!! Bill and I put on our praise with the Kids Explosion kids and had a great time! We left feeling very uplifted and really believing that if a community can come together,all things are possible with God. If you would like more information on New Jackson, visit their web-site at www.NewJackson.org