Benjamin's Hope Spring 2023 Newsletter

BENJAMIN'S HOPE

S P R I N G 2 0 2 3 LOOKING FORWARD

TableOf Contents

TheIntersectionofMissionwithMission Learn about the exciting partnership of Benjamin's Hope and Sus Manos, seeking to feed the hungry together.

TodayandTomorrow

Where we are today and what we are dreaming about for the future.

AutismrightsadvocateTempleGrandinhails thosewhothinkdifferently A recap of Dr. Grandin's visit to Benjamin's Hope.

FinancialUpdate|Growth&Sustainability

Status update on funds for 2 additional homes and the $1M A.A. VanElslander Family Foundation Endowment Challenge.

SummerHappeningsatBen'sHope

What? A summer concert series at Ben's Hope. It's true. And there's more....

RapidPromptingMethod:101

What does presuming intelligence look like in everyday life?

THEBEN'S HOPEWAY

COMMITTED TO LOVING GOD AND OTHERS, WE FIERCELY RESPECT THE DIGNITY, INTELLIGENCE AND VALUE OF ALL HUMANS. WE ARE CREATIVE, COURAGEOUS, AND COMMITTED TO EXCELLENCE. THROUGH THE LOVE OF CHRIST, WE LIVE THE ABUNDANT LIFE TOGETHER.

TheIntersection ofMissionwith Mission Ben's Hope and Sus Manos

Thanks to the generosity of West Michigan farmers, Sus Manos Gleaners has plenty of produce ready to be shipped around the world. And now friends from Benjamin’s Hope will be joining the volunteer effort to make this happen!

Tim Paauw has a passion to feed the hungry. He and his dad, Jim, formed Sus Manos Gleaners, an organization that accepts food donations from West Michigan farms. Volunteers chop the produce and then process it in an industrial food dehydrator. The dehydrated food is packaged in 55-gallon drums that are shipped around the world to Christian missions that serve people living with food scarcity.

When Tim Paauw and Krista Mason first began discussing collaboration, the synergy between the two non-profits was immediate. Krista has a wholehearted passion to find opportunities where people with autism can use their gifts and talents to make the world a better place. As the father of 2 boys with autism, Tim shares this passion.

At Ben’s Hope we embrace co-laboring for the Kingdom. People of all-abilities, working together. Tim shared that Sus Manos is sending literally 1000’s of meals to Haiti, Ukraine, Syria and Turkey. And, Sus Manos needs volunteers to package food. "As we spoke a beautiful idea formed,” says Krista, "The men and women of Ben’s Hope stepping in. People with disability often find themselves on the receiving end of care. To be the giver of help affirms dignity and worth. Ben’s Hope and Sus Manos, partnering together, is truly a picture of co-laboring for the Kingdom!”

With his typical unvarnished enthusiasm, Tim adds, "Just imagine, the Ben's Hope residents and team can feed thousands of people who live in conditions we cannot even imagine. I've heard Krista use the phrase 'love begets love'. I believe this will be powerful in the partnership of Sus Manos and Benjamin's Hope. Imagine the lesson we can all learn by viewing the Ben's Hope men and women as main contributors to bringing meals to people who are literally starving. This is the gospel."

"For I was hungry, and you gave me something to eat."

Matthew 25:35

LIVE

Benjamin's Hope

TODAY | 31people live in 6 beautiful farmstead homes. Their families have the gift of knowing their loved ones are enjoying lives of purpose and belonging, and that they are receiving high quality care. Over 100 people work at Ben's Hope, mostly in direct care roles.

TOMORROW | Benjamin's Hope will build 2 additional homes designed to serve 12 more people.

LEARN

TODAY | In 2022 we launched NEXT, an adult program focused on whole person growth and development. 10 adults from the community participate in this growing program. We also have 25 students participating in Rapid Prompting Method (RPM) which is teaching non-speaking people with autism to communicate through typing.

TOMORROW | And, our next initiative is to develop a respite program to support people who live in the surrounding community.

PLAY

WORSHIP

TODAY |Club Connect, a weekly friendship club for people of all abilities, is designed to facilitate authentic relationships, play, and connection. We partner with Hope College students to provide this important place of belonging. Most weeks between 70 and 100 people attend.

TOMORROW | This program is growing, and we are considering offering a second evening which will enable 50 more people to find friendship and belonging.

TODAY |The all-abilities Church of Ben's Hope is growing. We are especially seeing growth among people who are not affected by disability who desire to be part of a radically inclusive church with a clear and defined missional focus. Recently 14 people joined. Families affected by autism who have often felt on the margins of church-life are finding a home. Each Sunday night between 100 and 150 people attend and over 400 attend rhythmically.

TOMORROW | Presently we gather at 6pm Sunday evenings. We are considering an additional Sunday morning service as we continue to grow.

Over 500 people a week experience something life changing at

Autism rights advocate Temple Grandin hails those who think differently

by Andrea Goodell, excerpts reprinted with permission

Autism rights advocate Temple Grandin hails those who think differently. "The world needs people who think differently," Temple Grandin says.

Grandin has broken barriers both in the animal science industry and the public’s understanding of what it means to live with autism.

Grandin is an award-winning scientist, animal behaviorist, inventor, and proponent of autism rights. In February she offered a pair of lectures to two sold-out crowds as a fundraiser for Benjamin’s Hope. Grandin shared candid insights about living with autism, including how she “thinks in pictures”.

She offered strategies for people with autism to obtain employment and says everyone deserves to grow up and have a life that is full and purposeful. In many tech and industry jobs, “you need different kinds of minds,” she says.

Grandin estimates about 20% of the people she has worked with over the years have been autistic, dyslexic, have ADHD, or were otherwise not what is labeled as neurotypical. She describes three types of thinkers: verbal thinkers, such as writers, teachers, and lawyers; visual thinkers, such as artists and engineers; and spatial-visual thinkers, those who are good at both, such as mathematicians and musicians.

Grandin, herself, is a visual thinker. She remembers things in photo-realistic images and video clips in her mind.

Grandin posits that luminaries such as Albert Einstein, Michelangelo, and Thomas Edison would be labeled as neurodivergent — and possibly autistic — today. “All of these people learned how to work at an early age,” Grandin says. “What would happen to Michaelangelo today? He’d probably be addicted to video games in the basement.”

“There are different ways of working with problems,” Grandin says.

“Throwouttheautismbox. Companiesneedthebrainsof thevisualthinker.Mybrainsees howthingsworkinawayverbal thinkerscan’t.”

-Dr Temple Grandin at Benjamin's Hope, 2023

The A.A. Van Elslander Family Foundation $1M Endowment Challenge

The VanElslander family (Art Van Furniture) has been a long-time partner of Ben's Hope. With a heart to ensure our sustainability, the A.A. Van Elslander Family Foundation has pledged a $1Million match toward our endowment with a 5 year timeline. To receive this generous gift we need to raise $1Million. Presently, we have raised over $400,000.

$1M yet to go to build 2 additional homes

In recent decades, the incidence of autism has grown at an alarming rate from 1 in 2,500 in 1997 to a staggering 1 in 36 today [1]. Further, since the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) in1990, ideology has evolved to value (and fund) community-based housing options rather than state institutions. As state institutions have closed, more and more people need community-based housing. Housing innovation has not kept pace with the growing need. Each week we receive inquiries from families and individuals who are urgently in need of residential placement and love the community model of Ben’s Hope.

We believe God is calling Ben's Hope to serve more people. In response to this pressing need, we have launched a campaign to raise funds for an additional 2 homes which will allow 12 people to join the Ben's Hope family and create 20 new jobs.

“MY DIAGNOSIS DOESN'T GET TO DETERMINE THE LIMITATIONS OF MY LIFE OR THE LYRICISM OF MY LIMBS.”

AmyKenny,MyBodyIsNotaPrayerRequest:DisabilityJusticeintheChurch

Summer Hello

SUMMER CONCERT SERIES

Pack a picnic basket, grab your lawn chairs and come on out! Follow our Facebook page for more details.

JUNE 22, 6 PM

JULY 20, 6 PM

AUGUST 17, 6 PM

SEPT 4 , 6 PM

THE CHURCH OF BEN'S HOPE EVERY SUNDAY AT 6PM Everyone welcome!

HARVEST FESTIVAL

Family friendly fun!

SEPTEMBER 30, 3 - 6PM

RapidPrompting Method:101 resuming Competence P

The concept we believe to be most fundamental to RPM is Presuming Competence.

Presuming competence means that we believe that students can learn and understand at an age appropriate level. Now, that doesn't mean that someone automatically knows everything that all people their age knows. For example, if the student has never been exposed to a particular topic or they were taught in a way that they couldn't best learn, they won't have depth of knowledge about the topic. Presuming competence means that when the environment is right for the student's learning and they're exposed to the topic, they can learn it at the same level as their neurotypical peers.

We know that learning expression varies. Oftentimes a person with autism may understand a topic but have difficulty expressing understanding due to their motor skills and body control. Rapid Prompting Method focuses on helping the student manage their body and works specifically on motor skills. As these skills progress the student is able to express their breadth of knowledge, thoughts and opinions about the topic. This is the reason presuming competence is so important!

So how does this translate to everyday life? Well, how we talk to one another is a result of how we think of them. Talking with a student, friend or family member in an age appropriate manner builds confidence, and is a sure way to show that you respect their intelligence and dignity. The topics we choose to talk about change based on the age and interests of a person, not because of a disability.

As we strive to deepen the quality of interactions in our neurodiverse relationships, it is important to remember that our words, choice of topics, and tone of voice all matter!

With dignity and respect,

Anna Speet RPM Program Director + Certified SOMA®RPM Practitioner

The Next Chapter

for Nathan

Over the years we've followed Nathan’s journey with Rapid Prompting Method (RPM). Through years of hard work, Nathan now fluently types to express himself.

Nathan and his family have been exploring career paths. One day Nathan suggested (through typing, of course) the idea of a family business. In time, the family decided on the idea for a used bookstore called The Next Chapter! Nathan has big dreams to develop a learning center within the store with activities to engage all kinds of learners.

If you stop by The Next Chapter you will see Nathan hard at work checking inventory, shelving books or helping check out customers. Their shelves are full of a vast array of titles perfect for your summer reading!!

710 Chicago Drive, suite 250 in Holland (near Engedi Church)

Hello Friends,

Twice a year I happily sequester to compose this newsletter with 3 goals in mind. I want to update you on where Ben's Hope is today and invite you to be part of what God is calling us to next. And, most importantly, I want to give glory to God for the extraordinary thing He is doing in and through Benjamin's Hope!

For families like mine, Ben's Hope provides an answer to our deepest longing: that today and beyond our lifetime our adult children will be safe, loved and treated with dignity. For my son and others, Ben's Hope is God's provision to enjoy an abundant life! And quite wonderfully, Ben's Hope is inspiring residential models and all-abilities churches in communities across the country.

Your partnership has been, for me and so many others, a gift beyond measure. Thank you. As you have read in these pages, we have two significant opportunities before us that will contribute to growing the number of people we serve and also the long-term sustainability of this ministry. In anticipation of what God has in store for Benjamin's Hope, I invite you to join us!

In Gratitude, Krista Executive Director & Founder

15468 Riley Street, Holland, MI 49424