HOPE DOES MORE

Dear Friends,

Thank you for being with us today for Bridge Builders – Shelter from the Storm.

When my two-year-old grandson and I get together, we have all kinds of fun, and he never wants that fun to end. He repeatedly says two specific words to me, “more again.” When I hear his cute little voice, it immediately puts a smile on my face. This year, I am reminded how the community does “more again” to help families in need. Our donors gave “more again” to help struggling families move towards self-sufficiency. Our volunteers gave “more again” of their time, and together, this enabled us to do “more again” in our community. This puts a smile on my face and warms grandpa’s heart!

Yet, there is “more again” for us to do in the community. A long-time employee in our outreach department shared with me how she has never, in all her years of being at Metropolitan Ministries, witnessed the alarming rate at which families are approaching the front desk telling us, with tears in their eyes:

“We have nowhere to go.” “We can’t afford to live in our apartment or pay our bills.” “We can’t keep our children safe.”

These families have resorted to sleeping in their cars, and at times, U-Haul trucks. We are faced with the need to do “more again” in Hillsborough, Pinellas, and Pasco counties. And during this past year, we were even drawn to Lee County to help those devastated by Hurricane Ian.

Today, we will share with you what “more again” looks like and celebrate the lasting impact of your support when we come together. Life change and self-sufficiency are possible for any child, any mom, any family.

I thank you all! In spite your own challenges, you have been faithful to allow us to do “more again.” We plan to celebrate, inform, inspire, and commit to be the best stewards we can be to help as many people as we can, for as long as we can, with your support.

The drive to do “more again” hits home for me. I pledge to do “more again” to care for our neighbors in need as do all the employees and partners of Metropolitan Ministries.

With gratitude,

Tim Marks, President/CEO Metropolitan Ministries