The Links Share their SafeFamily Story
The Links Share Their SafeFamily Story
by Erica Koch
Bandy and Joe Link serve God through a ministry called Safe Families. By promoting stable, compassionate, God-centered relationships, it helps children and families that are facing traumatic situations.
Brandy and Joe were married in 2012. They felt a calling to serve God by helping children, either through adoption or being foster parents. When they learned about Safe Families at Hope Church, Joe saw it as their opportunity to serve. Brandy feared attachment and vulnerability. But by faith and prayer, they soon realized that their role in Safe Families was not to become parents but to show God’s love in other ways. They build up and fill deficits in families, offering them an opportunity to trust people of faith and see what church is really about.
Safe Families emphasizes building relationships and using a community to support couples. Host families serve as a child’s home base, providing the child stability and consistency while also giving parents time to deal with their pressing issues.
Brandy and Joe had not had children when they became a host couple, so they lacked bedding, toys, and clothes. Their Safe Families resource friends, and Hope, generously donated those things. The resource friends are opening a storage unit for supplies to help equip current and future host families. Another support is Family Friends. Family Friends provide a support system for mothers in need. It provides transportation to appointments, child care during appointments or work, and sometimes just someone to confide in.
Brandy and Joe feel that God was in this effort from the start. Although struggling with control and anxiety, they gave it to God. He showed them how to prepare, reach out, admit fears, and build a support network. Now expecting a child themselves, they know it was God’s will for them to serve others.
Three Hope Church families have now begun the journey through Safe Families. People at Hope can do God’s work by becoming host families, resource friends, and/or by becoming Family Friends. To learn more, visit www.safe-families.org or contact Beth Yokley, Hope's Mission Pastor at [email protected].
by Erica Koch
Bandy and Joe Link serve God through a ministry called Safe Families. By promoting stable, compassionate, God-centered relationships, it helps children and families that are facing traumatic situations.
Brandy and Joe were married in 2012. They felt a calling to serve God by helping children, either through adoption or being foster parents. When they learned about Safe Families at Hope Church, Joe saw it as their opportunity to serve. Brandy feared attachment and vulnerability. But by faith and prayer, they soon realized that their role in Safe Families was not to become parents but to show God’s love in other ways. They build up and fill deficits in families, offering them an opportunity to trust people of faith and see what church is really about.
Safe Families emphasizes building relationships and using a community to support couples. Host families serve as a child’s home base, providing the child stability and consistency while also giving parents time to deal with their pressing issues.
Brandy and Joe had not had children when they became a host couple, so they lacked bedding, toys, and clothes. Their Safe Families resource friends, and Hope, generously donated those things. The resource friends are opening a storage unit for supplies to help equip current and future host families. Another support is Family Friends. Family Friends provide a support system for mothers in need. It provides transportation to appointments, child care during appointments or work, and sometimes just someone to confide in.
Brandy and Joe feel that God was in this effort from the start. Although struggling with control and anxiety, they gave it to God. He showed them how to prepare, reach out, admit fears, and build a support network. Now expecting a child themselves, they know it was God’s will for them to serve others.
Three Hope Church families have now begun the journey through Safe Families. People at Hope can do God’s work by becoming host families, resource friends, and/or by becoming Family Friends. To learn more, visit www.safe-families.org or contact Beth Yokley, Hope's Mission Pastor at [email protected].
Recent
Take a Peek at Be The Bridge: The Springfield Race Riot of 1908
July 3rd, 2020
Take a Peek at Be The Bridge: Meet Emily LeVault
June 26th, 2020
Take a Peek at Be The Bridge: Juneteenth
June 19th, 2020
Take a Peek at Be The Bridge: Meet Rebecca Leatherwood
June 11th, 2020
Mentoring Gears Up with the Pandemic at the Outlet
June 5th, 2020
Archive
2020
June
Categories
no categories
No Comments