Moment of Hope! Greetings Dear Friends!

This is the season of renewal, resurrection, and new life! If you are like me, sometimes I miss the signs of new life springing up. Every once in a while I am reminded of how the work of C.O.P. shines little beacons of new life.

Last week one of our youth volunteers, who has been in the program since she was very young, brought in her report card filled with A’s and B’s. This was a celebration of life that was not to be missed. C.O.P. is making dramatic differences for the youth and children who enter this space. Not all of them are going to be perfect students, but they will always have the caring community of C.O.P. to hold them up in times of trouble and rejoice in times of resilience.

Thank you for faithfully supporting the mission and ministry to serve God’s children at C.O.P. We are looking forward to the end of another wonderful school year. We started this year with four old run down vans, but thanks to the generosity of the Roanoke District Board of Missions in granting C.O.P. $30,000 we are ending this year with two professionally driven buses from RADAR. Not only are we making strides with the lives of the local children and youth, but we are investing in their continued safety. You are making the world a better place every day. Keep up the wonderful work Roanoke!

Blessings and Peace,

Becky Parsons Executive Director

Sheila Overstreet kindly got the word out to her community at Bonsack UMC and raised enough funds for C.O.P. to purchase a new digital camera to take pictures and post them on Facebook, the web site, and newsletters. We are so excited to have this wonderful resource! Thank you, Sheila, for helping us to stay in the new age of technology.

The Community Outreach Program is thrilled to announce that they were recently selected for a grant for $20,882.86 from the Foundation for Roanoke Valley and a grant for $30,000 from the Board of Missions Inc., U.M. Roanoke District. These grants will allow us to purchase computers and add computer literacy training, continue our UFO weekend meals program, add another RADAR bus to provide more reliable, safe transportation to kids in our programs. We will also be able to add outings to our curriculum.

Thank you to these generous grantors!

$50,000 in grants Awarded!

Spring, 2013 United Methodist

Community Outreach Program of Roanoke 305 Mountain Ave SW Roanoke, VA 24016 PHONE 540-342-3103 FAX 540-342-0412 Email umcopr@roacoxmail.com

Our new website: www.communityoutreach

roanoke.org

Dog Reading Night

Thanks to Pam and Rick Murray who brought their dogs Teddy and Abby for Dog Night. As a reward for reading 15 books, kids get to read to the two dogs. Teddy and Abby are qualified therapy dogs. and have had extra obedience training which allows them to make visits to schools, hospitals and nursing homes.

New Camera

Joe Swindell (above), Joey Croft

and John Sutton visited on Career

Week to talk about their professions.

The kids also visited the Taubman

Museum to see the movie “Start-Up

Kids” thanks to a donation from the

Roanoke/ Blacks burg Technology

Council for 12 students. They also

learned how to write a business plan,

Newsletter of the United Methodist Community Outreach Program of Roanoke, Virginia

C.O.P. 3rd Annual Golf Tournament

Join the Community Outreach Program of Roanoke for a fun day of golf on May 18th at the Hanging Rock Golf Club in Salem with registration at 11 AM followed by lunch at Noon and a shotgun start at 1 PM. Support the children of the Community Outreach Program, have fun and win great prizes! See the enclosed form to register.

Serving all God’s children through mentoring academically, spiritually, emotionally, and physically.

Thanks to Raleigh Court UMC, Roanoke kids had warm feet during our coldest months. The congregation collected and donated a whole bushel of children’s socks!

Summer Camp

In 2012, 40 children were able to experience a fun and challenging outdoor experience at summer camp thanks to the generosity of donors like yourself. Each campership you donate is subsidized by Camp Alta Mons supporters so your donation of just $110 sends a child to camp for an entire week! Thank you for your support.

Needs for Camp kits: 40 bath size towels 40 Small tooth pastes & tooth brushes 40 Small soaps Teen size sleeping bags Flash lights Bibles

Seasonal Décor

Thank You to Carol Pruner for keeping us in season by decorating our dining room for each holiday.

Socks for Kids

Early 2013 Donors

Advance Auto Parts Jenny Rodgers Basham Michael Boitnott Deborah J. Bonham Bonsack UMC Alicia Bosserman Tina Marie Bradbury Cave Spring UMC Circle 9, First Salem UMC Matthew W. Doss Karizimine Fitzgerald Claudia Goodwin Greene Memorial UMC Jeff T. Hollandsworth John Wynn Meyers Class Just Dance Fitness Kroger Mid Atlantic David & Elizabeth Mortlock Mount Pleasant UMC Dorothy H. Mundy Old Southwest, Inc. Daniel E. Price Raleigh Court UMC Reid Ammen, Ammen & Clem Ruth G. Chaney Trust Second Presbyterian Church Sharon Sorrels Sue H. Valentine Jacquelyn Ward Linda K. Weade Harold Welch Mary Wilson Lucy Wright

Trinity United Methodist Church

United Methodist Community Outreach Program of Roanoke

305 Mountain Ave SW

Roanoke, VA 24016

Send your tax deductible donations to: Community Outreach Program 305 Mountain Ave SW, Roanoke, VA 24016

New Website

We want to thank Board Member and Fundraising Committee chair Alicia Bosserman who has volunteered many hours creating a new website for The Community Outreach Program. Check it out at:

www.communityoutreachroanoke.org

The website includes a video, pictures, organization history, information about volunteering, a secure donation key and links to our newsletters, blog and Facebook page. Alicia is currently planning events, putting final touches on a new logo and designing a new brochure.

Thank You A big Thank You to Shane Shubert for coaching KidFit classes on Thursday nights. It is a great joy to see the children’s excitement in gaining mental and physical strength. We’d also like to give a special thank you to the L.I.F.T. group from Cave Spring UMC for giving all the kids a wonderful big birthday party in January. Thanks to St. Marks UMC’s Frogs & Tadpoles who had a games drive for C.O.P. and collected 18 new board games for the kids to use!

Non-Profit Org.

U.S. Postage

PAID

Roanoke, VA

Permit #529