Merry Christmas!
Christmas 2011
Dear Friends,
On behalf of the residents, staff and Board of Directors at the Bob Brown House I want to wish each of you a Merry Christmas. I am pleased to say that we have successfully completed another year of providing safe, affordable housing to a very special group of people in our community. The financial crisis in our world today has been hard for us just as it has for many of you. There have been several months in this last year when we did not have the money for a certain bill, but thanks to our generous supporters and our “on time” God, the funds always became available.
In August the water bill was due on the first Monday. It was $503 and we had about $30 in the bank. We had one of our concerts on the grounds on the Saturday before. When I counted the money we made on concessions and donations at the end of the day the total was $504. No kidding…$504. I knew we would struggle to make it in October and November because of the transition costs as one of our long time residents moved to a nursing home and we moved in a new resident.
Also, those months when the quarterly taxes are due are always very tight for us. But again, right on time, we received a wonderful donation from Journey Baptist Church. We have also been blessed by the volunteer work and support from other churches and groups in our community. Our Share the Harvest food drive was a big help to the pantry at the Bob Brown House. At the risk of leaving somebody out, we want to thank Trinity Baptist, Russell Cave Church of Christ, David’s Fork Baptist, New Life Baptist, Pathway Church, Bracktown Academy, Fifth Third Bank, RB Design Studio, AARP, WROCK, Trademark Landscape Management for their help throughout the year.
We really couldn’t make it without the help and support from the friends of the Bob Brown House. Let me take this opportunity to answer some questions often asked of me when discussing our needs.
- The Bob Brown House is a non-profit independent living facility for people with physical and\or mental challenges.
- Residents pay rent based on a percentage of the amount they receive from their SSI check.
- We provide three meals and a snack every day, laundry and all utilities.
- We receive no outside funding from the government at any level.
- We have one full time and three part time employees.
- I am not a paid director but volunteer my time.
It takes very special people to work with and for our residents every day. I am so very thankful for Heather and her leadership as manager. She goes above and beyond in keeping this big house running as smoothly as possible. She is the ultimate “old woman in the shoe” with 14 big kids and three little ones of her own to care for. Zach is right beside her every day, always fixing something, always pleasant to be around. Congratulations to them on their wonderful wedding in Las Vegas this year. Max and Medina continue to be the most dependable, capable employees we could ever ask for and we are lucky to have them on our staff.
Although I’ve made it a point in this letter to list the good things that are going on at the Bob Brown House and to thank our many supporters, we still have much work to do and need your help. As I stated earlier it is difficult at times for us to even make our utility payments especially in the winter. Our facility is over 35 years old and needs constant care and upkeep. Many of our residents count on us to meet all of their needs. One of my friends gave us a generous donation a few months ago and told me he wanted to give where he knew exactly how his money would be spent. You can trust we have no frivolous expenditures at the Bob Brown House. Every cent we raise goes directly to the daily operations of our home and care for our residents. We have no huge savings or rainy day fund or endowment. So you can be assured we deeply appreciate and greatly need your support. When considering your gift giving this Christmas or any time of the year please remember the Bob Brown House.
Also, please stay in touch with the happenings at the house by joining us on Facebook or visiting our website www.BobBrownHouse.com. You can even donate directly from our website via PayPal. Thanks again for your support and interest in the Bob Brown House.
Happy Holidays,
Amy Brown
