Join us for the annual Chili Cook Off sponsored by the Bindery Artist Studio and LaLa Gallery. The event features chili tasting, giveaways for community participants, free activities for kids, LaLa Gallery chili bowl sale, clay projects and craft stations. And all proceeds will be donated to Lafayette Urban Ministry. Event details are as follows:
Chili Cook Off attendees will vote for the “best chili.” The team with the most votes wins bragging rights and a prize package. If you make a great chili and would like to compete, please email or call Angela (BinderyArtistStudios@gmail.com | 765-414-9762).
Once again, Holder Bedding, Inc. of Lafayette is sponsoring the annual LUM “Match Program.”
Starting November 1, your donation to Lafayette Urban Ministry will be matched dollar-for-dollar.
Stay tuned for more information on the Holder Bedding Match Program. Don’t miss your opportunity to double your donation to LUM during the month of November.
In 2013, 42 mattresses were made in Lafayette by Holder Bedding and installed at the LUM Emergency Shelter.
Join us for the annual Chili Cook Off sponsored by the Bindery Artist Studio and LaLa Gallery. The event features chili tasting, giveaways for community participants, free activities for kids, LaLa Gallery chili bowl sale, clay projects and craft stations. And all proceeds will be donated to Lafayette Urban Ministry. Event details are as follows:
Chili Cook Off attendees will vote for the “best chili.” The team with the most votes wins bragging rights and a prize package. If you make a great chili and would like to compete, please email or call Angela (BinderyArtistStudios@gmail.com | 765-414-9762).
Jamie Volom is a long-time overnight volunteer with the LUM Emergency Shelter. He has been volunteering for over six months and assists frequently with check-in, meals, clean up and just about anything that needs to be done. Jamie has a special affinity toward the shelter guests with addictions and has a scholarship go through training to be a certified addiction coach.
Recently Jamie noticed that the LUM shelter was running low on critical supplies like bleach, toilet paper, laundry detergent and paper towels. He asked permission from his church, Grace United Methodist Church, to share his LUM shelter volunteer experiences with his fellow church members and asked for donations of money and needed items. The response to his plea for donations was wildly successful (see picture above).
Thanks to Jamie Volom and the members of Grace United Methodist Church, the LUM Emergency Shelter is well stocked with paper goods, cleaning supplies, food, personal hygiene products, clothes & more.
If you, your church and/or organization are interested in making a donation or coordinating a collection drive to benefit the LUM Emergency Shelter or other LUM program, check out the LUM wish-list, click HERE.
| $40 per person | Live Entertainment | Hors d’oeuvres | Cash Bar | Silent Auction |
You are cordially invited to attend the 3rd annual Port of Hope fundraising event for the LUM Immigration Clinic. Port of Hope is a festive event with lots of food, dancing, and fun. The event will also feature a Marketplace, where you’ll be able to purchase one of a kind experiences & opportunities. Do not miss this opportunity to mingle with friends, old and new, while at the same time celebrating the melting pot that is greater Lafayette. The money raised at the event will go towards supplies, continuing education and legal training, database fees, postage, naturalization workbooks, document searches, and law books.
Purchase your tickets now to be sure that you don’t miss an evening of merriment like nothing you have ever experienced — while supporting a great cause.
| Thursday, November 22 | 8 a.m. start time |
| Cattail Trail Loop, West Lafayette | $35 per person |
The Turkey Trot 5K is open to runners of all ages and abilities and welcomes runners, walkers, dogs, strollers, wagons, turkey hats and more. The Turkey Trot 5K convenes at the Walmart in West Lafayette and follows the Cattail Trail Loop — which is flat and paved and allows participants to run on a scenic route through the Celery Bog nature area on a crisp November morning. Advanced registration is encouraged but race day walk-ups are welcome!
All Turkey Trot 5K proceeds directly support the programs and services offered by Lafayette Urban Ministry. To register, go to turkeytrot5krun.org.
Community Thanksgiving Celebration
| Thursday, November 22 | Noon-2 p.m. |
| Central Presbyterian Church, Lafayette | FREE to all |
The Annual Community Thanksgiving Celebration is a true community event, where everyone is welcome; and LUM relies on donations of money, food & supplies, and time from the community as well.
More than 800 people will be served. There are many opportunities for YOU to serve your community neighbors on Thanksgiving morning. Make a difference this Thanksgiving holiday — donate your time cooking, serving, entertaining, hosting, greeting, setting up, cleaning up, and more. Lots of food and supplies are needed, too — donate food or make a cash donation to make this special community event possible.
The autumn season is here and with it comes cooler nights, colorful trees, pumpkins, football and having fun outdoors with friends and family. But it is also a season for preparing. In addition to preparing for the winter months — also spend some time preparing for the future.
This fall, spend some time creating a personal legacy by continuing your support of the mission of Lafayette Urban Ministry beyond your own lifetime. During our lifetimes, we support our neighbors with our gifts to LUM, but by creating a legacy through Planned Giving your support of our ministry will continue for all perpetuity.
It’s a win-win Estate Planning strategy for you and LUM. In addition to the altruistic benefits, your charitable gift to Lafayette Urban Ministry brings tax relief — and also allows you to make a larger gift to LUM than you could make from your income alone. Whether you use cash, appreciated securities/stock, real estate, artwork, partnership interests, personal property, life insurance or a retirement plan, the benefits of Estate Planned Gifts can make this type of donation attractive to you as well as LUM. We also hope you will remember Lafayette Urban Ministry in your will.
First, meet with your professional advisor to learn how informed estate planning can increase the overall value of your estate with a gift of tax-burdened assets (like IRAs, 401(k), or savings bonds) to Lafayette Urban Ministry. When you are ready to begin the conversation, please email or call Joe Micon, LUM executive director, who is eager to meet with you (jmicon@lumserve.org | 765-423-2691). To give to LUM online, click HERE.
Whatever you decide — enjoy this season with your family and friends — and think for a moment about the mission of Lafayette Urban Ministry and the families we serve. For more information on giving to LUM, please click HERE.
More information on giving to LUM may be found HERE.
Fifty-eight year old Patrick Renfroe drank his first beer when he was just 12. At age 13 he was drinking hard liquor and smoking pot. By age 18 Patrick was buying and using crack cocaine.
He grew up in a home that was haunted by addiction. Both his father and sister lost their lives to drug and alcohol abuse. Patrick spent a total of 15 years in various Indiana prisons and the Tippecanoe County Community Corrections Program – all because of drug-related convictions.
Over the years, Patrick’s addiction took everything that was dear and important to him – his family, friends, employment, his freedom and even his physical health. In 2016, he suffered two strokes, one on each side of his brain, within the period of a single week.
It was during his rehab to regain his balance that Patrick realized he was powerless over his addiction. Unless he confronted his 45 year history of substance abuse soon, he knew his days would be numbered. Patrick shares,
“I was just so sick and tired of always being sick and tired.”
In May of this year, Patrick moved out of his apartment to escape the unhealthy influence of his roommates, and he started spending his nights at the LUM Emergency Shelter. Here he found a place that was not only bright, clean and friendly, but also a place that was supportive in his journey to sobriety.
At LUM, Patrick was exposed to various substance abuse helps, including…
Weekly AA meetings
Bi-weekly programs where resources are shared and testimony is provided by others who are fighting addiction
Immediate transportation for those who desire in-patient addiction treatment
A professional staff that understands addiction and speaks openly and honestly with guests about their illness
In addition, Patrick took frequent advantage of addiction groups and programs offered by various downtown Lafayette churches, all within short walking distance of the LUM shelter.
In the past year, 704 individuals came to the LUM Emergency Shelter. Each stayed an average of 12 nights – 8,448 overnight stays. In addition, LUM provided an overnight warming station, ensuring that nobody was stranded overnight on the streets of our community without a place to be safe and warm during the harsh winter months. An additional 584 overnight stays took place at the LUM Winter Warming Station.
There is no one-size-fits-all solution for the varied and complex problems facing our chronically homeless guests. Addiction, mental illness, poor life choices and emotional and physical disabilities are never easy to overcome. But with skill, perseverance and dedication, LUM staff members are often successful in helping our guests move off the streets into more self-sufficient living environments.
Please, won’t you support this important work with your dollars?
Your gift of $50, $100, $250, $500, or $1,000 will help the LUM Emergency Shelter provide addiction services and provide our homeless guests with the support they need to leave our shelter for a home of their own.
With money that Patrick was able to save from a brand new job at a local restaurant – and with a dollar-for-dollar match provided him by LUM – he was recently able to move out of the LUM Emergency Shelter and into a home of his own.
Patrick continues to attend daily NA or AA meetings and is proud that he has now been drug and alcohol free for seven months. He finds comfort and joy from being more active in his church and is grateful for everyone in his life who is helping him on his road to recovery.
In other words, Patrick Renfroe is grateful for YOU!
I hope you are as excited as I am about the positive changes that, together, we are making possible in the lives of those we serve. Lafayette Urban Ministry is providing more than just a well-run, safe and secure shelter for homeless individuals. We are providing the support, encouragement and tools our homeless guests need in their struggle with addiction. We are helping them to live more independent, self-sufficient lives. Please, won’t you join me today in making a generous financial gift to the Lafayette Urban Ministry Emergency Shelter?
This summer at Lafayette Urban Ministry, the staff was busy educating, sheltering serving, assisting, nourishing and strengthening families in our community. Through the various programs LUM served 1,703 families and 128 children. Here are some interesting milestones and statistics from another successful summer at Lafayette Urban Ministry.
Thank you to all who invested financially and by volunteering in our summer at LUM. We count on YOU to volunteer and make a donation which enables LUM to continue serving the families and children in our community.
The St. John’s/LUM Food Pantry is in need of drivers. Drivers must be able to lift food items, have a valid driver’s license in good standing, and have access to a pick-up truck, large SUV or minivan.
Duties are as follows:
Monday Driver
Needed first Monday of each month
Arrive at Food Finders Food Bank (1210 N 10th Street, Lafayette) between 12:30 – 1 p.m.
Pick-up small order and any other free items you deem appropriate
Drive food to St. John’s/LUM Food Pantry (600 Ferry Street, Lafayette), unload food, and take banana boxes back to Food Finders Food Bank
Usually done by 2 p.m.
Wednesday Driver
Needed first and/or third Wednesday of each month
Arrive at St. John’s/LUM Food Pantry (600 Ferry Street, Lafayette) at 1:30 p.m.
Unload items from delivery truck
Load up & drive banana boxes back to Food Finders Food Bank (1210 N 10th Street, Lafayette)
Usually done by 2:30 p.m.
St. Tom’s Driver
Needed first Monday of each month at 11 a.m.
Pick-up food at St. Thomas Aquinas Church (535 W State Street, West Lafayette) at 11 a.m.
Bring to St. John’s/LUM Food Pantry (600 Ferry Street, Lafayette)
Load into the back for volunteers to weigh and put away at another time
The 
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Each year at this time about 85% of the Hunger Hike goal has been reached. So it’s important that you still raise funds and give generously.
Fifty-eight year old Patrick Renfroe drank his first beer when he was just 12. At age 13 he was drinking hard liquor and smoking pot. By age 18 Patrick was buying and using crack cocaine.
In addition, Patrick took frequent advantage of addiction groups and programs offered by various downtown Lafayette churches, all within short walking distance of the LUM shelter.
Please, won’t you support this important work with your dollars?
This summer at 