It all started with a jazz concert on the farm, and ripples went out from there.
A family brought a brother, let's call him "Tim," trapped in a chair, living out the wickedness of ALS, a disease that steals the body and tries to swipe the mind, as well.
But the music and fellowship filled in the gaps of Tim's broken frame and kept the loss of self at bay, at least for a day.
Everyone who saw Tim was touched. Without the use of his hands he reached into the hearts of a large crowd, many of them with disabilities of their own, and now he is reaching into yours. If you are reading this blog, you are connected in some way to the unfolding story of No More Sidelines on the farm, and to Tim. YOU are already part of the team that is trying to erase boundaries and obstacles and cruel isolation.
And it really does take a TEAM....
Someone to drive a handicap van and find parking, someone to navigate uneven terrain that agile legs traverse with ease but jostles mercilessly a head whose neck can no longer brace for whiplash.
It takes a team....
People to prepare open spaces for concerts, yard games, food booths; clear a path for wheelchairs and canes; send out the word and bring volunteers, donors, disabled friends. It takes a team to set up tents and take down tables, and keep a kind eye out for anyone struggling or slipping into the margins.
It takes committed team mates....
Team mates to raise awareness of needs, explore opportunities to use gifts and talents, and open hearts to be softened, fed, enlarged. Good things happen for the whole community when human beings embrace compassion, cooperation, and charity to live out the greatest principle of all:
to LOVE your neighbor as yourself.
We are glad you are on our Team! We invite you to step into this space ever more; invest your voice, your time, your talents, your heart, knowing that you are changing lives.... especially your own.
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