Friday, January 15, 2016

Transformations

Transformations

Scripture: Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be renewed by the renewing of your mind.  Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and prefect will.  Romans 12:2

       When we began our first Transformations class last April, we could not have imagined all that God was going to do through that program!  If Tony and I are honest, we were probably some of the least equipped people on the planet to lead that class.  It was kind of like a flash back to being first time parents again where you have this tiny human who depends on you for everything and you don’t have the first clue about what you are doing.  Friends in our circle like to call this “trial by fire.”  We call it crazy! However; we were quite convinced that God had called us to lead this program and so we set off to do His will.  We selected 5 students to begin the inaugural class and we set off together to see what God would do.  As always, God was faithful and at the end of 8 months we had three students who completed the program. 

     All of the students would tell you that they learned a lot.  Two of the students have applied what they learned and are on the way to having lives vastly different from where they were!  All of them would tell you (and we would too) that we grew very close during that 8 month time and those students are like our family now.  We are thankful for the two years of accountability group that continues after the class that keeps us connected!  We are also thankful that the program recommends hiring back some of the students to help teach the new group through the class.  We are hiring back two graduates. The plan is that within the next couple of years, Tony and I will not teach this program anymore; it will be completely run by its own graduates!

  At this time, we want to thank you once again for your love, prayers, volunteer support, and the donations that help keep this program growing! The investment to put a single student through this program is $1200.  As recommended by the curriculum a meal is shared by the group before starting class.  In our case it is dinner. Students are given a food bag at each class that ranges in value from $15-$25 depending on the phase of the class we are in, and they are given either $5 fast food gift cards or cash for attending and participating in each class.  As expensive as it is to put one person through the program, it is not as costly as it would be to leave them in the public welfare system.  According to the US Budget Committee (www.budget.senate.gov search Total Welfare Spending 2012), in 2012 it cost the tax payers $168/day for each household on welfare.  Now, please understand the recipient doesn’t get all of that money.  Part of the money pays for the employees/equipment/building rent to administrate the program, another part pays for fraud within the program, and then we get to the part that the recipient gets.  Some people disagree with that number saying it is inflated. For those who feel that way, even if the $168 is divided in half, that comes to $84/day.  So dividing the $1200 it costs for a student to go through Transformations by $84, shows that we can give a participant in our program all the information they need to leave the system and live independently for the cost of roughly 2 weeks of what taxpayers pay to support them on the system.

By the grace of God we are expanding the program this year to accept 8 students with a goal of graduating at least 5.  We are already praying for these students even though we don’t know who they are yet! We are fully confident that God is already leading and guiding their hearts to where He wants them to be.  Applications are already available at several agencies in town and on our website! If you know anyone who would benefit from this program, please encourage them to apply.  Applications will be accepted on a first come first served basis through February 20th or until the 20 interview slots are filled.  Interviews will take place on Monday, Feb 22 and Tuesday, Feb 23 in the evenings.  The first night of class will be on Tuesday, March 8th.

  As this program expands, so does our needs! First, we always need prayer!  It is the foundation of everything we do and we don’t take it or the value of it lightly.  We need volunteers who can speak on a range of topics (what do employers look for in their employees, how to get involved in the community, financial skills, getting financial aid for school, etc), and we also need volunteers who will come in and conduct mock interviews supplying our students with feedback on their interview skills. Last year we had a few people who cooked or purchased dinner for us and we appreciated those meals! We also accept donations of food from a specific list (all food bags are the same for our students) and of $5 fast food gift cards to be distributed as incentives during class.  Lastly, you can sponsor a student for a night of class for $30.

No matter how God calls you to be involved, we are thankful for each and every one of you!  We are humbled for the small part we are playing in a greater plan!
Until the next update, may God bless each of you!


Tony and Darcy Gunter