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As you know, summer can be a challenging time for ministries like Buckner International as supporters go off on much-needed vacations. However, many vulnerable people still need help, so we can’t take a break in this vital ministry, even for a moment.
 
That’s why we are announcing the Buckner Shine This Summer campaign along with a special $200,000 Matching Grant that doubles the value of each gift Buckner receives by Aug. 31.
 
Should you feel led to make a special investment to be doubled by the Matching Grant, we’d be truly grateful. Any portion of the grant not matched will be lost, so we’re hoping for a strong outpouring of support to help mend more broken lives.
 
Every gift will be put to work to help single-parent families across Texas who are living in extreme poverty, fear and vulnerability—like Charbra was.
 
Charbra was providing for her two sons, James and Demontrey, all on her own after her marriage failed and their life became dangerously unstable.  She explains:
 
“My car was towed off, bills kept piling on and I couldn’t pay for any of them. The electricity got turned off and I was waiting for child support that never showed up. Then the constables were getting ready to kick us out of our home. It just got really hard. I really lost hope.”
 
That’s when Charbra turned to Buckner for help — and was accepted into the Buckner Family Pathways program. It’s designed to protect families like hers from financial uncertainty, homelessness, domestic abuse and hopelessness.
 
This program strengthens parents to forge a way forward out of the darkness by providing transitional housing, educational support, counseling, life skills classes, child care, health care and spiritual support for about 18 months. 
 
That’s what you make possible through your partnership!
 
And as more people show your compassion and give to the Shine This Summer campaign, we’ll be equipped to save more people like Charbra from the dangerous brink of despair. See what she says next:
 
“I was done — but I had to live for my children. Family Pathways gave me a stable place. Living there I could finally say, ‘I’m safe. We can go to the next step.’”
 
With stable housing, parents like Charbra can learn new vocational skills to become self-sufficient. They’re trained in parenting and communication skills, managing money, conflict resolution and spiritual discipleship.
 
You see, when you speak life and hope into the parents, you also redirect their children away from a path of poverty, dependency and insecurity. Charbra explains:
     
“When you tell a person they can be something and you speak life into them, they get bigger than they ever thought they could be. Then, their children grow up with that same hope. In fact, Demontrey is getting ready to go to college! This is the happiest I’ve ever been.”
           
Over the last 20 years, friends like you have made it possible for Buckner to serve 2,151 families through Family Pathways programs. And children of some of the first Family Pathways graduates are now attending college, like Demontrey.
 
But as we enter the summer months, there are more single-parent families like Charbra’s that urgently need your help. 
 
So thank you for considering to send a special gift today to help strengthen more single-parent families through the Shine This Summer campaign.
 
Your love and generosity to help struggling single parents and their children experience hope and a future are inspiring.  Charbra says:
 
“When a person is at their weakest, most vulnerable point in life and someone says, ‘I see your potential. I know you don’t want a handout — just let me give you a hand up’ — it does a lot to a person. If it wasn’t for Buckner donors, I wouldn’t be here. Thank you for giving me a chance.”   

Double your gift today!

 

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