“We must be different to make a difference in the world.” – Chris Brady
The following Life on Life story was written and submitted by Life Member, Andrea Klubertanz:
On Saturday, March 17th, 2018, Team Thunderstruck organized an event with “Chosen” for our team’s Life on Life Initiative. It all started when my husband, Tony, and I started the process to adopt an infant several years ago. We are still waiting on God’s timing for a match, and our adoptive situation does not allow us to foster, but we became aware of the great need, particularly in the Milwaukee area, and wanted to find a new way to help. We were stunned to learn that in the calendar year 2016, over 8,000 children were in some form of out-of-home care, many for more than a year.
Some friends at church recommended the book “Dear Lois: Our Adoption Journey”, which was written by a family at a nearby church and connected me with the authors, Karen Schlindwein and Amalie Bowling. This mother-daughter team was just working out the details for their new charity, Chosen, to help families who foster.
Chosen, Inc. (“Chosen”), a Wisconsin non-profit fostering and adoption support ministry, exists to Foster Forever Families by living the Gospel so that all children can experience a safe and loving home. Chosen is committed to helping children and families in three areas:
Education: Chosen seeks opportunities to educate and inform the surrounding community about adoption and foster-care issues using the unique and vast experiences of those within the organization. We are currently seeking opportunities to speak with groups about adoption/fostering/infertility topics; while we have several presentations produced, we are able to speak on a variety of topics listed on our website. We also have a compelling journey of hope to share with women’s groups, churches and other organizations seeking a Christian message about overcoming difficult circumstances with the foundation of faith in Christ.
Support: Chosen aims to support those in the fostering & adoption community physically, emotionally, spiritually, and financially. Benevolent support to adoptive and foster families, peer counseling, support groups/resources to adoptive & foster families, and a share closet for those in foster care will be offered by Chosen. In all circumstances, the Gospel will be shared with all involved in this journey. The Family Closet is supplied by donations from the community to provid needed material items to those in foster care.
Community: Chosen will establish a multi-family foster home to care for as many children as possible. This will provide stability for children in one home, give them a place where they feel comfortable, and learn about the love of Christ. A low-cost home community for foster families will ensure they have access to support, resources, and the fellowship they need right at their fingertips.
Most of all, Chosen wishes to show the love of Christ in a practical way to children, families, and communities.
For me, it started small by sorting things in the family closet after a big clothing donation drive at our daughter’s school. Sorting at the Family Closet is a wonderful experience where you get to see first-hand the care and feel and warmth that this organization brings to those who visit and use the services. It is a welcoming, boutique-like setting, that makes kids and their guardians feel special and welcome, not like picking things up at a garage sale or sorting through hand-me-downs. In my opinion, the environment alone fosters a sense of self-worth and genuine care.
Then it developed further to financial reporting and helping in an administrative capacity. I was so impressed and inspired by the family and leaders involved that I couldn’t wait for the opportunity to help more and show our team why Tony and I are so passionate about this cause. When Karen mentioned that it would be helpful to have a small army for their spring sorting event, we jumped at the chance to introduce her to our team.
Saturday morning, we started early by taking over the gym of a local church and unloading the first moving truck full of bins. From there, items were rough sorted by gender, season, and quality. We had to weed out anything that was soiled, torn, worn out, or not in style for donation to another group, who will put them to appropriate use. Nothing goes to waste here!
The items were then moved on to another zone for a more specific sizing and organizing and then put into bins for storage or display in the Family Closet. The truck was packed up again and unloaded at the designated locations. The team members that helped reset the Family Closet were greatly impressed by the cozy and cheerful feel of the rooms and loved seeing the gigantic piles of clothes from the morning transformed into a final displayed product. Life Members also donated items on the “wish list”, such as diapers, wipes, and toiletries.
Cort, Margaret, and Olivia Howard loved working a variety of jobs and doing the work with friends. Margaret said, “I always love to be part of a large group of people, of all ages, coming together to make a big impact for a worthy cause!”
Correna Gilmore shared that “I so appreciate an event like this where my kids can pitch in. It’s important to create patterns as they group up that serving and loving others is fun!” Adeline and Elliot Gilmore also agreed with the Howards that, “serving is much more fun when you do it with friends.”
“What a great family-run organization! The giving hearts there were truly amazing! Many hands make light work was the theme of this Life-on Life operation. An overwhelming task became very fun and heart-filling fast! The mission this group is working toward is truly inspiring – another great family doing amazing things! My Life on Life shirt is one of my favorite shirts to put on in order to represent this fantastic group of people.” – Jessica Pfeifer (Life Member)
“It was fun, crazy, and heart-warming to help out.” – Sara Toedert (Life Member)
“On behalf of Chosen’s Board, I wish to thank you greatly for all the help and support that you gave to Chosen on Saturday at Waukesha Bible Church. When Andrea let us know that more than 25 could join from your team, we were stunned. Knowing that we had others that would join, gave us a great opportunity to go beyond our original plan and do a more extensive inventory that could, once and for all, help us to clean house and get our inventory for all seasons under control. Your team served with such joy and enthusiasm and made a great impact on the day and our ability to exceed what we hoped to accomplish. Together, we helped to make things for The Family Closet at Chosen run more efficiently allowing us to serve our families in a more productive way. We would welcome the opportunity of having any of you on our volunteer team. Thank you for blessing us and thank you for blessing foster and adoptive families!” – Karen Schlindwein (Executive Director of Chosen, Inc. and co-author of “Dear Lois: Our Adoption Journey”)
Thank you to everyone who served in this Life on Life Initiative from Team Thunderstruck, under the leadership of Tony and Andrea Klubertanz. Your love and service truly made a difference!
Linda Medrano says
Amazing and dedicated involvement with the community there. Love Life on Life and Life Leadership!
Elaine Mallios says
Great job everyone. Sounds like a wonderful organization. Keep up the good work. Proud of you!