Exciting News for 2024!

Tree of Life is looking forward to a year filled with new opportunities and new growth as we continue to serve those in need in Loudoun… check out all that is happening!

 

 

New Location

 

The Tree of Life Center in Purcellville is MOVING!  We are so excited to announce that beginning in March, we will be located at 115 East Main Street.

The new space will still allow us to host all our regular ministry activities at the center, like our food pantry, community dinners, English classes, and more, while also giving us greater visibility in the community, so we can connect with more people in need of assistance as well as new supporters.

Stay tuned as we share news of the move!

 

New Housing

We are so pleased to announce that we are expanding our transitional housing program by adding six family homes! Two units are already available and we’ll be working closely with the county and other organizations to identify families in need of the assistance, mentorship, and stability that our program offers.

Tree of Life is committed to helping those who are housing insecure in Loudoun and we can’t wait to see how God will use new opportunity to change lives in 2024!

If you’d like more information about the homes or how you can support our transitional housing program, email housing@tolministries.org.

 

New CEO

As of January 1st, our new CEO Susannah Lee has taken the reins at Tree of Life!

Susannah had an extensive career in corporate retail before coming to Tree of Life as a volunteer in 2015. She served as a leader in both our Food Branch and Shelter Branch and then joined our staff as the Regional Director in Purcellville in 2019.

Susannah also played an integral role in the launch, management, and expansion of The Clothing Closet and has been instrumental to the success and growth of our transitional housing program.

We are excited to move forward in this new phase at Tree of Life under her guidance and are grateful to have found a leader committed to our core values and our purpose.

 

SAME PURPOSE

To reach out to the poor and needy in our community with the love of Jesus Christ.

 

 

 

With all the exciting changes ahead in 2024 for Tree of Life, one thing remains the same – our commitment to serving those in need in Loudoun with the love of Christ.  In 2023, we saw approximately 25,000 service impacts across our five branches: Food, Lifeskills, Shelter, Healthcare, and Relief.

This includes a 12% increase in food deliveries, more than $130,000 distributed in relief payments for things like rent and utilities, and nearly 1,000 individuals receiving free clothing. With your help, we can continue to meet the needs of those in Loudoun and offer a “hand up” to our neighbors.

 

VOLUNTEER SPOTLIGHT!

Meet Jonathan Mingot!  Jonathan has been serving in Lifeskills in our Eastern Loudoun Region since May 2023.

He jumped right in and has helped organize two Life Skills Workshops that have provided valuable information to help partners purchase a home. At Christmas for Others, he volunteered to oversee our free coat distribution, and you will regularly find him at our Community Dinner on Tuesday nights at the Sterling Community Center.

We are grateful for Jonathan and all his eagerness to help partners improve their lives!

 

 

 

 

 

 

IT’S A NEW YEAR!

 

“On the first day of the new year…Noah lifted back the covering of the boat…”  (Genesis 8:13)

“On the first day of the new year…they began work in early spring…and purified the Temple of the LORD…”  (2 Chronicles 29:17)

“On the first day of the new year…this message came to me from the LORD…”  (Ezekiel 29:17)

“This is what the Sovereign LORD says:…on the first day of each new year, sacrifice a young bull with no defects to purify the Temple.”  (Ezekiel 45:18)

It is no surprise that we have our own plans for the new year of 2024.  But I want us to consider that God has plans also, and His plans are greater than ours.

“’For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,’ declares the LORD.” (Isaiah 55:8)

You may remember back to this time last year and think about what you might do.  I can.  2023 did not turn out the way I expected.  Likewise, I can surmise that 2024 will also be different than what I dream.

1 Corinthians 6:19 asks, “Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own?”  Based in line with this verse and with Ezekiel 45:18, God has a wonderful plan for my life.  The Lord planned a sacrifice and purification of His Temple, and today I know that my body is a temple of the Holy Spirit.

All my dreams I lift to the Lord and ask for Him to accomplish His dreams in my life…He has presented the sacrifice, His Son Jesus Christ, and He has purified my body, the temple of the Holy Spirit.  In Ezekiel, God said He would perform this purification on the first day of EACH year, and today I ask Him to do no less.

May the name of the Lord be praised!  May the year of the Lord, two thousand and twenty four, be blessed, because He continues to work in our lives… may God grant His dreams for each of our lives to be blessed in 2024.

May you be blessed,

Chaplain Wayne Ruckman