Impacting Cuyahoga County Love INC in Action th Q Pastor Pratt It was after four p.m. on a Friday afternoon when my phone rang. The call was from Sandy Kovach of State Auto Insurance. They had received our application for insurance, when I had never sent one. They were curious as to what sort of ministry we were…Sandy had heard of us through her home church, Parma Heights Baptist Church, and after checking us out online, she was calling to see if we were interested in a donation of 800 winter coats. I was speechless, and for those who know me, that is very unusual! Sandy went on to explain that her boss, Dorothy Schreck, is a territory manager for State Auto Insurance and has had a major coat collection for the last six years. They were in search of another venue of distribution and decided to ask us if we would be interested. The number 800 somewhat overwhelmed me (keep in mind it was late Friday afternoon), so I asked for 200 coats instead. Over the weekend, I began to think that 200 was not enough, so I called Sandy back first thing Monday morning and said we would take all 800 coats. Later, I found out that we would be sharing the bounty with St. Herman’s and the City Mission. The board of Love INC decided that if 800 coats was good, then certainly 1000 would be even better! So, we sent out an asking our partner churches to help us out. And help us out, they did! Between our member churches and the Parma Area Family to Family Collaboration, we received an additional 400 coats. We were also blessed to have Williamsburg Cleaners from Westlake and Rocky River, and Ledgewood Cleaners in Strongsville, volunteer to help us out with cleaning. Now all the coats donated matched those collected by State Auto Insurance: Each and every coat was either brand new or gently worn but cleaned, bagged, and on a hanger. The coat distribution took place on December 9th. Six of our partner churches, which minister to the homeless and poor in our area, along with St. Herman’s and The City Mission, were given the coats to pass on in their individual ministries. We gave out over 1200 coats! In addition, hats, scarves, gloves, and sweaters were distributed. To think that the Lord used us as an answer to prayer for a family in need of warm coats is one of the most blessed, humbling experiences we can think of! Love’s Abundance Janice Cepulo, Executive Director LOVE Note From Scranton Road Bible Church: December 23,2009 Dear Dorothy Schreck, I only wish you could have been present to see the “west side of Cleveland” get warmer. We were able to distribute the coats to many families in and through the church, as well as to share them with the distribution center at Redeemer Lutheran Church. Not only are families being helped this holiday season, but they are witnessing churches networking and not competing to encourage others. That is huge! May you have a very blessed holiday. Sincerely, Larry Blake, Staff Assistant LOVE Note From Church on the Rise: December 11, 2009 Dear Dorothy, Thank you very much for your generous donation of 50 men’s coats! The coats will be such a blessing to the homeless people who will receive them through our homeless ministry outreach on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. We thank you for your giving spirit at this most wonderful time of year! Merry Christmas! Pastor Ricardo Johnson

th Q Impacting Cuyahoga County P.O. Box 31775, Independence, OH Summary of 2009: Our ministry expanded greatly in Our total value of needs met was $182,000! This was an increase of over 50% from We were able to provide services to 1800 adults and children, which is a 25% increase over God is GOOD! Commit to the Lord whatever you do, and your plans will succeed. Proverbs 16:3 4 th Quarter Needs MetValue of Needs Met Our coat distribution in December was just one of the many ways we were able to minister to Cuyahoga county in Thank you for your continued support of our projects and services!