From Dale Callan, 7/28/08
RE: Serving in Community

Max Helton must be smiling up in heaven today seeing people do what he did so well- hang out and minister to others. So many families have reached out to Jean Helton since Max passed away I would feel bad not to mention their names although it would also be hard if we missed someone. Most likely many different community groups and their members have ministered to Jean over the last several months in many different ways. This of course is what Jesus called us to do. We are the Body of Christ doing what the Body is supposed to do. Loving and caring for those who need help.

This started out with the Callan Community Group assisting Jean with her packing, cleaning and sorting the many items in her home preparing it for a sale. We culminated numerous weeks of inside and outside yard work with a huge yard sale which not only provided fellowship but allowed the Helton’s to move thousands of items out of the home. This Community Group got to the point where age and health issues made it difficult to keep up and the call was made to the church body with help from my emails and contacts with Mark, Mitch and Corinne along with who knows how many others. On Saturday July 19th over 15 people, both adults and teens from several different community groups showed up at Jean’s home. Many of these people did not know each other. Several hours later, yard work, trimming, painting, power washing and other inside cleaning made the home really ready for a sale. We are now praying for God’s timing in this sale, in Jean’s life for what is next and for all of her four daughters and two son-in-laws who spent countless hours working on the house.

I kept a list of some of those families who helped , some with numerous visits, some for an hour and others with teens, wow, what a great blessing to see God’s family at work helping a widow in need.

Thanks to the Callan Community Group not for just their physical labor but mostly for all their prayers for Jean. Thank you: Lindler, Moses, Faulk, McMurray, Andrews, Elliott, Peterson, Makes, Crumpler, Taylor, Sharpe, Bellamy, Wesolek, Grimes, Fuseliers, Zong’s, Marriott’s, Campbell’s, Hamby’s, Corinne and Mark. I am sure there were others who have stopped by to help Jean, I hope I didn’t miss too many others. Our prayer is for the Lake Forest Family to continue to help those in need, whether they are widows, elderly, unemployed, down and out, financially strapped or just need God’s help. My prayer is that this type of local mission help can be done regularly at Lake Forest. Thank you all again for loving Jean.

Dale Callan
Ministry Partner

Phil 2: 3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. 4Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.