Words of encouragement, support and blessing for individuals and families living with disabilities
Happy Monday and we hope you enjoy this week’s #AL3IN3!
We are all so pooped out from our #ETNEXPO2020 and #NTXEXPO2020 9 week and 4,500 mile road trip that #ALMASCOTLULU is even napping on camera. :)
HHHMMMNNN…..napping, that maybe a good Access-Life, Inc. theme here!
Well, it’s late and we are in a hotel room on our way back to FL. However, just like the mail must go through, the #AL3IN3 must be posted every Monday. :)
So put your seat belts on as were in the van and the road was a bit rough but we hope you enjoy and are blessed by this week’s Access-Life video.
Listen up for special SHOUT-OUTS to Julia Codispoti, Milligan University volleyball team and L.J. Blair. Oh, by the way Leanne Goddard finally came back on camera for a brief cameo appearance, too!
Well, God did it. That’s right, He made a way for us to hold all 3 of our domestic Expos as well as our international Expo in THE CRAZY YEAR OF 2020! In fact, the final outreach on this year’s Access-Life GRAND SLAM was the #NTXEXPO2020 this past Saturday. :)
Despite all the medical protocols and limited capacity guidelines, it was an amazing day! The new location at Meadowmere Park on Lake Grapevine was a great upgrade and fit for our needs and the move to September brought much lower temperatures that our past June dates!
We had a 24 foot pontoon the expanded to 13 feet wide courtesy of Dusty Dendy and the Slalom Shop, an Access-Life wrapped bass boat that goes over 55 miles an hour thanks to Rob Jasper, praise and worship music therapy per Heart of Hope, roping cattle lessons with Prairie Parnell and even a food truck by Egg Stand.
However, what made this Expo special was the way that God worked in the hearts and minds of his people to make it happen so individuals and families living with disabilities in the area could have a day just for them to enjoy and be blessed by Jesus is a variety of ways. In fact, checkout this short video for just one of the amazing God moments that occurred on Saturday: https://videos.files.wordpress.com/lywgqYlJ/video-clip-2020-9.12-ntx-ale_dvd.mp4
The #NTXEXPO2020 looked different this year but God’s gracious presence still put a smile on many faces and filled many hearts with His joy as always. :) We hope the collage here will bring a smile to your face and illustrate that we do each Expo #4THE1. That is 4 the 1 we serve who is Jesus and 4 the 1 who comes in need of His refreshing and renewing touch.
AND if you would like to see MORE PICTURES from this year’s outreach in North Texas you can go to www.access-life.org/ntxexpo and view additional images in our online gallery. :) ENJOY AND GOD BLESS!
Just when you thought the #AL3IN3 would not happen this week with Leanne Linville Goddard and me covered up and recuperating from the #NTXEXPO2020 last Saturday, we made the call to our GO TO GAL. :)
That’s right our Access-Life Senior Intern, Julia Codispoti is still on call despite being back in school and preparing for her senior year volleyball season at Milligan University AND she even got her whole team involved!
These ladies really stepped it up to host this special video with their first match of the year TOMORROW! So checkout what that have for us this week and GO LADY BUFFS. :)
By the way, YES this is a hotel room and YES we are in TEXAS where it is 98 degrees right now outside!
Boy, do we have a special #3IN3 for you this week! Not only are we in Leanne Linville Goddard’s hometown of Clovis, NM but we have two of our top Access-Life, Inc. volunteers, Anne Linville [my favorite mother in law] and Pat Moody [my favorite card playing buddy] joining us. So check it out and have a God blessed week!
Well, we are still on the road to see my FAVORITE mother-in-law, Anne Linville in Clovis, NM before rounding back to Grapevine, TX for the Access-Life, #NTXEXPO2020 on 9/12. However, that did not stop us from shooting this weeks #AL3IN3 today in Amarillo, TX. We had hoped to find some oil pumps and cows to show you but found something better, a CAR CATTLE RANCH [It’s hard to see them stuck in the ground in the video but they are just under the barbed wire so I’ll post some close-up pictures, too.]! It’s pretty WINDY out here in West Texas so HOLD ON TO YOUR HAT and check it out.
From the new medical protocols and limited capacity time slot guidelines to the loads of liquid sunshine we received on Saturday, this year’s ETN EXPO was anything but typical.
It was so encouraging and even inspiring to see all of our Access-Life volunteers from area churches and community organizations COME TOGETHER and PERSEVERE to BLESS individuals and families living with disabilities locally in the name of Jesus and in turn be BLESSED in ways none of us could imagine.
However, what was more IMPACTING and even HUMBLING was seeing the participants who came out in ponchos, rain jackets and umbrellas to be a part of this 11th annual outreach! The activities were limited and the weather was better for ducks than people but the THANK YOUS and spirit of GRATITUDE abounded throughout the park and day. So many participants expressed how GLAD they were that we were able to have the Expo in East Tennessee in 2020 as they look forward to attending every year and felt it was especially IMPORTANT to hold it this year as the NEED for CONNECTION was so great during these uncertain times.
There were the usual blessings to be found at the “EPIC” 2020 ETN Expo seeing smiles of joy, fellowship of friendship and God’s beautiful outdoors. However, this year’s outreach was also “SYMBOLIC” in many deeper ways as God made a way where there was no way. Hopefully, the miracles he performed and the work He did in the hearts of our Access-Life team members to make things happen will speak volumes to those living with disability in the area. We pray that the truth of God’s love and gospel were seen in action and that those impacted by disabilities locally now know that by God’s grace not only are we here for them “RAIN OR SHINE” but God is there for them no matter the circumstance.
This year’s ETN Expo impacted us so much that we are adopting “4 the 1” as our ministry motto. This simply put means all we do is “4 the 1” we serve who is Jesus and “4 the 1” who needs to be touched by Jesus. Philippians 4:13 is still our ministry verse and “BRIDGING THE GAP” is still our tagline but the concept of “4 the 1” is a guiding principle to remind us that we are not doing what we do for the applause of man nor are we doing it for the highest volume of attendees we can draw. We are doing it all “4 the 1”. :)
Here is part of an email we received from the mom of a participating family that we believe sums it up pretty well.
I just want to thank you and all of the volunteers for your hard work on this event. In spite of the pandemic and some pretty dismal weather today, it was a tremendous event.
My 21 year old son with Downs Syndrome has seen every single activity he normally participates in cancelled since March, including the last several weeks of his final year in public school. He was beyond happy today. Every volunteer went above and beyond (as they always do at this event) to make sure he was safe and happy.
The gentleman who took us out on the boat gave us an extra-long ride since it was raining hard and not many people were waiting. He gave us a lot of the local history, pointing out interesting things and telling us who lived or had lived in some of the houses. It was all very interesting, and a nice break for my husband and I too, since we have left the house infrequently since COVID starting shutting things down. It was a very enjoyable ride.
The people who give so generously of their time and love are blessings beyond measure, especially for the fragile members of our society. I can’t thank you and them enough for today and all of the other days we have enjoyed with your group through the years. See you next year, rain or shine!
If you’d like to see more pictures from the “EPIC” outreach we’ve uploaded lots to our ETN Expo page at: https://access-life.org/etnexpo. WE HOPE YOU ENJOY THEM AND ARE BLESSED BY IT ALL!
First ever #AL3IN3 at an actual Expo! In fact, it wast the EPIC #ETNEXPO2020 this past Saturday. You can hear the rain pouring in the background. :) Still got a great joke, encouraging scripture and Access-Life, Inc. update with an uplifting message as a BONUS so check it out and HAVE A GOD BLESSED WEEK!
Ok, boys and girls of all AGES and ABILITIES, the #ETNEXPO2020 is just 5 days away and in turn, this weeks #AL3IN3 is onsite at the outreach park! Julia Codispoti and Morgan Coffey even share about their past experiences as buddies at the event here in Tennessee. :) So check out the scenery, stories, humor, scripture and ministry update and have a GOD BLESSED WEEK.
