A Family in Need

[The Guardian]

Hey Redemption family, I know I haven't been around much--just needed a little break--but this post isn't about me.

The family of a young Redemption player who is a student in Britta's youth group lost their home in a fire last night. Everyone made it out safe, but unfortunately several pets and pretty much all of their possessions were lost. 

Prayers for young Sam and his family are certainly appreciated as they navigate the trauma of losing their home. I am planning to donate as many cards and sleeves as Sam needs to rebuild his collection and decks as well as making a financial donation to the family. If anyone else is led to donate some cards or money to help out, you can send them to me and I will collect everything to give to Britta (she and Tim welcomed little baby Tristan just two weeks ago so it will be easier for me to coordinate things from our community while they help the family through their church community).

If you need my address, please send me a PM and I will be sure to check in more frequently in the coming weeks.

Thank you,

Justin

[The Guardian]

Posting this on behalf of Britta (she's attempting to get her forum password reset).

Hello All,

Thank you all for praying. Here is some more information on what happened:

Early Monday morning, Sam's family was awoken by a Good Samaritan pounding on their door alerting them that there was a fire on their three season porch. All of the people made it out, though it took two men to get his sister out of the basement through the egress window. The house is destroyed and will either need to be gutted or bulldozed. They have not yet determined the cause of the fire, but if the stranger hadn't stopped, there could have been more loss of life. As it was, they lost their two dogs, 1 cat, a chinchilla and a bird. They have 2 more cats that are outdoor cats but they are currently MIA, so please pray they are found.

The family is currently staying in a hotel and will be moved to temporary housing in about a month. Please continue to pray for them. If you would like more information about how to donate toward their needs or toward helping Sam restart his Redemption collection, please PM Justin.

[Watchman]

Justin, so we don’t send him a bunch of the same cards, do you want to help coordinate with what we do send him?

[The Guardian]

I could do that. I'm also receiving the collection of a former player from MN that I plan to give him (though this other player was not very active so I don't know how extensive the collection is at this point).

[The Guardian]

Quick update on what I've received so far to give to Sam.

Fairly complete set of cards up through Disciples (minus most Warriors cards, but not worried about getting all those).

I've also put together G/H and I/J starter decks plus a decent Silver/Orange deck that's sleeved and tournament-ready.

3 ring binder with pages, deck boxes, card case and playmat have all been donated.

I'll likely be able to put together a decent amount of Cloud of Witnesses and Early Church extras, but I don't have as many extras of Persecuted Church, Revelation of John or Fall of Man. If anyone has some of those they'd be willing to donate, that would be awesome. Obviously any $ donations would be greatly appreciated as well.

Thanks to those who have donated already! 

I'll ask Britta to give an update on how the family is doing when she gets a chance.

[Watchman]

Get with me, Justin, and we’ll discuss some of the newer set needs. Email info@yourturngames.biz or phone 352-494-6949.

[The Guardian]

E-mail sent.

[Watchman]

Do they have a Gofundme page?

[The Guardian]

Do they have a Gofundme page?

Not sure, Britta said she will find out.

*Edit--they do not.

[Watchman]

Is someone they know going to set one up for them?

[The Guardian]

On this day before Thanksgiving, I wanted to extend my thanks to some members of our community who made extremely generous donations to Sam and his family.

Huge thank you to Xonathan, YeshuaIsLord & Watchman for their generous gifts! 

I am hopeful that Sam will be able to attend our upcoming tournament in December and I'll be able to take a picture of him with his new collection. I will also check with Britta and see if she can share an update with how the family is doing. 

[The Guardian]

Sam's family is still working through the rebuilding process, but he was able to attend the tournament on Saturday and had a brand new deck thanks to the generosity of several community members.

One of the best moments was when I overheard Sam talking with another young player and said something to the effect of "Oh, you need one of those cards? I might have one I can give you." Didn't expect a trade or anything--was just willing to pass along the blessing he received to someone else.

[jesse]

That is awesome - thanks for the update!

[Watchman]

Very nice! Makes me think of what Jesus said: “As freely as you’ve received, freely give.”