Dear Friends,
Last night was another great night at Scarlet Cord. We had a great group of volunteers: Elisa, Raelene, Cindy, myself, and first time volunteer, Melissa. Thanks for coming Melissa, we are glad to have you! Raelene's husband made a fantastic pasta sauce that was to die for! Melissa brought in some yummy veggies from New Seasons. They were perfect and oh so good! Sandy couldn't make it last night but was sweet enough to send her daughter down with the salad. Thanks Sandy! I brought in some dried apricots and cranberries and Cindy topped off dinner with some chocolate and vanilla ice cream. It was a perfect day for ice cream!
Elisa, Melissa and I went out on the street team and had some great conversations. We met N who had heard of and raved about Rahab's Sisters. She was really excited to know that SC is around. She was very sweet. She told us that she is so thankful for what we do and that "we are such a blessing to so many women." We hope to see her at SC soon. We met many other women who were very excited for the lotions we pass out with the fliers. It's always nice to see their faces light up when we ask them if we can invite them to dinner. We also just recently included an invitation on Spanish on the other side of our fliers. This came in handy with a woman that we met up with. Elisa and I were able to talk with her and she was thankful for the lotions. We stopped by one of our usual motels and were greeted nicely by the manager, B. He took some fliers and we even gave him one of the lotions. He thought that was nice. We had a nice chat with S in one of the lingerie shows we stop by and she was excited to see her "Friday Night Girls." Also, we were quickly greeted at one of the shows that rarely opens their door to us. The woman took some fliers and said thank you with a smile before she ducked back in. Next door, we had a fabulous greeting. As we were walking up, two of the ladies gave us enthusiastic waves and smiles out the window. The kind of greeting you would give to your neighbor. It was wonderful. We went in and had a nice chat with B who we had never met before. She said, "My name is B. That's my real name." I told her that Amanda was my real name too and we all had a good laugh. She was really excited about the idea of coming to dinner. We told her what we were about and she was touched to hear about women who just want to support other women. She was worried that there may be guys waiting there. She was glad to hear that we have a security guard outside and said she sometimes just needs a break from the guys. She gave me a huge hug. I told her that we would be back next week to talk and she told us to come in whenever and to tell everyone that "I" (her stage name) said we could come in any time. I love that the love of SC doesn't just happen inside the SC doors. It extends out into the community. We have relationships with the motel managers, the mini-mart owners and even the police. Love and friendship is shared inside SC, on the streets and in the shops and clubs. I am really glad to be a part of the community and I love my neighbors!
Back at home, Raelene and Cindy greeted Diane. Diane brought in a newsletter from her work because they wrote a little success story section and she was in it. She was really proud and left a few copies for us. I posted one of them in the back closet so we should all take a look when we get a chance. Raelene gave her a haircut and she looks great! We even found a sweater for her that looks very nice on her that she left with. She had a little make-over night at SC! We've been thinking a lot about S, one of our guests that we haven't seen in a while. We hope that she will come back soon to see us all. Please keep her in your good thoughts and prayers.
Overall, last night was fantastic! It was filled with good food, new and old friendships, and trust. What more could you ask for?!
Love,
Amanda
