REACH embraces new Labor Day campers

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Welcoming first-time participants into the REACH community is always a highlight. This year at camp we welcomed a Kenyan-American mother with her adult daughter, a local family of five reeling from a recent move, an Ethiopian-American college student, a young Latin American immigrant, and a young adult who brought her sister and family for support. These are incredible individuals filled with joy and hope and we had so much fun with them – playing games, laughing, singing, dancing, and having deep discussions.

Also, as trust was established, these new participants felt safe enough to voice their pain. Foster care, HIV stigma, finances, separation from family, mental health, and more. It is a profound privilege to welcome each one into a community that cares for them, shows genuine interest in them, and walks alongside them for the long haul. No matter what age or stage of life, Camp (yes, a simple summer camp!) is a powerful experience of unconditional acceptance, safe community, joy, and trust.

Will you join REACH in prayer during our Labor Day Camp?

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Our annual Labor Day REACH Camp is coming up September 1-4, and we rely on your prayers to make the time fruitful — replacing isolation with safe community, replacing stigma with unconditional acceptance, and filling hearts up with joy and trust. These lofty goals can only be accomplished through the power of the Spirit! Thank you for partnering with us in this.

 

REACH is featured on global podcast

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Last week our Director, Dan Stoehr, was the U.S. representative on “Think Orphan,” a globally-focused Christian podcast. The conversation focused on the prevalence of HIV/AIDS in the world today, the challenges care providers face, and how leaders are working to overcome stigma and other obstacles. Dan emphasizes how vital unconditional acceptance and safe community are to people living under the shadow of unfair stigma. The title of the podcast is “The global HIV/AIDS Conversation.”

Access the audio or video versions by using the links below.

Listen to the podcast
Watch the podcast

Labor Day REACH Camp is coming! Calling volunteers!

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Q: What kind of Camp volunteers is REACH looking for?

A: Ones who…

  • make people feel safe
  • care about making a difference for people marginalized by stigma
  • do more listening than talking with their camper
  • enthusiastically participate in the next activity on the schedule
  • see the whole person in front of them – gifts, personality, strengths and quirks – not just the HIV
  • love campers wholeheartedly
  • are energized by providing 4 days of freedom for their camper in a judgment-free zone
Sign up to volunteer

Highs and Lows Embraced at Spring Retreat

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Our third and final installment of stories from the spring retreat:

A grieving REACH child-turned-adult arrived feeling physically and emotionally unwell. In the middle of the night her struggles intensified, and by morning she had decided she needed to find a ride home as soon as possible, despite the disappointment of missing the retreat. Friends and staff encouraged her to give it time, stating how she was loved and needed and appreciated, and we could wait patiently until she was ready to re-engage. Can you see her emerging from her cabin for Saturday’s lunch? Settling in with her tray of food between friends? Can you see her smile and talk with a twinkle in her eye that was notably absent the evening before? If you can picture all of that, then you recognize the healing touch of unconditional acceptance and safe community. REACH is a place where stigma doesn’t exist – around HIV, of course. But also around any other physical, mental or emotional struggle (or anything else) that the world would rather push to the margins.

Volunteers are the heart and soul of REACH

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Can you picture the spring retreat volunteers – leaving children and jobs, hobbies and housework behind in favor of investing their time, energy, and hearts into the REACH families? When there is down time, can you see them inventing games and activities to delight the kids? When joyful messes are piling up, notice them tidy up as they continue to visit and engage. Can you see their heads bowed over colorful award certificates, dreaming up the very best words of affirmation to speak over REACH kids as they receive their awards? As the volunteers leave, do you hear them thank us for the opportunity to participate?

Do they realize that their presence makes REACH the beautiful community that it is?

Spring Retreat breakthrough

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Spring retreat had some complexity – families enduring rush hour traffic to arrive for check-in, last minute illness and cancellations, staff and guests trying out a new-to-us camp facility, bursts of rain, cold temperatures, unexpected meeting room glitches… You might think of these things as a recipe for stress or struggle. But if you were to catch a glimpse of the reality of spring retreat, you would see warmth, peace, authenticity, and togetherness… all helping people rise above HIV stigma.

Picture 11-year-old “Liam.” He’s been coming to Labor Day Camp for 4 years but is introverted enough that as the camp dates approach, he asks if he can stay home. When the answer is no, he acquiesces but requests frequent breaks from the social camp experience to unwind in the cabin with a parent.

But this spring is his first time at smaller, more laid back retreat… and he seems like a different kid as he joyfully plays balloon volleyball, climbs to the top of the climbing wall multiple times, and bursts with pride as he shows all of REACH his “super-sharp” saw he constructed from duct tape and foil. Everyone who knew him before noticed him blossom throughout the weekend beyond all expectation. But he put it into words for us when he walked on stage during the awards ceremony, grabbed the mic and announced, “This is the weekend I got comfortable at REACH.”

Circle of Hope Breakfast 2023

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Circle of Hope Breakfast
Thursday, May 11, 2023, 7:30-8:30 AM


Life Center Church,
1717 S Union, Tacoma

 

 

 

Please Join us on our Annual Circle of Hope Breakfast. It is a free, one-hour breakfast and is a key springboard for raising unrestricted operating dollars to fulfill our strategic plan to double the number we serve by 2025. 100% of donations from attendees will go to REACH programs and our expansion initiatives. You will be investing in dignity and hope for children, families, and adults facing rejection because of HIV.

Most people with HIV try to keep their status private because of the rejection and isolation they will encounter, even from their closest family and friends. Speaking publicly takes deep courage, which is why the Circle of Hope Breakfast is a rare opportunity to truly understand the physical, social, emotional, psychological, and spiritual impact of HIV/AIDS. REACH currently journeys alongside over 100 HIV-positive children, teens, and adults … plus over 370 of their family members. REACH is for the whole family because HIV affects the whole family. We feel called to double those numbers in the next few years.

Check-in starts at 7:10 AM

Program will run promptly 7:30-8:30 AM

The breakfast is a free event. Guests will have an opportunity to make a donation during the program. 

Seating is limited, and we are taking reservations now!

RSVP by April 25th to Cecilia Bryan at  cbryan@REACHministries.org or (253) 383-7616.

Sign up here

To learn more click here

Join us in praying for the retreat

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Our spring retreat is coming up March 24-26 and we rely on your prayers to make the time fruitful — replacing isolation with safe community, replacing stigma with unconditional acceptance, filling hearts up with joy and trust. These lofty goals can only be accomplished through the power of the Spirit! Thank you for partnering with us in this.

To adopt a time slot and receive a Spring Retreat prayer guide, follow the link below.

https://reachministries.org/Staging/prayer-vigil/

Welcome, Cecilia Bryan!

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We are thrilled to announce a new REACH staff member: Volunteer and Events Coordinator, Cecilia Bryan!

Cecilia has an extensive background in event planning and volunteer coordinating. She is thrilled to be combining these skills with REACH’s meaningful mission. She loves bringing joy and smiles to the faces of children and families who need it the most.

Cecilia is a wife and mom of two who grew up in Mexico, then attended college in Canada where she met her husband and moved to Tacoma!

When Cecilia wants to learn a new skill, she watches YouTube and perseveres until she figures it out. You should see her cookie-decorating skills! We can’t wait to learn about Cecilia’s other hidden talents.

If you’re coming to Spring Retreat, you will meet her there!