By Daniel L. Bamberg
“If everyone gave a little none would do without,” explains Centreville resident Stephanie Bamberg. This is a philosophy she learned while spending the summer in Mobile, Alabama for the 3.0 Missional Internship Program.
3.0 Missional Internship is an extension of the United Methodist Church, and is a mission of spreading the message of Christ through charity. It is sponsored by the Quad W Foundation, which was established in memory of a 19-year old osteosacrcoma victim, Willie Tichenor. The story of Tichenor has been motivating young people to create positive changes in their environments. Tichenor spent his short life with the knowledge of his terminal illness to help living people rather than concern himself with death.
“The internship program motivated me to come home and do something,” explains Stephanie. “I wanted to be a part of something which helped people.”
Her idea was simple and it has now become a regular part of her life. She, her boyfriend Edward (Scooter) Lee and his parents Suzie and Butch Lee have founded a cause that directly impacts people in their own backyard. They call this ministry, “We got your back.”
After the "we got your back" group were donated an allotment of backpacks, they began finding local families in need. The group goes out each week to buy little odds and ends to fill each backpack with. The backpacks are then delivered to the needy families with children and returned empty to fill the next week.
Suzie drives a bus so she is able to deliver most of the backpacks to children on her bus. The next day the kids return the empty backpacks. Other families are delivered to in person. The “we got your back” group practices discretion as to not reveal the names of families they help.
“I have always had a heart for outreach ministry and tried to raise my kids to see life and people the same way,” explains Suzie. “Scooter seems to have been the one out of my three that picked up on that gift the most. I have seen his heartache, break and move to people in the most amazing of ways, even when he was a child. When Stephanie came back from her mission she and Scooter thought it would be a good idea to do a backpack ministry.”
Every weekend the group goes on a venture to purchase the items in the grocery store. “When we go shopping it is enjoyable because we are buying for someone else. There isn’t a burden. It feels good to shop for someone else for no other reason but to help them out,” Stephanie expresses.
“People don’t often believe that giving a little helps,” explains Edward. “When that little is accumulated big things can happen. I came across a statistic on Black Friday, which estimates that Americans spend $450 billion a year on Christmas shopping. It would only take $10 billion to repair the world’s water crisis. To me, the littlest amount of help accumulates to solution.”
That seems to be the general idea of the “we got your back” effort. It’s subtle but Stephanie and the Lee family believe small doses among a larger population can actually change the way we think about charity. Stephanie says that one Biblical verse during her time at 3.0 stood out more than anything and she’s chosen to use that as a motto.
1 John 3:17-18 reads: “If anyone has material possessions and sees a brother or sister in need but has no pity on them, how can the love of God be in that person? Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.”
“I have been asked why we do this,” Suzie says. “Honestly, why would we not do this? Why would anyone not do this? Give me 15 minutes of your time, and I will share life changing stories with you.”
Stephanie suggests that they are not necessarily looking for money donations, at the moment. “Money donations are accepted but we prefer if people go out and purchase goods and donate those,” she says. “We’d rather see people making decisions from the heart, rather than throwing money at a cause.”
The group is planning to expand this ministry as a community-wide project. They believe in a day when community can live up to its own definition. Until then however they will continue to help families in need as they run across them.
If you would like to help you may contact Stephanie at (205) 928 0095 or Scooter at 205 299 4345. You can also contact Suzie via email.
Suggested donations are: peanut butter, jelly, pop tarts, granola bars, soups, jello and pudding (snack cups), canned fruit, juice boxes, crackers, cookies, raisins, band aids, feminine products, disposable razors, soap, shampoo, chap stick, headache medicine, body wash, deodorant, toothbrushes, tooth paste and toilet paper.
Also “We got your back” is getting ready to make up Christmas backpacks. Small toys, one size fits all apparel, and candy will also be welcomed donations.
You can learn more about “We got your back” by finding them on facebook.
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