Some math is hard. Don’t get me wrong, math is important. But some math is just hard, y’all. Here’s what I mean.
Forty-six Thanksgiving lunches plus more than 90 children’s books donated. Add that to four Christmas presents x 36 kids = 144 presents purchased and wrapped by five Adult Bible Communities, 15 Tribers and 20 Youth. Take all of this and add 30 handmade Christmas ornaments made by 30 Family Ministry children, all which happened in the course of 45 days. You can add all of this up, but it still won’t tell you the impact it makes. Basic math really can’t do that.
These numbers represent just a portion of the love by South Mainers poured onto the children at The House of Tiny Treasures between Thanksgiving and the New Year.
Quantifying our missions work gives us a data point, a benchmark, or a baseline, and that data point is certainly useful. What it doesn’t tell us is whose lives were impacted and how.
To get a sense of the impact, you need to know a little more about our mission partners. Namely you’d need to know about SEARCH’s House of Tiny Treasures (HTT).
A mile east of South Main’s campus sits HTT, a nationally accredited, full-day, year-round, preschool program, free of charge to parents in SEARCH’s programs as they work their way out of deep poverty.
The House of Tiny Treasures was established in 1992 by SEARCH as part of a comprehensive effort to break the cycle of deep poverty and homelessness in Houston. It grew out of an understanding that the primary predictor of future homelessness is a previous homeless experience (especially a homeless experience that happens early in life). Without childcare, a homeless child is likely to enter kindergarten two or more years behind their classmates. They’re more likely to have emotional and behavioral problems and are far less likely to finish high school.
To add to the problem, it’s almost impossible for parents to work themselves out of severe need without access to quality childcare. Step one of making childcare accessible is eliminating the cost burden. SEARCH, through partnerships such as the one with South Main, has eliminated that financial barrier. Step two is offering childcare all day and year round. Step three is to provide quality early childhood education and quality nutrition.
In all cases SEARCH and HTT have accomplished these goals. With these factors in place, a parent and their child are much better positioned to handle the long climb back to a stable life.
Having this knowledge makes it much easier to understand the impact of South Main’s work with HTT.
And yet, real understanding comes much easier. You simply need to see the happy, healthy faces of the 46 kids, ages 2-5, who spread abundant smiles, laughter, and hugs, teeming with joy at the HTT campus every single day.
To find out more information about House of Tiny Treasures and how to get involved, contact J Hill, Minister for Missions.
