Good Samaritan Thrift Store

Family Promise referred a young family consisting of a mother, a father and a newborn baby to us. They initially came in to apply housing help through our Emergency Solutions Grant, but as we got to talking I soon realized that this family was in need of much more. Since the Christmas holiday was coming up, I asked if they have made arrangements. They understandably didn’t have one, since their main worry was getting a roof over their head. Good Samaritan has a Adopt a Family program for Christmas where we act as the mediator for businesses and individuals to sponsor our clients for Christmas. I knew this family would be a great candidate for the program. I assigned the family in need to a past board member’s family. One of the things I knew the family in need had to get was a rather costly repair on their vehicle. The vehicle is used regularly to commute to Bozeman for the father's medical appointment and the primary source of transportation for the baby and the family. They were worried the car would not make it much longer. The awesome people that adopted this family negotiated a special, drastically reduced rate with J-4 automotive and the Good Samaritan Assistance Program helped the family pay for the repair. They got the ESG grant funding and got into long term housing and then Good Samaritan helped them get furniture for their home. Because of the generosity of this sponsor family, J4 Automotive, and your support of Good Samaritan, everything fell into place for this family in need- They came to us with a small hope of getting a roof over their head and left with stable housing, food and Christmas gifts, a fixed car, and furniture. Truly a Christmas Miracle! 
This is a story from Good Samaritan’s Assistance Coordinator and took place this past December, Christmas 2016. 

I was helping a mom who seemed very shy...you could tell she was very nervous about getting help. Taking her to the floor to shop I said you're welcome and wished her a Merry Christmas. She looked around in disbelief and then said to me: "Its been a rough year. I couldn't get anything together for my kids. I just can't believe you do this for people. Its just been a really rough year. Thank you so much." 
 This brave mother and many more parents like her are the reasons we do the Christmas Giving Tree. Every child deserves to have a Christmas. Thank you for our support in making this a reality. May we all be truly thankful for all the blessings we have in our lives. 

Each year volunteers from St. Helena Cathedral and Good Samaritan Ministries work together accepting applications, gathering toys and setting up the Christmas store for the many families in need. This is just one of the many heart warning stories shared on our distribution day last year 12-12-15. ​