Grace for the Journey Conference

October 13th was the very first conference hosted by Sufficient Grace Ministries. We traveled up to Northern Michigan and the conference was held in the Petoskey area, so pretty far up there!

Kelly, my cousin Jillian, and I left Thursday evening to travel up to a cabin my family co-owns near Gaylord, MI. We got there around 10 pm (maybe later?) and got everything unpacked. We stayed up for a little bit and then hit the sack to get some sleep after being in the car for over 5 hours (me longer since I had to drive up to NW Ohio to get the other gals).

Woke up in the morning to a beautiful view of Bluegill Lake. So much beauty in God’s creation!

After some yummy cinnamon rolls, we got ready and set off for Petoskey as we had a meeting with a hospital in the area to talk about the ministry. The unit was very busy and we ended up having to leave and come back but that was no big deal since we just went and ate some lunch at a small family restaurant with some good food! The meeting went very well with some of the nurses and the manager from the unit and we left some information and items with them from SGM.

The pics below are on the way to Petoskey (such colors!) and driving in Petoskey (you can see Lake Michigan).

On the way to and back from Petoskey we noticed this little shop called String of Pearls in Elmira, MI. We stopped by on the way back and took some pics of it and then popped in to see what it was but didn’t stay long since it was already past closing but we went back the next morning to browse some more. The name of the store reminded us of the organization String of Pearls, which helps families with fatal diagnoses in pregnancy. I ended up getting a really cool clock for my house and also got another for the new space for SGM. :)

On Friday evening (Oct 12th), we ate at a local restaurant in Gaylord, MI called Big Buck Brewery. They have really good food and beer too (so I hear lol). I always get their homemade root beer. It’s good stuff! Kelly and I got 64 oz of root beer each to take home with us!

On the way back to the cabin I stopped by a little area on the other side of Bluegill Lake so that Kelly could take some pictures. The sky at dusk was very pretty over the lake. By the time we got home Friday evening we were pretty tired! We just put on our pajamas and relaxed the rest of the night before turning in.

On Saturday morning (Oct 13th) we got up and had some more cinnamon rolls and took off to Walmart to grab some more last minute things for the conference before heading to Petoskey. (Oh yeah, and we stopped by the String of Pearls too before heading up.)

Once we got to where we needed to be we unloaded and started setting stuff up. The time went by really fast and it seemed 5 pm was right on us and we were still trying to get things the way we needed but we ended up making it. The most trouble we had was with the computer for the powerpoints (of course).

Kelly spoke first and shared about SGM and her family’s story, Jenny spoke second and shared about her story and what to say and what not to say to families who are grieving. Kelly also threw some giveaways in the mix.

After Jenny spoke, we had an intermission and went downstairs to eat some BBQ pork, chips, and cupcakes. Holy cow that BBQ pork that Kelly brought was DELICIOUS!! And the cupcakes were so yummy too! When our bellies were full enough we came back upstairs and some of those who were in attendance had to leave. Then it was my turn to speak! I spoke about how to incorporate your baby’s memory into your family’s everyday lives and in celebrations.

Next on the agenda was a sort of discussion on sibling grief. Kelly, Jenny, and I sat at the front and talked about the subject but we also talked about other things too and interacted with those who had attended. We also had more giveaways too! (Oh, and in case you didn’t notice Evanee came with me for the weekend trip!)

We had planned on doing a lantern release but it was raining the whole day and we weren’t able to. Instead we had a candle lighting ceremony and remembered our babies that way. As we lit our candles individually we spoke the names of our babies. Mine ended up blowing out prematurely since I was bouncing Evanee the hot wax spilled out and took out my candles and got all over my hand and over the floor. Nice! lol

Once our candles were out we all took some time to talk and even goof off a little. And take pictures!!!

By the time everyone left it was after 10 pm and we started packing up. It was I think after midnight when we got back to the cabin. (Amazing story to tell in a post coming soon about the drive home!) We were all really tired but stayed up a bit once we got there. I think I ate like 3 or 4 of the cupcakes that were leftover!

The next morning on Sunday Kelly and I left for Petoskey one more time to go to Jenny’s church to set up a table for SGM with our info. Once the service was over and everyone had pretty much gone we loaded up and went back to the cabin and packed up all our stuff there and loaded it. We made sure all was tidy and then we took off to head back to NW Ohio. We prolly got back in the area close to 10 pm. I definitely had enough driving once it was all over!!

Grace for the Journey Conference

Grace for the Journey ~ A Day of Encouragement and Remembrance

Hosted by Sufficient Grace Ministries

Saturday, October 13, 2012
5:00pm-9:00pm

Harbor Light Community Church
8220 Clayton Road
Harbor Springs, Michigan

We are excited to announce plans for a day of remembrance and encouragement for mothers who have experienced the loss of a baby, and for anyone who wants to better understand how to minister to those who grieve. We all face trials and loss in this life, so our message of hope is relevant to anyone, regardless of whether you have experienced the loss of a child or not.

There will be a few speakers to share about the following topics:

Finding Hope Through Grief's Journey
How to Minister to a Bereaved Parent
Making Precious Memories ~ Incorporating Your Baby's Memory into Your Family Celebrations
The Effects of Sibling Grief and Ways to Support Grieving Siblings

We will also have a time of sharing, prayer, and a remembrance/candle lighting ceremony honoring our babies in heaven. We will be bringing some items to share with the mothers, from the Dreams of You Shop, and some other gifts to encourage. There will be refreshments, and a time to share with one another in the telling of our stories. This special retreat will be hosted by Sufficient Grace Ministries with no set charge for the participants. Free will donations are appreciated to help cover the costs of this event and to support the outreaches of this ministry. We are hoping to spark interest with the mothers in the area, as we believe this event could be a great comfort to those walking this path. October is national pregnancy loss awareness month, and a special time to honor these precious lives, and encourage the mothers with grieving hearts.

To register for the event, please send your name and contact information to either Kelly Gerken at: sufficientgraceministries@gmail.com or Jennifer Ross at: hoster777@live.com

Kelly Gerken (http://blog.sufficientgraceministries.org) has experienced the loss of twin daughters (Faith and Grace), who were born still at 26 weeks and the loss of an infant son, (Thomas) who died shortly after birth from Potter’s Syndrome. From her own family’s journey of grief and healing, Kelly has created the Dreams of You Memory Book and other beautiful support materials to help families form a precious memory for their babies who leave this earth too soon. The ministry has expanded to include a team of individuals offering an array of products, online support, hospital seminars on compassionate care for grieving parents, and a speaking/singing outreach to encourage churches and women's groups. Kelly and her husband, Tim also have two sons who fill their days with golf, baseball, and lots of laughs. You can read more of the Gerken family's journey through loss to hope and healing here: http://sufficientgraceministries.org/the-story-of-faith-grace-and-thomas/

Holly Haas serves on the SGM board and blogs at www.caringforcarleigh.com, where she shares her family's journey as they carried their daughter Carleigh after receiving a diagnosis of anencephaly, cherishing the time they were given with their sweet baby girl, and beautifully honoring her memory ever since. Holly and her husband are the parents of two babies in heaven: Jordan and Carleigh, and four adorable girls on earth. Carleigh's story is told here: http://www.caringforcarleigh.com/p/carleighs-story.html

Jennifer Ross has been sharing about the loss of her son Isaiah, on a personal blog that she created in the beginning of 2009. Her health turned for the worse, when a placental abruption took place and from there she suffered a condition called Disseminated Intravascular Coagulation, (D.I.C). The loss occurred on August 3, 2008. On her blog, His Grace Is Sufficient, she has poured her heart out into words, bringing healing into her own life, and praying that the journaling of her loss will help other woman who have experienced the loss of a child. Jennifer and her husband, Christopher, are the parents of one precious son in heaven, and five handsome sons on earth. You can read more about her journey through the loss of her son Isaiah, at http://hoster777.blogspot.com.

More information about Sufficient Grace Ministries:

Sufficient Grace Ministries for Women, a 501 (c ) 3 non-profit, non-denominational Christian organization, was founded in 2004 by Kelly Gerken with the purpose of reaching out to women and families to offer comfort, encouragement and hope. The Dreams of You division of this ministry was created specifically to provide comfort to women and families who have lost a baby through miscarriage, stillbirth, or infant death.

Bereaved parents are never asked to pay for the materials provided by SGM. We are supported by donations from individuals, churches, and businesses. Today, more than 300 packages a year are mailed all over the world to grieving families, fulfilling the mission of SGM to offer the same comfort to others we received from the Lord in our time of need. (2 Corinth. 1:3-4)

For more information about the products and services provided by Sufficient Grace Ministries, please visit:  www.sufficientgraceministries.org

Blessings,
Kelly, Holly, and Jennifer

The FB event can be found here:
https://www.facebook.com/events/427422877293918/?ref=ts

Spoken Word Blog

I decided to join in with Angie at still life with circles and many others participating in the Spoken Word Blog Round-up. To me it seemed like a pretty good idea. It’s always fun to hear the voice speaking the words you usually only read yourself. I think it’s neat to see how the voices are different or the same to what you imagined.

I decided to share a poem from a post. I thought I’d have a few minutes to get it in after I picked up the girls from the sitter. Kyndra was playing with dinosaurs at the table and I had Lainey drinking a bottle. Should’ve known one of them would slip in the video. I decided not to re-do the video as it was most likely to happen again and why edit real life, right? This is me and this is what you get!