Delasber and Amoree could use your encouragement this Valentine’s Day! Share the love and hope of Christ with this special needs family as part of the Heart for the Disabled campaign.
Send your Valentine to Delasber and Amoree at Joni and Friends, PO Box 3333, Agoura Hills, CA 91376. See their photo at joniradio.org.
Welcome to Heart for the Disabled! I’m Joni Eareckson Tada, and I have been having a great time this week, just sharing stories of families that have attended our Joni and Friends Family Retreats. And I cannot wait to see the encouraging notes and other items that you are mailing in to bless these precious families during this long winter season. ’Cause that’s right, things get hard for these families around this time of year. But come February, we’re going to package up your notes and letters and deliver them to these families on Valentine’s Day. And I can’t wait to see the looks on their faces! So, let me tell you about another family who really needs to be reminded that God has not forgotten them.
I’m thinking of Delasber and her 11-year-old daughter Amoree who has autism. This dear single mother and her daughter received a scholarship to attend a Family Retreat for single parents. And, oh, did Delasber need our help. You see, just about a year ago, her husband died very suddenly. And then, just a few months later, both her mother and her best friend also died unexpectedly. What a shock for this single mother; she’s really been through unthinkable grief and loss in the past year. But praise God for Delasber’s friends who urged her to attend our Family Retreat. Because there, she found rest for her aching heart. In her loneliness, she found new relationships, a chance to network, and she was even able to let down her guard and have some fun! And the same was true for Amoree, her daughter.
Even though this 11-year-old has autism, and uses a wheelchair, and does not communicate except through an iPad and sign language, at Family Retreat Amoree was actually able to go canoeing, and she loved it! Amoree quickly developed a close connection with her volunteer and the two of them have kept in touch long after Family Retreat! Now, you can imagine how happy this made her mother, Delasber; it was all far, far beyond what this mom had hoped for. Her daughter fit in; she was embraced, welcomed by new friends. At Family Retreat, it was the love of Jesus Christ that eased the pain of these losses that Delasber had suffered through.
But now it’s the middle of winter and the day-to-day disability routines are wearing. Plus, a new health challenge requiring that Amoree stay home from school this year makes it even harder. It means that Delasber is now homeschooling her daughter in addition to being a single caregiver. So, this dear mom continues to shoulder heavy burdens, between grief, caregiving, and homeschooling. Wouldn’t you agree that this busy mother would benefit so much from Christ-centered words of encouragement, an uplifting note, an assurance of prayer, the copy of a hymn, or a few Scriptures? Applaud Delasber for her hard work; write a note and commend her for doing a good job. Thank her for persevering and for enduring so much and, I don’t know, just the fact that she just keeps on going. So, be sure to send your cards to Delasber and Amoree, in care of Joni and Friends. That’s P.O. Box 3333, Agoura Hills, CA 91376. And enjoy a photo of this mom and daughter – and get the spelling of their names – at joniradio.org. Thank you and thank you again for having a heart for this little family that struggles under the weight of routines, loss, and the challenges of a disability. Get all the details about Delasber and her 11-year-old daughter, Amoree, at joniradio.org.
© Joni and Friends