In the tradition of this special day, the Grove Park Inn Resort and Spa shared their hearts with those who are special to them by offering a Valentine gift that is as unique as it is thoughtful. Beginning the day before Valentine’s Day, the Culture Council of the Grove Park Inn started selling their popular “Culture Grams” to their employees.

For $1, employees could send a card and a candy to a fellow employee. The sweet treats were delivered to employees at their desks, and their folks down at the golf course, and in every department at the resort. Members of our Culture Council personally delivered the Valentines. Some employees even sent Culture Grams to themselves for Valentines (after all — they were talking chocolate here).

Those at the Grove Park Inn also saw roving balladeers throughout the resort on Valentines Day as many members of their current Culture Council are prolific singers. So there was certainly  a great deal of serenading going on Valentine’s Day.

In the midst of all the fun, the Valentine’s Day sales and other fundraisers sponsored by our Culture Council have a serious purpose. All the money that is raised goes to the Grove Park Inn’s Legacy Fund. The Legacy Fund is a unique partnership with Eblen Charities that provides monetary gifts or interest free loans for Grove Park Inn’s  family members in times of need.

“In 2007, after receiving a suggestion from an employee, The Grove Park Inn established the GPI Legacy Fund in partnership with the Eblen Charities. The Legacy Fund is funded by GPI employees to provide no-interest loans and/or monetary gifts to GPI employees in need. Each year since the Fund’s creation, the resort’s Culture Council has celebrated the company’s values of Love, Family, and Fun by selling its version of Valentine’s cards–Culture-grams and singing Culture-grams–to benefit the Fund. This year, the Culture Council delivered nearly 1,100 Culture-grams and the GPI Balladeers performed singing Culture-grams more than 30 times for employees and guests throughout the resort. That’s a lot of LOVE!” tells Kim McCormick, chair of the Grove Park Inn’s Culture Committee

The Legacy Fund is funded entirely by Grove Park employees through either direct payroll deduction or through various fund raisers.  When a Grove Park Inn family member is in need, they can reach out to the fund for assistance – it is family helping family. And that’s just one more way that  The Grove Park Inn Resort & Spa shares the love not only on Valentine’s Day but throughout the year as well.

If you would like more information on the Grove Park Inn’s Legacy Fund or any other of the employee assistance programs and partnerships of the Eblen Charities, please contact Bill Murdock at 828-242-2848, via email at eblenfound@aol.com, or by visiting our website at www.eblencharities.org.

Families in our community will find the cold winter nights a bit warmer thanks to the kindness of Asheville Furniture Showcase and their inaugural “Share the Warmth” Blanket Drive at Innsbruck Mall beginning this Friday, February 24th.

To celebrate their first year in business, the Asheville Furniture Showcase’s “Share the Warmth” will run through Monday, February 27th with them donating 5% of sales to the Eblen Charities’ Heating Assistance Program.

They will also donate a blanket for every Serta mattress they sell from February 24th through the 27th.

In addition to Asheville Furniture Showcase’s donation to Eblen, they are inviting everyone in our community to join them in by dropping by their showroom upstairs in the Innsbruck Mall and donating a new or gently used blanket and be entered into a drawing to win a new recliner.

This winter has been mild in comparison to the record cold  and snow we had last year. But even with warmer days, we cannot forget that so many we serve are vulnerable to the drop in temperatures that we are still experiencing during the night and in the early hours of the morning.

So many that we serve through the Eblen Charities Waddell Client Service Center are ill, elderly, or have small children at home and are susceptible to the cold and the cold temperatures still provide a challenge.  Now, in addition to our other heating assistance outreaches, we will be able to help keep more of our families warm thanks to the kindness of the Medfords at Asheville Furniture Showcase.

“Asheville Furniture Showcase is so excited to partner with Eblen Charities during our one year anniversary.  It is so important for us to give back to our community that has supported us and helped us make our first year so successful. We can’t think of a better way than to partner with Eblen Charities,” states Eric Medford, managing partner of Asheville Furniture Showcase.

“ We will be giving 5% of all of our sales from Friday, February 24th through Monday, February 27th as a donation to Eblen.  Additionally, everyone who drops off a blanket will be registered to win a free recliner.  We will also donate a fleece luxury blanket to the blanket drive for every Serta mattress sold during this four day event.  We are so appreciative to Eblen Charities for giving us this opportunity to partner with such a great local organization.”

“We are honored to be working with the wonderful folks at the Asheville Furniture Showcase and their “Share the Warmth” program. Thanks to their kindness so many of the children, elderly, and others we serve who find even in this mild winter a challenge to keep warm,” tells Bill Murdock, executive director of Eblen Charities. “Thanks to them and our long-time friends at WLOS-TV and Two Men and a Truck we will continue to make sure that no one is left out in the cold.”

Thanks also to Julie Tallman of WLOS-TV and Todd Campbell of Two Men and a Truck for their invaluable help in putting “Share the Warmth” together.

For more information on the Asheville Furniture Showcase’s “Share the Warmth” program please contact Bill Murdock at 828-242-2848 or at eblenfound@aol.com or contact the Asheville Furniture Showcase at 828-337-1274 or visit their website at  www.ashevillefurnitureshowcase.com.

Want to Help Share the Warmth?

Where:

Asheville Furniture Showcase

Innsbruck Mall (Upstairs)

85 Tunnel Road

Asheville, NC

When:

Friday, February 24 – Monday, February 27

Time:

10:00 AM-7:00 PM Friday, Saturday, Monday

1:00-6:00 PM Sunday

High school dropouts are not just numbers nor is increasing the graduation rate just a goal to be met on paper. We all realize  that graduation changes lives and the Graduation Initiative is committed, with the community’s ongoing support, to helping more and more students reach that milestone.

Did you know that:

• Economists estimate that every student who drops out costs the State of North Carolina about $127,000 in lost tax revenue and wages, social service costs, and criminal justice costs over the course of a lifetime.

• High school graduates have better health and lower mortality rates than high school dropouts.

• High school graduates are more likely to have children who graduate from high school.

• High school graduates earn more than dropouts and are less likely to be unemployed.

• Nationally, the dropouts from the class of 2011 represent more than $319 billion in lost wages, taxes and productivity for their life spans.

• If the male graduation rate were increased by only 5%, the United States could save $4.9 billion in crime-related costs every year.

•   If we graduated every student, the United States could save over $17 billion in Medicaid and health care costs.

• During the course of his or her life time, a dropout will earn $260,000 less than a high school graduate.

• Young people who drop out of high school are twice as likely to live in poverty as youth who have received a high school diploma, and three times as likely as youth who have attended college or earned an asso- ciate’s degree.

• Students who dropout are 3.5 times more likely than graduates to be  incarcerated in their lifetimes.

• Graduates live longer — The life expectancy for students who gradu- ate from high school is about 82 years but only 75 years for those who dropout.

2/9/12

ASHEVILLE — Nakesha Hyatt dropped out of school twice.

She says she had gone through a lot — the death of a brother, the death of her grandfather and a cousin — and she didn’t have anyone pushing her to stick with her studies.

“I didn’t have anyone to lift me up or say get up and go to school,” Hyatt said. “Everything I decided to do, I did on my own.”

Hyatt enrolled in Buncombe County’s alternative school, Community High School, two years ago and found the support she needed. She’s now president of the student body, doing well, and this year, she’ll get her diploma.

Buncombe County school officials gathered Thursday to recognize the success of students like Hyatt and the system’s Graduation Initiative, which began in 2007.

Since 2006-07, the number of students dropping out of Buncombe County schools has decreased by 35 percent to less fewer than 300 last year.

“I think that one of the main reasons that this initiative has been so successful is because it did become a system priority. The principals in this room, the counselors, social workers, the community really saw it as ‘This is important to our system, and we are going to support it and get behind it,’” Donna Lanahan, director of the Graduation Initiative, said during a press conference at the central office.

The Graduation Initiative is a partnership with Eblen Charities and Buncombe County.

At the start of the effort, counselors and school administrators gathered to look over the records of students who dropped out, according to Buncombe County School Superintendent Tony Baldwin.

A pattern emerged that showed the students who dropped out began struggling in the early grades, Baldwin said.

“It has to be a K-12 effort,” Baldwin said of dropout prevention.

A key part of that is a strong foundation built in kindergarten through third grades.

The Graduation Initiative is a broad effort that includes both short-term and long-term efforts to improve graduation rates.

“It most definitely is broad and comprehensive, and that was part of the approach from the beginning,” Lanahan said.

One part of the effort is looking at high school students and the immediate barriers they may face that get in the way of graduation. An immediate barrier could be a student who needs a gas card in order to drive to an alternative program.

Or it could be a student who needs to make up certain credits.

Programs the system has put in place include Twilight School, which allows students to make up missed credits after school.

But Lanahan said the system is also taking a long-term approach.

“We also recognize that in order to have sustainable results, we have to get deeper into the work of the system,” she said. “So, we’ve also looked at instruction and providing professional development for teachers, specifically in the area of math. That’s one area that students struggle with that often becomes a barrier long term.”

Buncombe County schools’ four-year cohort graduation rate — the percentage of students who enter ninth grade and graduate with their class — has grown from 71.5 percent in 2005-06 to 77.9 percent last year.

Lanahan said the system has seen success at a number of schools.

Reynolds, Owen and Roberson high schools reported their lowest dropout numbers on record in the 2010-11 school year. The 15 students who left Roberson represented the lowest number ever recorded among the school system’s traditional high schools, school officials say.

At Erwin High, which in 2007 was labeled a “dropout factory” in a report from a researcher at Johns Hopkins University, the success of the programs has been dramatic.

Since the 2006-07 school year, the number of dropouts at Erwin has decreased from 115 to 36 last year. The school’s four-year cohort graduation rate has grown to 73.5 percent compared with 58.6 percent in 2005-06.

“These numbers, they’re not just numbers. They are individual lives,” Erwin Principal Jim Brown said. “Each one of these kids is graduating from high school, and they are going on to be successful, productive citizens in our community.”

The school added a Freshman Academy to help transition ninth-graders to high school and added a Career Academy, which targets students at risk of dropping out.

Lanahan said alternative schools like Middle College and Community High are also giving students options.

Middle College allows students to obtain a 21-credit diploma, and they have the option of taking A-B Tech courses as their high school electives.

Middle College student Brittani Davis dropped out of Enka High and planned to get her GED diploma.

But she found it wasn’t that easy.

When she returned to Enka to talk to a counselor, she found out about the options that were available.

“I knew I needed an education, and I told myself I need to get back into school somehow,” Davis said.

Community High student Nakesha Hyatt dropped out at age 16. But at age 20, she’s preparing to graduate.

“The staff at Community High School showed me that they’re behind me 1,000 percent, but they’re not going to do the work for me. I have to put some effort into it,” Hyatt said.

One challenge for Buncombe’s Graduation Initiative efforts will be funding. The initiative received $600,000 in dropout prevention grants from the state over the last five years, but those grants have been cut.

Lanahan said the system is looking for partners who might be willing to fund some of the programs.

“We had to prioritize those programs,” she said. “And then we’ve packaged those to different funders to say would you be interested in funding those?”

She added, “Everybody’s budgets are tight these days, and so there are no guarantees that funders are going to pick up those programs, but we are hopeful we will hear from some community partners later this month if they are able to step up.”

School officials see these programs as an investment. Lanahan cited research showing for each high school graduate, the community sees a return of about $127,000 over the graduate’s lifetime. That is in the form of greater tax revenue, less public assistance and fewer health care and criminal justice costs.

Fewer dropouts since the 2007-08 school year mean potential savings of more than $39.2 million for the community, Lanahan said.

Few thought it could be done. After all most educators had seen this before, and at the outset, this looked like just one more idea in a long line of  ideas on how to reduce the drop-out rate in Buncombe County Schools. Some programs had worked, some didn’t, but in the midst of it all the one thing that never waned was the commitment of everyone in the Buncombe County School System to ensure that when all students  leave school they do so with a diploma in their hand.

But those who were in doubt regarding the new partnership between Buncombe County, Buncombe County Schools, and Eblen Charities and the Center for Social Enterprise Graduation Initiative partnership five years ago, are not in doubt anymore.

This past Thursday, thanks to the courage, vision, innovation, and leadership of Buncombe County Schools Superintendent Dr. Tony Baldwin and Graduation Initiative Director Donna Lanahan, the Graduation Initiative marked its five year anniversary with a record 35% reduction in the drop-out rate since the 2006-2007 school year.

Area Schools See Lowest Numbers in History

Erwin High School has lowered their dropout number by 69% since 2006-2007.

In addition to Erwin High, TC Roberson High and Buncombe County Middle College lowered their dropout numbers by 40% or more in 2010-2011.

AC Reynolds High, Owen High, and TC Roberson High reported their lowest dropout number on record in 2010-2011.

For 5 of the 6 traditional high schools, the past four-year average represents their lowest number of dropouts on record.

Enka High reported their lowest number of dropouts for three of the past four years.

In 2008-2009 and in 2009-2010, North Buncombe High reported the lowest dropout numbers ever among the traditional high schools.

TC Roberson reported the lowest number of dropouts ever (14) among the traditional high schools in 2010-2011.

Buncombe County Early College reported a dropout rate of less than 1% in 2009-2010.

Community High School has more than doubled their graduation rate in the past 4 years.

While these wide-spread improvements and lowering the number of dropouts below 300 had been the goal for the Initiative, few anticipated reaching these levels so soon given the complexity of the dropout issue.

“The Graduation Initiative’s success can certainly be attributed to the strength of our partnership with Eblen Charities, the priority given to dropout prevention by Superintendent Baldwin, and the collaboration and dedication of many Buncombe County Schools’ employees,” states Donna Lanahan, Graduation Initiative Director.  “I especially want to recognize Jill Castelloe, Sharon Fish, Emily Walters, and Robin Mehler who are the heart of the GraduationInitiative team.”

Economic Impact

Lowering the dropout rates has a tremendous impact on the economic health of our community.  Research shows that each additional graduate confers a net benefit to taxpayers of about $127,000 over the graduate’s lifetime due to increased tax revenue, fewer health care costs, reduced criminal justice costs, and less need for public assistance.  Using this figure, the decrease in dropout numbers from 2006 to 2011 in comparison to the average high in the six years prior to the start of the Graduation Initiative represents a potential savings of $49,403,000 for Buncombe County, North Carolina, and the Nation.

Our heartfelt gratitude again to Dr. Tony Baldwin – Superintendent of Buncombe County Schools, Donna Lanahan-Director of the Graduation Initiative, Jill Castelloe, Sharon Fish, Emily Walters, and  Robin Mehler of the Graduation Initiative, the Buncombe County Commissioners, Wanda Greene-Buncombe County Manager, and Mandy Stone -Assistant Buncombe County Manager for this wonderful and ground-breaking program.

Joe B. (the “B” stands for his middle name, Baxter), as everyone affectionately called him was a  vital and integral part of the work of Eblen Charities since our early days. From his weekly assistance in helping oversee our Dental Sealant Program to acting as our “official photographer” along with his close friend Joe Eblen at the Verizon Wireless/ Brad Johnson Celebrity Golf Classic, Joe B. was there for everything we did, there for all those we served.

A native and life-long resident of Buncombe County  Joe B. attended the dental school at University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and built a popular and prominent dental practice that touched countless lives throughout western North Carolina. But his outreach to the county he loved did not stop in his office on Hendersonville Road. He was  instrumental in the founding of the Asheville-Buncombe Technical Community College Dental Hygiene Program and served for more than 35 years as a trustee of the college.

An avid athlete and sportsman, Dr. Roberson help found the soccer program at TC Roberson High School and the Junior Golf Program in Buncombe County.

But in the midst of all his many achievements and innovations, I remember Joe as a friend.There wasn’t an event, announcement, or program at Eblen Charities that Joe and his lovely wife Aleta weren’t a part of in planning, volunteering, and making us all smile.

Joe and I had an ongoing discussion on the Chapel Hill, Duke University sports and academic competition and which one was the better.

Each year, especially throughout basketball season, he and I found little to agree on except the fact they they were always two of the best programs in the country.

Prior to each season, Joe would drop by our office and give me a number of UNC Basketball poster calendars (Joe knowing that I studied and taught at Duke). Our conversations were always the same:

“Bill, I thought you would like some of these calendars.”

“Joe, why would I want these calendars?”

“Why wouldn’t you? Everybody wants these.”

“Not everybody, Joe.”

“How many do you want?”

“How about none?”

“Well come out to the car with me and I will give       you some.”

So I would walk out to his car and he would hand          me about ten or so of these poster size calendars.

“Maybe you can help me hand these out.”

“I’m not going out hand out Carolina posters for you.”

“I’ll leave you ten.”

“Sure, Joe, I’d be glad to…”

And I would hand them out for Joe every year. Who could say no to Joe B.? Not me anyway.

But most of all I will always remember Joe every Friday morning each spring at A-B Tech at our dental sealant clinic greeting the students and volunteers and making sure that all was going well. He would talk to each student as they left, giving them a toothbrush and reminding them how import it was to take care of their teeth.  Joe B. took care of us all.

Thank you for making so many of us smile these many years my friend, we will see you again and for you one more time… “Go Heels!”

It started out with a simple question six years ago. A simple but vital question that effected hundreds of families facing hunger in our community.  The question was, “Can you help us, help those who depend on us when they are without food?”

The question came from members of the board of directors of  Eblen Charities to Hearts with Hands’ Executive Director Bill Bradley and founder Reverend Ralph Sexton in late December 2006.

After nearly eight years of our food assistance program, we had found ourselves in search of a new source  of food to continue to reach out to the children, adults, and families we were serving through our grocery program.

In less time than it took to pose the question, Ralph and Bill answered, “Of course, just tell us what you need and how we can help.”  And with that the Hearts with Hands / Eblen Charities Grocery Program was established.

Thanks to Hearts with Hands founder Rev. Ralph Sexton and Executive Director Bill Bradley, families in need of assistance were able to continue receiving aid with the food they need and the dignity they deserve.

Last month began our sixth year of families receiving welcome help at the Hearts with Hands warehouse and offices on Sand Hill Road.  Thanks   to staff member Ken Littlejohn and board members Tim Gwennap, Rick Guthy, Dave White, Aleta Roberson, Brian Moore, and Kent Smith, for their time and effort in putting this wonderful partnership together in the face of a tremendous challenge.

“I am not sure what we would do or would have done  without this great partnership with Hearts with Hands,” states Bill Murdock, executive director of  Eblen Charities. “They  along with Ingles Markets stepped up at a most important time, five years ago when no one else would agree to do so. The tens of thousands of pounds of food distributed each year and the tens of thousands of meals provided have an impact on not only the families we serve but on our entire community.”

Through our partnership with Hearts With Hands and Ingles Markets we provided more than 30,000 pounds of food and nearly 60,000 meals, last year alone.

In addition to the Hearts with Hands/Eblen Charities Grocery Program, we are continuing to join forces with Hearts with Hands and Ingles to expand our long running Food For Thought Program which supplies snacks to elementary and primary schools, and after school programs in five counties.

But as much of an outreach Food for Thought has had, it only covered the times students were in school, and many students are facing weekends or breaks with very little to eat at home. And with that in mind, the Backpack Bunch program was started.  Thanks to this  partnership  students do not have to face their days out of the classroom battling hunger.

Each backpack contains various food items that are ready to eat or easy to prepare to make sure that they will have enough to eat at home until they return to school.

The challenge that is now before us, is that there is less food available to food banks due to less reclaim of salvage through traditional means such as grocery chains. Ingles Markets has generously joined us in reaching these families and also invited their vendors to be part of the Ingles / Eblen Food for Thought Program and many have stepped up to provide snacks for the Food for Thought Snack program.

Our partnership with Hearts with Hands and Ingles is all the more important as the need continues. We can’t turn our backs on those children, the elderly, and the families who depend on the Eblen Charities and our partnership with Hearts with Hands. Hunger does not wait.

If you, your company, or organization, would like more information on the Eblen Charities Partnerships  please contact Bill Murdock at 828-242-2848 or at eblenfound@aol.com. For more information on Hearts with Hands, please visit their website at www.heartswithhands.com.

The choices we make define the kind of  leaders we become. And the choices we make are not just about us,  they are also about the positive impact we can have on our company, organization,  community, and beyond.

In these most difficult times, we need everyday leaders who will choose to make our community and our world a better place.

That is what Chick-fil-A Leadercast 2012 is all about.

We are all looking for leadership. And while there are many things that strong leaders have in common,  each of us have unique choices to make.

On Friday, May 4th the Andrew Institute for Leadership and Public Service will again bring some of the finest voices of leadership in the world to western North Carolina for the Third Annual Event Series at Biltmore Baptist Church in south Asheville.

Presented by Keller Williams Realty, the Chick-fil-A Leadercast will once again provide the  tools that will empower you with life-changing insights  from world-renowned leaders.

This unique day-long event will be broadcast live from Atlanta and simulcast into communities across the globe.

Join more than 125,000 leaders from around the world and begin making choices that matter.

Last year nearly 700 community leaders, executives, board members, educators, students, and others from every aspect of our community came together to be challenged, inspired, and encouraged.

Leadercast will give you the tools to improve your leadership skills and also have the opportunity to network with other leaders in our community.  You will see just how far your own choices can take you.

The Keller Williams-Andrew Institute-Chick-fil-A  Leadercast event drew the second largest crowd out of 600 sites world-wide. This is one event you don’t want to miss.

All proceeds will benefit Eblen Charities.

“This is a tremendous opportunity not only for the Andrew Institute and the Eblen Charities and the Center for Social Enterprise, but for our entire community,” states Dewey Andrew, founder of the Andrew Institute for Leadership and Public Service. “To be asked to host this event is a great honor and will not only once again bring the utmost in leadership training to the mountains but will also touch  tens of thousands of lives that the Eblen Charities serves each year.”

The Andrew Institute for Leadership and Public Service

Founded by respected businessman and community leader Dewy Andrew, the Andrew Institute for Leadership and Public Service offers to the public and private sector alike, the opportunity to participate in  cutting edge career development from the world’s most recognized experts from the areas of business, entertainment, and sports.

Providing access to the top business and thought leaders as well as best selling authors, the Andrew Institute for Leadership and Public Service brings to western North Carolina corporate training and motivational leadership that has been seen across the world.

In a unique partnership, the Andrew Institute not only benefits those seeking business training and leadership development but also serves to benefit those that the Eblen Charities serves through direct assistance programs.

Our gratitude to our corporate sponsors who have joined us already this year including: Keller-Williams Realty, Dewey Andrew, Biltmore Oil, Dixon-Hughes, Beverly-Hanks and Associates, Mission Hospital, Rick and Denise Guthy, First Citizens Bank, Buncombe County Sheriff’s Office, Buncombe County Schools, Applied Solutions, Biltmore Baptist Church, Epsilon, Roger Aiken, Wells Faro Advisors, Quality Recycling, Walnut Cove Realty, Kimmel and Associates,  WLOS -TV, Clear Channel, and Park Ridge Health.

Corporate sponsorships are still available and can be reserved by contacting Bill Murdock at 828-242-2848 and individual tickets are available for $50 at www.leadercastavl.com or www.eblencharities.org.

For more information on the  Andrew Institute for Leadership and Public Service please  contact Bill Murdock at the Eblen Charities  at 828-242-2848 or via email at eblenfound@aol.com.

Leadercast 2012 Speakers:

SOLEDAD O’BRIEN - CNN anchor & special correspondent

PATRICK LENCIONI - Best-selling author and president of The Table Group

JOHN MAXWELL - Leadership expert & best-selling author of “The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership”

TIM TEBOW - NFL quarterback, Heisman Trophy winner & best-selling author

MARCUS BUCKINGHAM - Strength strategist,researcher and best-selling author

ANGELA AHRENDTS –  Chief Executive Officer, Burberry

ANDY STANLEY  -  Best-selling leadership author and communicator

URBAN MEYER - ESPN analyst & former head football coach for the University of Florida

SHEENA INYENGAR - Author of “The Art of Choosing” & world-renowned expert on choice

ROLAND FRYER  - Professor of economics at   Harvard & CEO of the Education Innovation

One of the greatest honors that I have had in my life was the opportunity to have corresponded with Mother Teresa. Her love and compassion for the poorest of the poor around the world has been the model that Eblen Charities endeavors to offer to those we seek to serve.

Mother touched hundreds of thousands of lives with her kindness and never looked beyond the one right in front of her whom she was helping. This story is a prime illustration of her and the Missionaries of Charities way of caring for those in need.

“We have a place in Australia (As you know, many of the Aborigines live there in very bad conditions.)  When we went around in that place, we found an old man in a terrible condition. I went in there and tried to talk to him and then I said to him ‘kindly allow me to clean your place and clean your bed and so on’.  He answered ‘I’m all right’.

I said to him ‘You will be more all right if I clean your place.’ In the end he allowed me to do it and when I was in his room (I call it a room, but it was actually not a room) I noticed that he had a lamp, a very beautiful lamp that was covered with dirt and dust. I said to him, ‘Do you light that lamp?’ And he said ‘For whom? Nobody comes here. I never see anybody. Nobody comes to me. I don’t need to light the lamp.’

Then I asked him ‘If the sisters come to you, will you light the lamp for them?’ He answered, ‘Yes, I’d do it.’  So the sisters started going to him in the evening and he used to light the lamp.

Afterwards (he lived for more than two years), he sent word to me through the sisters and said, ‘Tell my friend that, the light she lit in my life is still burning.’

That was such a small thing, but it was there in that darkness of loneliness. A light was lit and that light kept on burning.”

It is my hope that all those that come into contact with any of us at Eblen Charities can have a light lit in their life that our kindness helps spark. Thank you all for being part of so many lives and for being such a great part of the Eblen Charities and the light you have lit in our lives.

• “Just a note to say a very special “thank you” to all you wonderful people who graciously assisted me with the cost of my electric bill. I was very troubled and didn’t know where to turn. It was then I remembered your kind help from before and when I called you were more than willing to help again. This has been like a breath of fresh air during some very hard times. Again, thank you to each and every one. May God bless you for all you do for the needy in our area.”

• “This note is written to you with a heart full of gratitude and thanks not just once, but twice you have extended your helping hands to me and my family and prevented my electricity from being disconnected. I have recently been diagnosed with a chronic illness that prevents me from working. Your organization saved my life.”

• “This is just to say how much your kindness was appreciated. It was gracious of Eblen to help me. God bless you as he has me.”

• “Thank you for helping me get my hearing aid repaired. It is such a blessing.”

• “The Lord has done great things for us through Eblen. I would have never thought that when we helped the Eblen Foundation years ago as a member of the Asheville Jaycees that we would need assistance in the future. Twice you have bought us oil and assisted us with rent, yet the greatest gift was when you recently trusted us with credit to buy oil ourselves. My son and I are thankful because it allowed us to make a purchase to the very company that assisted us before. God Bless You.”

• “On behalf of my family and myself, we want to thank you for all of your acts of kindness and heartfelt love you’ve shared at such a time that we needed you most. We love you and want you to know that your kindness will never be forgotten. Many Blessings…”