Ariel is a young, single mom to sweet 13-month-old Gus. Gus had been living in foster care for the past eight months, but Ariel had made huge changes in her life and was ready to bring her son home. We first heard their story when a request came through CarePortal asking for help with a few basic necessities for Ariel and Gus: a car seat, a highchair, and a crib.
Ariel was proud of her new office job and her new apartment, but she wasn’t able to buy many of the things that she and Gus needed. Ariel’s caseworker saw how hard she was working to get Gus back into her life and how much effort she was putting in to creating a safe, happy home for him. The caseworker sent a request to local churches through CarePortal, knowing that this community of believers could help Ariel get over this final hurdle to bring Gus home.
Several churches quickly responded to their request. Mandi Mays from LifeChurch SOKC gathered everything that had been requested, and more! When Mandi took the items to Ariel’s apartment, the two connected and started a wonderful new friendship. Mandi is able to provide Ariel with encouragement and support through weekly communication. Not only did Mandi help this family with material needs…she also invited Ariel and Gus to come to church with her, and they came!
A simple request to meet physical needs led to a beautiful relationship between mothers and new support system for a young mother trying her best to care for her child. Today we celebrate Ariel and all the other courageous biological families choosing to seek transformation in their lives. We also celebrate the local church being a catalyst for reconciliation of parents to children. It is a beautiful thing to see the local church be a part of a holistic solution to transform child welfare and one family’s life.
Mandi and Ariel – at church together!
Mandi said:
“I feel she will become part of our family. I love encouraging her. I loved worshipping God with her today! I’m thankful for the relationship that is being formed in this restoration.”