FIRST EVER MOVIE NIGHT AT FIRST LIGHT by Tiffany Chiang
To get to know a city, you must first become acquainted with its people. As a new resident of Birmingham, I soon grew weary of “getting acquainted.” It was time to roll up my sleeves and become active in my new community. I discovered First Light in February. Instinctively, I wanted to do something new and different. After some brainstorming, I came up with the idea of organizing “LIGHTS OUT @ FIRST LIGHT,” First Light’s first-ever official movie night featuring Pixar’s animated film, “Ratatouille”.
It took several months of organization and planning, but the big night finally happened on Friday, May 30. The movie was projected onto a projector-sized screen. I encouraged the ladies to come in their pajamas and to bring their pillows and blankets. There was so much excitement and anticipation in the air. We were truly having a slumber party! And, what’s a slumber party without food? Thanks to the generosity of Sunil Patel, general manager of Quiznos in Homewood, the night was fully catered with sandwiches, cookies, chips and bottles of water for all. Throughout the movie, the evening was full of laughter, snacking and enjoyment.
In closing, the success of the event is a testament to the willingness of the Birmingham community to help others. I am thankful to Quiznos Subs, Keri Lane of Backyard Films and Joy O’Neal for contributing their food, logistics advice and movie projector, respectively. After this experience, I can say with confidence that volunteering is a satisfying and fulfilling way to make people’s acquaintance!
March 14, 2008 The First Light Board does more than just work- they have fun too!
The Board of Directors of First Light gathered in the home of Scott Ford and Chris Campanotta on Thursday, March 13, to "wrap up" any business concerning the Gala, which was held on February 9. The board members and their spouses/partners celebrated the success of the Gala with wine and cheese. Blair Sandford, the Gala Coordinator and Vice President of the Board, thanked all of the board members for their tireless work in preparing for the Gala. Blair’s husband, Jamie, was thanked for his outstanding contributions to the success of the event. Others present were David and Martha Elliott, Marion Walker, Michael and Marilyn Gross. Nancy Skinner and Betty Drennen were thanked for once again coordinating the decorations of tables and seating for 400 attendees the night of the Gala. Angel and Brian Garrett were there to celebrate as well. Bill and Weesa Matthews, Jeff and Jennifer Morrison joined in the festivities along with First Light’s executive team: Ruth Crosby and Deborah Everson. Shannon Horsley (Event Chair for First Light) capped off the evening by announcing the Gala exceeded all previous years in the amount raised for First Light! We can’t thank all of the board members, volunteers, contributing artists and companies, and attendees enough for helping to make the evening a success.
March 2008 First Light's very own Social Worker gets her Social Work license- and gets married!
Congratulations to Sarah Brooks Greer for recently passing the Alabama State Licensure Social Work Exam. She graduated from the University of Montevallo in December of 2006, joined our staff in January of 2007, and obtained her official license to practice Social Work in February of 2008! Sarah also got married to Ben Greer on March 15, 2008. We have all grown to love Sarah and hope that she celebrates many more milestones with us!
February 18, 2008 The First Light Ladies SHINE in the first annual First Light Talent Show!
In January, LaKeshia Dunson contacted Shannon Horsley, Volunteer Manager at First Light, with a unique new idea- why not let the women staying at the shelter show off their talents and have a little fun?! Dunson, an employee at the law firm, Starnes and Atchison, regularly helps serve dinner at First Light with other employees from the firm. After hearing several of the ladies sing, she talked with a friend of hers, JaQuita Upshaw, who gave her the idea of putting on a talent show. When Dunson began telling her friends and co-workers what she was planning, people started donating money and services to help her pull it off.
"A burning desire to do something more for the ladies was birthed after spending so much time with them, getting to know them, and ministering to them. They were always an inspiration to me with their singing talents. They would sing to me every time I went to serve them and would always tell me how grateful they were to have me there.
I wanted them to know and believe that they were of great value no matter where they were or what they had been through. Building their confidence and giving them hope was my main focus. I wanted the women to know that they were "Fearfully and Wonderfully Made", which was the theme of the talent show."
Lakeshia didn't just show up the day of the event. She made several trips to First Light to meet with the ladies, discuss their talents, bring music for them to use during their performance…..this was a production, not just an event, and she was the producer!
"I wanted to put on this program for them because I was once in their shoes. I was a single mom with four children and didn’t have any where to go. Unfortunately, I did not know about a place such as First Light shelter. God gave me peace in the midst of all that I went through, didn’t have, and wanted to be. He gave me the wisdom, knowledge, and understanding I needed to know that He had my situation all under control. No matter how it looked- I was somebody, and someone loved me. Just to see the faces of the ladies at the shelter the day of the show was God’s gift to me. The way they bonded together, showed each other love, and cried together. You don’t know how big something so small can be to a person. I was blessed to have so many people to support my vision to make these women feel loved. There are many companies and individuals who donated to this remarkable event."
The first annual talent show was held on February 16th and several of the women staying at First Light participated- in song, in dance, in spirit. The afternoon went off without a hitch. The day room was decorated beautifully with balloons, table cloths, Valentine's sweetheart candy and rose petals; the ladies wore their matching "First Annual First Light Talent Show" t-shirts; the volunteers handed out tote bags full of surprise goodies; and the women sang and danced their hearts out!
February 2008 The women at First Light see Romeo and Juliet in ballet!
Thanks to the contacts and efforts of Jamie Grace Smith, First Light volunteer and Family Life Education student at Samford University, 11 of our guests attended Romeo and Juliet in ballet at the Wright Center. Jamie Grace first volunteered at First Light as part of a class project in 2007, but she didn’t forget about the women after her class was over! While interning at Alabama Ballet, Jamie Grace remembered the women at First Light and got them seats at the show.
The women got all dressed up and had an absolutely wonderful time! For almost all of the ladies, this was the first time they had ever been to a ballet. Special thanks to Jamie Grace for giving them this opportunity to experience the arts.