Newspaper Page Text
The ADVANCE, November 3, 2021/Page 14A
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Imago Dei Provides Clothes And More to Families in Need
By Makaylee Randolph
Staff Writer
mrandolphadvance@gmail.com
A new charity is open
ing its doors in Lyons for
families with foster and
adopted children to pro
vide free clothing and toys
through a unique shopping
experience.
Imago Dei (Face of
God) Missions will allow
these families to enter a
historic home, which has
been renovated into a retail
space, where clothes are ar
ranged on racks organized
by gender and size. The
space features five rooms
filled with items for chil
dren of all ages. If parents
find items in Imago Dei
which they may use for
themselves, they are also
welcomed to take these
items.
The volunteers at Ima
go Dei will “check out” the
shoppers at a desk upon
completion of shopping
- truly offering them the
full retail experience rather
than typical charity.
The idea to create this
organization for foster fam
ilies in need was sparked as
Ashley Martin and Mandy
Johnson, who attended
presentations regarding
foster and adoption situa
tions at their church - spe
cifically, through the talk
given by Jessi Williams.
“Jessi spoke about the
Promise686 organization,
which empowers churches
to assist in caring for local
foster and adoptive fami
lies, as well as families in
crisis,” Martin explained.
“Our church partnered
with the organization, and
I began serving as a coordi
nator for the CarePortal - a
system in which a Depart
ment of Family and Chil
dren’s Services (DFACS)
worker is able to document
a need for a family and alert
participating churches for
response. I began to see
the types of needs that
were requested and started
praying about how I could
collect the most needed
items to fulfill the requests
more efficiently.”
Johnson offered a simi
lar story as she discussed
her enthusiasm for the idea
came from her own expe
rience as a member of a
foster family. “The idea of
fostering was planted in us
when Jessi spoke at church.
We spoke to our children,
and they were all in on us
doing the classes to foster,”
she detailed. “We did all
the training and almost a
year after our last class, we
were called to take two lit
tle ones; a few months lat
er, we received another call
for an emergency place
ment. We as a family were
blessed during our foster
journey by a clothes closet
in Athens, and I knew one
day I wanted to be able
to give back and help the
same way they ministered
to us.”
Martin and Johnson
began their efforts to serve
the community through
this outreach in March
2021, when they operated
out of a 10x12 climate-con
trolled storage unit; they
continued to work in this
facility until May, when
the donations outgrew the
space. The ministry then
upgraded to a 12x38 stor
age unit, which they also
quickly outgrew, leaving
the pair hoping for a per
manent space.
The pair’s church,
“Women of Hope” min
istry, decided to sponsor
Imago Dei. “We told the
church that one of our
needs was a larger space,
and that our 3-5 year goal
was to have a house or
storefront for our families
to be able to come in and
shop,” Martin explained.
“The church voted unani
mously in June to allow
Imago Dei to lease a vacant
house that they owned for
a year.”
Johnson said, “We
are so blessed to be in the
building that we are in now.
What began on Decem
ber 26, 2020, as a general
conversation between the
two of us has grown over
the last 10 months into an
amazing ministry.”
This new facility is
adjacent to the First Bap
tist Church in Lyons and
is open throughout the
month for those who wish
to use the service. Cur
rently, Imago Dei is open
on the second and fourth
Tuesdays of the month
from 5 p.m. until 7 p.m.,
on the second and fourth
Wednesdays from 11 a.m.
until 1 p.m., and on the sec
ond and fourth Saturdays
from 10 a.m. until 12 p.m.
Imago Dei also makes ap
pointments as needed for
families who cannot attend
during regular hours, and
hopes to transition to be
ing open five days a week in
the future.
Imago Dei is also a
free-standing ministry that
welcomes the opportunity
to work alongside any oth
er organizations wishing to
partner with them to meet
the needs of foster, adop
tive, and kinship families.
The administration has
created connections with
the local DFCS office and
is continuing to network
with other organizations.
The ministry has also
created a Board of Direc
tors and Advisory Com
mittee to aid in the deci
sions and administrative
tasks of this endeavor. The
Board of Directors con
sists of Danny Dixon, Jana
Kight, Mindy Morrison,
Jack Rountree, and Sarah
Torrance, and the Advi
sory Committee currently
has two members, Jamason
and Lucille Odom. Martin
and Johnson serve as ex
ecutive directors.
Getting Involved
Imago Dei depends on
volunteer work to manage
donations and to work the
storefront. A minimum of 2
volunteers is always on-site
on days the organization is
open for families to come
in, while other volunteers
are needed to sort, fold,
hang, and put away incom
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MISSIONS
PROUD ADMINISTRATION — Members of the Imago Dei Missions Board of Directors and the Toombs County Depart
ment of Family and Children Services stand with pride alongside Executive Directors Ashley Martin and Mandy John
son in front of Imago Dei's new storefront.
INFORMING THE PUBLIC — Imago Dei Missions held a public open house on Septem
ber 26 for members of the community to tour the charity and learn more about its
outreach. Here, Executive Director Ashley Martin shows attendees the "Young Girls'
Clothing Room," which will provide families with clothes for girls from infancy through
childhood.
ing donations. Anyone,
from teenagers to adults, is
welcomed to come help.
Also, donations of
new or used clothes or
other items are graciously
accepted from the pub
lic. These items include
clothing, shoes, toys, and
bouncy seats, as well as
items a family may need to
transition children into a
new home. The following
items must come in as new
items: underclothes, socks,
diapers, wipes, deodorant,
shampoo and conditioner,
soap, body wash, baby
wash, bottles, sippy cups,
and more.
Financial donations
are also welcomed and will
be used to cover monthly
expenses and to purchase
new items needed for fami
lies, such as underwear,
socks, car seats, and cloth
ing/pajamas in sizes that
Imago Dei may not have.
Goals for Imago Dei
Martin summarized
her goals for Imago Dei
through the explanation
of the Latin phrase’s mean
ing. “Imago Dei is Latin
for ‘image of God.’ It is
my hope that every per
son that walks through
the doors of Imago Dei
Missions knows or comes
to know that they have
worth, dignity, and a pur
pose.” She added, “Some
thing that has been so
encouraging for me to see
is how this ministry has
already brought so many
people in our community
together for a purpose. I
love seeing the unity it is
bringing about, and I can’t
wait to see more and more
people get involved.”
Johnson echoed Mar
tin’s thoughts. “I still stand
in awe at how a casual con
versation between Ash
ley and me in December
2020 has grown into this
amazing ministry in under
a year,” she added. “It has
brought our community
together to see the need
right here in our area, and
now, our 3-5 year goal has
been met in under a year
through the public location
opening. Toombs County
alone has 30 foster chil
dren, and we are already
serving many other sur
rounding counties. Since
we received our first call
from DFCS in April 2021,
we have served 27 families.
We can’t wait to see how
God continues to grow
Imago Dei to bless families
and our community.”
The pair hopes that
one day, Imago Dei will be
able to help those in need
throughout the entire state.
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