Kinard Manor Surrounded by Love during this Season of Giving
11/30/2009

Kinard Manor, a Lutheran Family Services in the Carolinas (LFS Carolinas) transitional housing facility for ten homeless male veterans in Greenwood, received a gift of $2,500 from the Lutheran Men in Mission (LMM) at Lutheran Church by the Lake. Mr. Jim Hogan, a representative of the men’s group, presented the check to Terry Weeks, Program Director for Kinard Manor after a successful LMM Golf Tournament held at Savannah Lakes Village.

“We are grateful to the Lutheran Men’s group and all the members of Lutheran Church by the Lake for lifting up and supporting the ministry of Kinard Manor. I have seen more than 40 men come through Kinard Manor. They all take something a little different from their time here, but the hope rekindled in their lives is present in each and every one of them,” said Mr. Weeks.

Kinard Manor opened in November 2007. The program is operated by LFS Carolinas in collaboration with the Veteran’s Administration’s (VA) to help support homeless veterans. On any given night in the Unites States more than 131,000 veterans call the streets and bridges home. This number represents one-third of the homeless population in the country. The mission of LFS to walk with the most vulnerable involves helping homeless veterans at Kinard Manor learn to lead a life of self-sufficiency. Mr. Weeks, along with community volunteers, helps residents with job skills, interview skills, financial management and emotional support. The program receives funding through the VA as well as through the generous support of individuals, organizations and congregations like Lutheran Church by the Lake.

“As our service men and women continue to return to their homes with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder and physical injuries, LFS Carolinas will continue to respond with the tools and love it takes to provide healing and wholeness. We are so grateful for our Partners in Hope like Lutheran Church by the Lake and others in the community.” Mr. Ronnie Huffman, Executive Director LFS Carolinas in South Carolina.

About LFS Carolinas: LFS Carolinas has served the Carolinas’ most vulnerable people since 1976. The agency grew from the roots of Lutheran Orphanage of the South, founded in 1888 in Salem, Virginia. As a social ministry organization of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, we respond to Christ’s call to serve all people, regardless of race, national origin, orientation, religion or creed.

LFS Carolinas provides safe haven for children in crisis, adults with special needs, refugees and individuals and families at risk of becoming homeless or struggling to recover from disaster. Local program sites are coordinated from offices in Raleigh, Greensboro and Charlotte, N.C., and Columbia, S.C.