May And June Recap

Hope deferred makes the heart sick, but Desire fulfilled is the tree of life.

Prov. 13:12

Thank YOU for helping Furnishing Families bring SO MUCH LIFE to so many people! Your generous support makes an enormous difference in the homes of our neighbors in the DFW Metroplex. Our outreach began by supplying just beds and bedding, but we've grown to also providing dressers, nightstands, tables, lamps, couches, chairs, kitchen furniture, pots, pans, flatware, dishes, and anything else we can find to fulfill a home’s needs.

We just love co-laboring with God to see how He supernaturally provides! If somebody asks for something that we don't have, we ask the Lord to provide it and He does! Three sisters requested smart tv's, and the next day a friend called saying she was donating 3 smart tv's!!! Another time, a woman asked if I could get her a king size bed and I told her that although people rarely donate beds (we usually buy them from stores), I'd ask the Lord; I also suggested that she, too, make her request known to God.

THE VERY NEXT DAY I received an email from a woman named Iris who asked if she could donate a new king size mattress to our Ministry!!! The company that she bought it from wasn't receiving returns because of the Corona Virus, but they said they'd replace it for her if she would give it to a charity! They only required that we provide a letter that said that we concluded the transaction. So amazing!

**Here's an action-packed look at a day in the life of Furnishing Families!**

We LOVE hearing the immediate positive impact on people’s lives. In the video below, Anne Isonguyo shares her joy and gratitude after Furnishing Families came to visit.

***Furnishing Families is Getting* *ESTABLISHED***

Check out the new card I can now distribute and get the word out to more of those who need our help! I put my personal information on the back.

Here are some exciting stories and updates for what goes on behind the scenes at Furnishing Families!

Half of our inventory primarily comes from donations and estate sales. Sometimes, people invite us to clean out their entire garage or storage unit that looks like this:

We are sometimes sent images of furniture from certain parts of someone's house to see if we want to claim them.

For example, my neighbors on the other side of our warehouse showed me this picture of some bedroom furniture and asked if I knew anybody who could use the set. I had just started furnishing full houses instead of just apartments, and reached out to Anne ahead of our visit to her home.

I texted her, "This is a large bedroom set. Would you like it?” Anne wrote back, "Oh I absolutely loooove it!!!! Yes yes YES PLEASE!! Thank yoouuu!!”

The other half of our inventory mostly comes from Upscale Resale! This remarkable second-hand store is located at 309 North Main St. in Keller, Texas. I shop there several mornings a week as close to 9:00 am as possible, because that’s when the delivery truck drops off all the new treasures.

At Upscale Resale, I met a new friend Deborah Castlemain, who has become an integral part of Furnishing Families.

I was shopping for a table and chairs for a family and asked the ladies who work there which table was sturdier of the several on display that day. Deborah was standing nearby, and she offered that she was positive which table was stronger and then proceeded to show me how come.

I pointed out the yellow chairs that came with it and said that perhaps they were too feminine since the furniture would be for a family with a Dad and 2 sons. She suggested that we reupholster the cushions on the chairs grey and spray paint the chairs and table legs grey so that they all matched. She said she would do the whole project for $75.00! I offered to have them delivered for her, and she said not to bother, because she could simply put them in her van and drive them to her home herself.

I asked in disbelief, “WHO ARE YOU?” She introduced herself as Deborah Castlemain, married to Brent and a mom of 9, who is also a music teacher at our local high school. Little did I know that she is such a talented handy (wo)man. She said that the completion of the work would need to be over a period of time of 3 or 4 weeks, which was fine because I was leaving soon for Israel and the UK in Feb, and I would come home in March.

The reason that I’m telling you the story now is that that’s how our friendship began, but since then, she has done all kinds of things to create safety and beauty at the warehouse. She installed spindles all the way up the banister...

... and also some creative edges like a fence upstairs so that nobody would easily fall off the second floor.

She also added a gate at the bottom of the stairs, because we don’t encourage anybody to go up stairs:

She made the upstairs floor even and created a system of tall tables to store twice as many chairs:

She gathered a team and painted the back offices and also refinished a large bookshelf so that we could set up a fun children’s area. We want the children to be able to play while their Mom’s shop around the warehouse for free, and not worry about their safety.

Deborah Myers contacted me and donated the contents of her storage unit after she had to close her Airbnbs. The furnishings were all purchased in December 2019, and her business shut down in March 2020 due to Covid.

Deborah’s practically brand new housewares and furniture will help many families as we distribute the contents freely!

Tylynn is such a Blessing to Furnishing Families. She has amazing order skills and loves to come over and help us. Her son De’Marcus found a turtle a few weeks ago around the creek near the Warehouse and told us how happy it made him; He said that he’d always wanted a pet turtle his whole life.

He had the turtle for several weeks until one day De’Marcus let the turtle run free in a big pile of sand while he was filling a basketball court hoop up with sand, but the turtle ended up disappearing, and wasn’t seen for 4 or 5 days until a neighbor found it. Tylynn has an update for us.

We've been getting to know our warehouse neighbors Ray and Elizabeth. Elizabeth releases the Christmas Angels and provides gifts to lots of children. She introduced these three sisters to me: Joy, Anne, and Nini.

So far, we have furnished Anne and Joy’s home. Nini will have her new home in a few weeks, and Furnishing Families will be bringing the truck of furniture to her!

The Great Car Giveaway

Dr. Darcey and Tracy Brunk donated a 2002 Oldsmobile Aurora w/ 34k original miles! This car has been garaged for 18 years and is in mint condition!!!

When they sent me a picture of the dashboard of the car, we knew immediately that Alicia was the Mom that would receive it.

We told Alicia that God was prophetically giving her a new dashboard for her life. She’s contending for healing of her body of three types of cancer and high blood pressure, while being a single mom to 3 children.

The fabulous car is an enormous boost for both her and her family!

The Great Computer Giveaway

A Picture Says A Thousand Words...

Lance was pleased to discover the story within the story during this computer delivery. Originally, Juan needed a computer for school to do his work during Covid, because the computer that his school gave him didn’t work. We were so moved to see such a demonstration of emotion and hand clapping when Juan exclaimed, ”Now I can see my Grandparents and my Uncle, FACE TO FACE!!!!”

It was so difficult to be separated from our extended families during this Pandemic. The internet has been such a wonderful way to stay connected!

My own Naples Family has had 5 Zoom calls during the Covid with around 10 or 12 of us at a time on the call. It’s been a delightful tonic, and my 89 year old Mom even got on the calls. Most of my family lives on the east coast, but now a niece and a nephew live in California, and one niece even lives in Canada. The internet makes the world a much smaller place!

My daughter Joy says this painting I did reminds her of the way my brain works and even matches my shirt.

I’m enjoying this season of life, and Furnishing Families is only part of the reason why.

I’ve been noticing the beauty of nature all around me.

I haven’t done any gardening in most of my adult life. I used to help out in our family's vegetable garden while growing up and always enjoyed handling the dirt and admiring the remarkable qualities of plants.

My sister Jean has vegetables growing year round at her home in Bucks County, Pa.

She grows kale, swiss chard, and all kinds of lovely leafy veggies outside, even in the snow!

I love to go see her basil fluffing out in copious quantities in her basement under the lights.

I have a friend named Craig Cunningham here in Texas, and she, also, is a master gardener. She always gives me center pieces at our gatherings with lovely and exquisite flowers and greens.

I’ve kept the last 2 plants alive after the flower part died since February. The other day, I decided it was time to plant them in the back yard in one of the pots on the patio. This was such a big deal for me! It almost felt like a sacred transaction.

It later inspired me to pull over on my way home from physical therapy at a gardening store. I admired these pots created for a wedding.

When I asked if they were for sale, the gentleman said no but that they sold all the ingredients in the back garden area so that I could go home and recreate the look myself.

It was so life giving. I cherish the memory of the planting experience. I highly recommend planting something. These pots have irrigation inside them so they won’t be relying on me to water them which is key!

What we're doing in Furnishing Families is similar to a planting and cultivating process in the DFW area, collectively in the lives of these families. We are honored to help interrupt the cycle of "hope deferred," to help their desires become fulfilled as a “tree of life."

THANK YOU for your partnership!

I hope that this glimpse into Furnishing Families and into my life has encouraged you in the power of your investment. It has brought LIFE and JOY to me, my team, and, especially, the families who need our help.

I'll be sending updates every month or so to show you the fruit of your seed and to keep you in the loop on what's going on! I am so excited for what's to come!!!

I pray God makes a Prov. 13:12 tree of life reality in your lives, as well, in a time where without Christ, our hope, we would all surely be sick of heart. Sending Love to you all!!! XOxo

As One,

Annabelle And Lance