Jan 2026
Our first outreach of the year was a wonderful Hymn Sing with our friends, the residents and staff at Atria. We heard background stories on each hymn before singing both familiar and new hymns. Tamera, Pam, and Virginia did a great job reading and leading; Paul is always faithful running tech; Karen greatly enjoyed putting the set together and playing the piano! The room was filled with the sounds of beautiful voices coming together as we all poured our hearts out in song to God. All glory to God!
“Sing praises to God, sing praises; sing praises to our King, sing praises. For God is the king of all the earth; sing praises with a psalm.” (Psalm 47:6-7)
Jan 2026
We enjoyed an uplifting time together on an overcast afternoon at a Hymn Sing with our friends, the residents and staff at Meadowbrook. Our Atria friend Virginia blessed us by singing with us, joining Tamera, Pam, and Shelly at the mic while Paul ran tech, JR prepared delicious treats, and Karen played keys. Our time together was enriched by the stories behind the hymns, along with amusing anecdotes and heartfelt memories. (Our hymn sings were birthed per the request of two humble members of our church, Michael and Don. Tamera gave a beautiful tribute to our precious Don and Jeanne, who both participated in previous hymn sings and only recently passed away.) God was greatly glorified as we all raised our voices to sing praises to our great God, the king of all the earth!
“Sing praises to God, sing praises; sing praises to our King, sing praises. For God is the king of all the earth; sing praises with a psalm.” (Psalm 47:6-7)
January 2026
(video coming soon!)
We had a wonderful time together doing a Hymn Sing with our friends, the residents and staff at Atria LG (Life Guidance = memory care). Thankfully, Virginia was able to get leave from front desk duty to join Tamera and Shelly in singing while Karen played the piano; Paul did a great job on tech, as always! Thanks to a winter ice storm, we went in the afternoon instead of our usual earlier time of day – we liked it so much that we’ve decided to move towards afternoons from now on! One of the big pluses was that we got to see dear Asmeret and Natalia, two beloved staff members whom we have greatly missed. The room was filled with the sounds of voices praising God together and pouring out hearts – all glory to God!
“Sing praises to God, sing praises; sing praises to our King, sing praises. For God is the king of all the earth; sing praises with a psalm.” (Psalm 47:6-7)
February 2026
Kelsey and Karen enjoyed serving together at Market Day at Graves Elementary (where Kelsey teaches Kindergarten!). We packed many cans of vegetables, jars of peanut butter, and chicken noodle soup into individual bags, just some of the many food items provided through Atlanta Food Bank and distributed to the hundreds of neighbors in need who came through to receive assistance. It was a joyful time as staff, parents, and community volunteers came alongside one another to serve our community in this simple way!
Feb 2026
We had a precious time with residents and staff at Atria as we shared a set of songs called Campfire Classics! Paul had a lot of tech setup as Shelly, Pam, Tamera, and Karen sang and talked and even acted out various parts of songs. Lots of memories were touched upon as we joined in songs that were silly or sentimental or serious in nature. A great time was had by all! All glory to God!
“Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving; make melody to our God on the lyre.” (Psalm 147:7)
Feb 2026
Happy Valentine’s Day! Seven of us had a great time on this beautiful day cleaning up our stretch of Jimmy Carter Blvd for our 42nd almost-quarterly adopt-a-road cleanup! Many hands made light work as we donned our safety vests and gloves and picked up about 140 pounds of trash. What better way to celebrate love than to go for a walk with friends and beautify our community together – love in action. It was delightful to see a neighbor on the other side of our 5-lane stretch picking up trash “just because.” We ended our time together by tailgating with Dunkin donuts + joe + conversation.
Feb 2026
We had a precious time with memory care residents and staff at Atria Life Guidance, as we sang Campfire Classics together! We kept it simple this time with an acoustic set, just guitar and vocals (along with occasional harmonica, kazoos, tambourines, and a cowbell!) Paul did a great job with tech, as Shelly, Pam, Tamera, and Karen sang / grooved / acted / interacted. We love it when others join us in familiar songs – it was a precious time of laughter and tears, comfort and conversation, praise and prayer. All glory to God!
“Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving; make melody to our God on the lyre.” (Psalm 147:7)
Feb 2026
We had a precious time with memory care residents and staff, bringing some TPC (Tunes, Presence, Conversation) at Tucker Park Crossing, as we sang Campfire Classics together! It was a joyous, encouraging, and very interactive time singing, dancing, and acting out all kinds of campfire classics. JR made some awesome cookie s’mores to go with our flickering faux fire 🙂 Paul ran and debugged all our tech, and Shelly, Pam, Tamera, and Karen had a fabulous time doing it all together again! What a blessing to share these times together – joy abounds! All glory to God!
“Sing to the Lord with thanksgiving; make melody to our God on the lyre.” (Psalm 147:7)
Mar 2026
In spite of some early technical difficulties, we had an uplifting and joy-filled time together at Atria sharing Songs of Friendship! Pam put together a wonderful set of a dozen songs that each highlight the beauty and treasure of friendship. Pam, Tamera, Virginia, and Karen sang our hearts out while Paul did a super job with all the tech, as always! When they heard Virginia (who works at Atria) sing solos for the first time, several residents asked, awestruck, “Where have you been?” We all agree that Virginia has an incredible voice, a gift to us all! We are all thankful we get to do these outreaches together as friends!
“Friends come and friends go, but a true friend sticks by you like family.” (Proverbs 18:24, The Message)
Mar 2026
Our precious Pam, who initiated and planned this set, was called away to be with precious family – oh how we missed her, our dear friend, as we shared Songs of Friendship at our monthly time of Tunes, Presence, Conversation at Tucker Park Crossing. Pam put together a wonderful set of a dozen songs that each highlight the beauty and treasure of friendship, which Tamera, Virginia, and Karen sang the best we could without our dear friend! Paul did a super job with all the tech, as always! JR & Shelly did a great job with the refreshments and being present among a roomful of precious residents and staff. The presence of God was deeply moving, and many voices joined in on both familiar and new-to-them songs. We are all thankful we get to do these outreaches together as friends!
“Friends come and friends go, but a true friend sticks by you like family.” (Proverbs 18:24, The Message)
Mar 2026
Our friend Pam, who initiated and planned this set, had a family emergency that sadly called her out of town. Tamera, Shelly, Virginia, and Karen shared Songs of Friendship at Atria LG, again singing a wonderful set of a dozen songs that each highlight the beauty and treasure of friendship! Paul did a super job with all the tech, and Sonya, Karen, Asmeret, and Natalia and all 13 memory care residents joined in singing and moving to the music! It was such a joyful time as we remembered God’s gift of friendship to us all. We are all thankful we get to do these outreaches together as friends!
“Friends come and friends go, but a true friend sticks by you like family.” (Proverbs 18:24, The Message)
