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JOIN US FOR HOMECOMING!
May 12, 2012
Our 20th anniversary homecoming celebration is just around the corner! We would love to see you on campus that weekend. We're planning an exciting time with former staff and students as well as our faithful supporters. Fun activities will include tours, music, food, ropes course, climbing wall and giant swing. We don't want you to miss out. Please help us spread the word.
Tell Us Your Story! Former staff, students, campers, and volunteers, tell us your stories! If God has blessed you through the Ranch, would you take a few minutes to call or email and let us know? We would be greatly encouraged to hear from you!
Call us directly at 865-446-4500
toll free 866-412-2433, option 7
or email us at mystory@wvr.org.
Recent Email
A recent email from a former student included these lines: "I can't believe you actually remember me!... I have lived a lot of places, but the ranch will always be home to me. It was a time of life that I've held on to, a light in the darkness, and something worth remembering... I believe you are all, residents and staff, blessed by God. You share those blessings everyday and weave a blanket of security for those who most need it. Thank you for choosing me."
Overheard
Recently, while riding in the van, one of our youngest boys was talking to himself. He often talks out loud with no particular intended audience. On this occasion he said, "I can't imagine how much it would hurt to be nailed to a cross. You know, that was OUR place, but then Jesus took it for us." |
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Mentors David and Julie Zimmerman
David and Julie Zimmerman married this past December while continuing to serve as mentors at the Ranch. "The mentor position is one of the most rewarding ministry experiences that God has blessed us with. It involves personal contact of teaching and living life with kids that are in great need of love and stability. Though, at times, it can be draining, it is rewarding to see the heart change that only God can bring." |
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Lisa Radmore
We'd be sunk without our volunteers! One of our finest and most faithful volunteers is Lisa Radmore. She has been helping with development for several years. She and her husband, Skip, have also served as a volunteer family, providing respite care for children from the Ranch who need a home for the holidays. Much of the year they travel the country as part of their business, but if you get a call or a note from Lisa, know that you are being contacted by one of our dearest friends!
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Greetings!
 I dreaded the car ride. The details had been arranged. A student who was not succeeding at the Ranch would ride with my daughter and me to meet his parents. The circumstances were sad. A chronic, degenerative health problem had led to job loss and other difficulties with the father. And the mother was struggling to support the family. This child who had been adopted in better times had problems these parents could not meet at the present. Lots of folks were praying and, frankly, I was heartbroken at having to return him to a difficult and stressful situation. About four hours into the trip I asked the boy, "Have you come to the place in your life where you feel certain that if you were to die you would go to heaven?" "No sir," he answered. "Well, if something happened to you right now, if all of us were killed as we drove along, what do you think would happen?" He said, "I would go to ..." He tried again, "I think I would go to ..." and again he paused. "You believe you would go to hell?" I asked. "Yes, sir," he answered. I was actually encouraged by his answer. As John Newton wrote, "T'was grace that taught my heart to fear and grace my fears relieved." The first step in getting saved is knowing that you deserve hell. After we had talked about the gospel, this boy asked Jesus to save him. He didn't just ask for forgiveness, he also asked for a new life, for Jesus to come and live His life through him. After we had prayed he said that he wanted to tell his parents as soon as he saw them-- and that's what he did. I wish that the Ranch could provide the needed environment for all the children who need to be placed outside their homes, but we can't. What we can do, however, is prayerfully share God's love in Christ Jesus with those who come to us. In addition to our year round program we are blessed to touch hundreds of campers and volunteers each year. Whether they stay with us for weeks or years, our greatest concern is where they will spend eternity.
We thank God and all of you who prayed and gave to provide the year end miracle we needed. As always, we now start fresh in the new year depending once again on God's faithfulness to be displayed through His people. We pray for you to be encouraged and blessed this year. Please remember to pray for us.
Jim Wood
Wears Valley Ranch
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How much do you know about sheep?
Sheep are not very intelligent, generally have poor vision, are prone to wander... desperately need a shepherd. The Bible says we are like sheep! Jesus, the Good Shepherd, carries His lambs in His arms, lays down His life for His sheep, defends us against our enemies and leads us beside still waters.
The twin lambs in this photo are one day old. One is a boy, one is a girl, and the two girls holding them will never forget this moment. These young ladies are memorizing whole chapters of the Bible and learning what the words mean. We are blessed to live in an environment where biblical imagery is made understandable to children and adults.
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Mary's Story
We were excited this past year to house Mary, a broodmare, who was rescued by another ministry, the Glory Riders of Tennessee (www.gloryridersoftn.com). Mary was one of more than 30 horses rescued from a large farm about an hour from the Ranch. When their owner died, his wife couldn't take care of them, and for over 5 years they were left to themselves. Living on over 400 acres as wild horses, they did what they wanted when they wanted. They were untrained and, as far as horses go, without value. When they were rescued, many of them were given a purpose, either through training or continued breeding to supply the Glory Riders with white horses for their ministry.
Mary delivered a healthy filly named Hadassah (Esther 2:7) on Good Friday, April 22, 2011. Mary has gone back to the Glory Riders to continue to provide baby horses for them, while Hadassah remains at the Ranch as we work with her in hopes of training her into a suitable lesson horse.
I've talked with our students about Mary as an illustration of Ephesians 2:1-10. Like Mary we were all once worthless, even dead in our transgression. Our value came not because of what we could offer, but because of the great value given to us by the One who rescued us. Jesus died on the cross for our sins, taking the punishment that our sins deserved. He gave us new life, even adopting us into His heavenly family as His own sons and daughters. LIke Mary, our good works were never enough to earn us a rescue, but now that we have been rescued by the Good Shepherd, we have good works that we have been called to do and enabled to do through His power and training. "By grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works so that no one may boast for we are His workmanship created in Christ Jesus to do good works which God prepared in advance for us to do."
~Ryan McCaffrey, WVR Equestrian Director
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About Us
Wears Valley Ranch provides Christian homes, education, and counseling to children from families in crisis. Our vision is to see every child inspired to follow Christ, healed from the past, and equipped to reach their full potential.Learn more at our website, www.wvr.org, or call us at 865-429-KIDS.
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