In this edition of Wes's Weekly Wrap Up, Wes Tillett, LUM executive director, has a special Thanksgiving message just for you! Please take 60 seconds to watch the video — and share with others.

There are only four more days to take advantage of this amazing opportunity to DOUBLE your DONATION to Lafayette Urban Ministry. Your gift will support families, children and those experiencing homelessness right here in your community through LUM programs and services.

During the month of November ONLY — Neil Klemme State Farm Insurance has agreed to match donations up to $3,600. Click the Double your Donation button below and your gift — and your impact — will be doubled. Join us in thanking Neil Klemme & State Farm Insurance for making this possible. Please share this with others.

Christmas came a little early this year, when Dave Webb delivered a check for $7,000 from the the Alfred J. & Dorothy N. McAllister Foundation. Dave stated that, "the McAllister Foundation normally makes a year end donation to LUM around Christmas time but this year with COVID-19 menace and board members' schedules, our meeting was held earlier; and I have a check for LUM to use in helping feed and pay utilities for your clients." Gayle Koning, LUM assistant business manager is pictured receiving the check from Dave Webb, which will be added to the LUM Good Samaritan Fund.

In May, the McAllister Foundation awarded the LUM youth programs a $12,100 grant for much needed improvements at the LUM Ray Ewry Youth Center. LUM is thankful for the tremendous support from the McAllister Foundation board, which makes it possible for LUM to support local children and families in a time of need.

This year, LUM was the selected as the lucky recipient of the annual Christmas Gift from Westminster Village. Westminster Village recently hosted a drive-through "Village Soup Day," where the community was invited to purchase their famous chili, baked potato soup, bread and cookies. All of the proceeds were designated to benefit LUM plus each participant donated items for the LUM Protein Food Pantry. It was a successful event! More than 100 carloads of hungry people purchased 270 meals and donated a truckload of food for the food pantry (pictured above). The Westminster Village team has also invited Wes Tillett, LUM executive director, to participate in the virtual "Village Chat," where he will share the good work of LUM and also accept the Christmas Gift donation from LUM legend & Westminster Village resident, the Rev. Don Nead. Lastly, several of the members of the Westminster Village staff will be volunteering with LUM Jubilee Christmas this year.

LUM is thankful to the residents & staff of Westminster Village for their support this year through the annual Christmas Gift. Stay tuned for more news in December from the Village Chat program and check presentation. To view more photos, click HERE.

The members of the Purdue Knights of Columbus at St. Thomas Aquinas Center (council #15144) recently donated a trunkload of books to the students enrolled in the LUM After School Program. The group acquired surplus toys and books from Phoenix International Publications, and decided to donate the books to LUM and the toys to various LUM Jubilee Christmas sites, including the St. Thomas Aquinas Center event. Pictured (L to R) from the Purdue Knights of Columbus are John Kertesz, member, and Zach Schreiner, president.

LUM is thankful to the members of the Purdue Knights of Columbus at St. Thomas Aquinas Center (council #15144) for this gift of books for our students & library. To view more photos, click HERE.

In addition to giving Christmas to local families, the LUM Jubilee Christmas program encourages pre-school children to sign up for the Dolly Parton Imagination Library program, which mails high quality books to children until they reach school age, for free. Lafayette Rotary brings this program to our community, and each year provides 500 Imagination Library registration brochures to LUM to distribute to the Jubilee Christmas families. {Pictured L to R is Eileen Weiss, LUM business manager, accepting the Imagination Library brochures from Floyd Garrott, Lafayette Rotary member.}

LUM is thankful to the Lafayette Rotary for their assistance in promoting this wonderful program that inspires kids in our community to love reading.