The Grapevine - The Latest News from His Branches

GFM Gets Help

2010-04-27T12:35:00.003-05:00

Medical center gets support after thefts

In the first two weeks of this month, the Grace Family Medicine center on Arnett Boulevard was the inexplicable target of repeated thievery and vandalism.

Since then, staff at the medical center, which has served underprivileged families in the 19th Ward for the past 32 years, has been the target of the community's generosity and support.

The center was broken into at least four times in 12 days in early April, and was vandalized at least two other times during that time period, said Dr. William Morehouse, Grace's medical director...

Several other nearby locations have been vandalized, including a building next door which houses RISEGO Inc., a nonprofit dedicated to creating young social entrepreneurs in schools, and the library at 310 Arnett Blvd.

Grace has rung up a pricey list of unexpected expenses, including having to replace all the locks in the office, alter the roof where the thieves were getting in the office, replace the medical freezer, and fix about 10 broken windows — including a $475 window that had to be replaced twice. That is in addition to the loss of the cash and the computers.

Fortunately, Morehouse said, the community has responded in a "wonderful and generous" way.

"The community has been very supportive, the neighbors have all rallied around us and responded with very generous donations," he said, estimating large and small donations have totaled about $6,000. "They are people who know what we do here, and people we have possibly helped in the past."

Grace Family has served the 19th Ward since 1978 when Morehouse and a group of Christians came together with the goal of providing health care and other services to underprivileged communities.

Click here to read the entire article by Jon Hand, D&C staff writer.

Spring Banquet at Oak Hill

2010-04-17T13:33:00.001-05:00

His Branches, Inc.

Grace Family Medicine and Embracing Options

Invite You to

Our Spring Fundraising Banquet

Embracing His Branches for a

CELEBRATION OF LIFE

Thursday, May 13, 2010

Seating begins at 6:30 pm

Dinner & Program 7:00 pm to 9:00 pm

Oak Hill Country Club

346 Kilbourn Road, Rochester, NY 14618

With featured Speaker

Mr. Paul Marshall

Vice President of Ministry Development

Care Net Pregnancy of Central New York

Click here to RSVP before May 1

An opportunity to make a financial gift will be extended.

Dinner is complementary ~ Adults only as seating is limited ~ Semi-formal attire

Good News at GFM

2010-04-16T09:44:00.001-05:00

Grace Family Medicine staff

After a rash of break-ins over the past 2 weeks (see below), we seem to be coming back out into the open again, now stronger in spirit and faith than before! We won't say it hasn't been a struggle, both from the physical damage and loss as well as the emotional sense of vulnerability and violation, but we're pulling together as a team and moving forward.

The support of our families, neighbors, and the community as a whole has been overwhelming! So far we've had donations come in from all over the continent (yes, the entire continent) as a result of our wired world, national news media reports, Facebook, and text messages and have been able to repair all our broken windows, replace our locks, secure our roof entry points, and beef up our alarm system. We are so grateful to our wonderful God and all of you. Keep those cards and letters coming!

GFM Clinic Robbery

2010-04-12T20:45:00.002-05:00

Rochester medical clinic robbed
WHEC News Video link

By: Pat McGonigle - Channel 10

A family health clinic in the City's 19th ward has been ransacked by thieves five times in the last two weeks. One of the doctors at the clinic told News 10NBC he has had enough.

Grace Family Medicine here on Arnett Boulevard has been serving the 19th Ward since 1978. It's a family health clinic that caters to people with Medicaid, Medicare or no insurance at all.

Five times over the last two weeks, burglars smashed in windows and broke into the office.

Dr. Bill Morehouse showed us some of the damage today. He says there are no drugs, prescription pads or cash in the office so the thieves are only stealing office equipment which only weakens a community’s resources, already operating on a shoe string. Dr. Morehouse said, “Windows broken, small items stolen, most recently yesterday -- seven windows smashed, computer stolen, a very valuable computer and we're beginning to have difficulty meeting the needs of people here."

Dr. Morehouse says he thinks people in this neighborhood know who's been doing this. So he's asking them to come forward and tell police who has been breaking into the clinic. Dr. Morehouse says he'd like to get that person some help.

The Grace Family Medical Clinic is upgrading its security and alarm systems because of the break-in.

GFM Break-Ins

2010-04-12T19:50:00.024-05:00

"Old-Fashioned" Clinic Burglarized Five Times
Break-in news video

Reported by: Evan Axelbank, Channel 8 News

It's gotten to a point where doctors and nurses aren't surprised to find this kind of damage.

"It's sapped their enthusiasm and energy, it's kind of like OK, what am I going to find now?" said Bill Waldert, the clinic's business manager.
Only two weeks ago the only thing they had to worry about were patients, of which three fourths are on medicare or medicaid.

"This is a good old-fashioned family practice," said Waldert. "We take care of the babies right up through the grandparents." But now, broken glass and broken windows and ransacked offices are signs that they're under an almost constant assault by an unknown burglar.

"Its really got us stumped right now," said Waldert. "A little but of money, a lot of broken windows, a couple of computer monitors, but there really is not anything in here, there's no reason to come in this building."

It has started to feel like a cat and mouse game. After they changed the locks yesterday, they came in to find that burglars came in through this window. Bill Waldert has a message for them.

"We're here to try and do some good for you and your families. Please let us go about our business," said Waldert.

Even though the break-ins have been frustrating, Grace Family Medicine is going to plow ahead.

"God knows we don't pay them very much. So they are here because they want to be here, and so they can be a positive resource for the community."

The broken glass hasn't shattered their spirit.

EO Opens Webster Center!

2010-04-02T12:28:00.009-05:00

By: Nicole Friberg, Webster Center Director

What is Embracing Options? We are a Christ-centered Crisis Pregnancy Center. We address the needs of individual women by sharing the Gospel and empowering them to make positive life-affirming choices. Embracing Options is a Care Net affiliate. Care Net is a national network of 1,180 pregnancy centers that provide free support to pregnant women.

The United Methodist Church of Webster Outreach House Embracing Options committee consists of Ray and Laurie Dutcher, Dave and Bobbi Olson, Pastor Lee, and Nicole Friberg. We have been meeting, working and praying on this for a little over a year.

At Embracing Options, we offer free pregnancy tests, on-going peer counseling and friendship, referrals for medical care, referrals for legal assistance or other needed community services, referrals for adoption or foster care, post-abortion counseling (PACE), and referrals to a church.

Embracing Options is a para-church ministry. Everything we do for our client, we do to point her in the way of God and His love. We show her that she has potential, because she is created in the image of God. We give her a Bible to have for her own. When hurting women encounter Jesus Christ in the midst of their crisis, their lives are forever changed.

I am excited to say that our opening date was March 29th. Our hours of operation are Mondays from noon - 5 pm and Thursdays from 10 am - 2:00 pm.

I cannot speak for everyone who is on the committee, but I can tell you why I feel the calling to be involved in this. As some of you may know, our three children are all adopted. If their birth mothers had not chosen life, we would not have them here with us today. We thank God every day that they chose life, so we could be so blessed with these three amazing children.

To be Pro Life does not just mean we are against abortion. To be Pro Life means we honor, respect, and love all of God's creations from conception to death.

You may be asking yourselves, what can I, as a member of our congregation, do to help? There are many ways. We are looking for volunteers to peer counsel (requires 16 hours of Care Net training, provided by us). We are also looking for volunteers to join on our electronic prayer team (we need prayers for our volunteers, director, committee, and our clients). If you feel God is calling you to any of these, please contact Nicole at 585-545-4690.

“Before I formed you in the womb I knew you; Before you were born I sanctified you; I ordained you a prophet to the nations.” Jer.1:5

Music at Arnett Library

2010-02-14T07:58:00.001-05:00

Remembering Samuel McCree

2010-02-07T07:48:00.000-05:00

Rev. Samuel McCree’s way led to many outreach ministries in Rochester

The Rev. Samuel McCree Jr. of Zion Hill Missionary Baptist Church stands inside the shelter his church was building in September 1994 for women fleeing domestic violence.

In the basement of the church founded by the Rev. Samuel McCree Jr. is a large hall where more than 10,000 free breakfasts were served last year.

Just down the street from Zion Hill Missionary Baptist Church is the Southwest Area Development Corp., an economic-growth agency.

McCree was the visionary founder of those and about a dozen other ministries in southwest Rochester. His impact in the neighborhood was so great that after he died a decade ago at age 52, the street where Zion Hill is located was renamed from Bronson Avenue to Dr. Samuel McCree Way.

That rare honor was indicative of the impact the Alabama-born McCree made and continues to make, say longtime friends and associates.

“He was one in a million, believe me,” said Dolores Johnson of Frost Avenue, a member of Zion Hill who knew McCree almost since he arrived in Rochester in 1969 to attend what is now known as Colgate Rochester Crozer Divinity School. He graduated in 1971.

“His legacy was to bring everyone together, to help each other. You know, ‘Reach out and touch someone.’ We don’t have a lot of that now.”

The son of an Alabama minister, McCree might seem to have been destined for a life of ministry. What was unusual was his approach to ministry — reaching out to drug addicts and battered women and people with AIDS, an approach that some ministers shunned as a fast-food style of ministry.

The result is a collection of community organizations that McCree founded, such as Project Spirit, which helps people recover from addictions; Project Faith, serving those with HIV or AIDS; Operation Open Arms, which helps abused women; and Esther House, a haven for mothers and children fleeing domestic violence.

McCree also created a scholarship program, now named after him, which awards at least $5,000 in financial aid to college students annually.

Former Rochester Mayor William A. Johnson Jr., who worked closely with McCree for years when Johnson was head of the local Urban League as well as when he was mayor, recalled McCree’s vision for renovating the former St. Mary’s Hospital.

McCree wanted to convert the hospital into a health care center to revitalize the Bull’s Head neighborhood. The plans never came to be; the campus, now operated by Unity Health Systems, is no longer a hospital but still is a hub for several programs and services.

McCree’s plans seemed overly ambitious to Johnson at first, but he became an advocate.

“I learned never to underestimate his determination,” Johnson said. “We had other ministers who never had that vision. But (McCree) was a firm believer that if he could start a program, a lot of people who were skeptical would come around. That was the optimism that he exuded.”

In 1994, Johnson traveled with McCree to McCree’s hometown of Mobile, Ala., where they examined the impact of urban renewal on the African-American community. Six years later, Johnson returned to eulogize McCree, who died of cancer in 2000.

While the disease ravaged McCree’s body, he got out of his hospital bed and returned to his church, Johnson said, appealing to the congregation to increase donations that had begun to dwindle during McCree’s absence.

“He said, ‘You’re not giving to Sam McCree, you’re giving to Zion Hill,’” Johnson said. “A month later, he died.”

The church is still going strong, with about 1,200 members, and McCree’s widow, Laura, remains heavily involved.

The Rev. Richard Douglass, who became pastor when McCree died, mentioned other charitable organizations that the church sponsors, such as a health and fitness ministry, a prison ministry and Project Connection, which puts needy people in touch with social-service agencies.

“We see our mission beyond these four walls,” Douglass said. “I meet people who come to this city who say, ‘I have to come to Zion Hill. I have to find out, who is this Dr. McCree?’ His name is not only local, but national. His passion for being his brother’s keeper is what drives us to do the number of outreach ministries we do.”

McCree worked with the Rochester School District, as director of parent and community development, before becoming a minister. Douglass said McCree always saw education and the church as interrelated, a sentiment echoed by Derrick Smith, a voice instructor at the Eastman School of Music who met McCree when he was 14.

“It always bothered him if there were African-Americans who were obviously talented, who didn’t apply themselves,” said Smith, 51, who said McCree was responsible for his going to Talladega College in Alabama, McCree’s alma mater. “He felt that kids needed to see that there are books, not only the Bible, that people are reading.”

The Rev. Errol Hunt, presiding elder of the Rochester-Syracuse district of A.M.E. Zion churches and a close friend of McCree’s, talked of McCree’s vision and how McCree’s congregation helped Hunt’s church build Frederick Douglass Village, a collection of 23 homes on Clarissa Street.

“In season and out of season, (McCree) never stopped doing what he was called to do,” Hunt said. “His philosophy was, if your brother is down, you stop to lift him up. He was blessed by God. I miss the kind of fellowship I had with him.”

By Alan Morrell, Staff writer, Rochester Democrat & Chronicle

Merry Christmas!

2009-12-23T15:03:00.000-05:00

Greetings from the Morehouses!

We deeply appreciate all your support and look forward
to serving together with you in the coming year.

Click here to read our holiday letter.

New Vision in 2010

2009-12-23T15:00:00.004-05:00

As 2009 comes to a close, we’re anticipating the new plans the Lord has for us to fulfill. This past summer, in response to the growing need at His Branches, we pulled together a development committee that includes Board members, some staff, and others willing to donate their time. We recognize the urgency to establish ourselves on a solid financial base with community support to keep our doors open during these times of deep economic stress. Meeting monthly, the Lord has blessed us with expanded opportunities and relationships with individuals and with local community action groups who can help.

In July we met with the Ad Council of Rochester to “write our vision on a tablet” (Habakkuk 2:2-3) and clarify what we’re called to do. The Strategic Round Table met for 3 hours to generate ideas and identify the challenges we face. With the help of 10 marketing professionals who volunteered their time, we prioritized a lot of great ideas. We learned the importance of website optimization, how to tailor our message, and how to recruit administrative staff that can help us reach our goals. We all came away energized and encouraged. Our upcoming fund raising banquet on May 13th is one of the ideas we are moving on. More to come on that!

Our heart is to reach the people of Rochester for Christ by shining His Love openly through medical and crisis pregnancy care. There are a few groups that are talking with us about opening other crisis pregnancy offices similar to or in conjunction with Embracing Options. We would like to expand in our support of these groups. The spiritual hunger and physical needs are obvious but our resources are limited. Please help us to continue this work of mercy in our community.

Click here to read the December print version of The Grapevine.

Arnett Block Association

2009-12-18T06:41:00.001-05:00

Several years ago, in response to concerns voiced by neighbors on Arnett Boulevard, Dr. Morehouse’s wife, Susan, gathered a group and started the Arnett Block Association. We’ve been meeting once a month ever since then with neighbors, police officers, building inspectors, and landlords, working to reduce the crime, drug dealing, and gang violence in our area, closing each meeting with prayer. The group has spearheaded several positive community projects, including hosting a Bible Club and Block Party in our parking lot every year. This year we’ve arranged to have Rochester Community Bikes hold a Bike Clinic where 15 bikes and helmets will be given away and kids will be helped and taught how to fix their broken bikes. We’ve renovated the Arnett Library foyer with donated supplies and an artistic mural done by Richmond Futch. And, with the city’s help, we’ve also planted a large perennial garden at the corner of Arnett and Wellington called the Arnett Bird and Butterfly Garden. It was just beautiful this year!

EO and Grace Family Medicine

2009-12-11T08:00:00.000-05:00

Dr. Morehouse with mom and new arrival!

Many of you know that Sandi and others at Embracing Options are busy quietly meeting with young women in crisis (over 200 this year), offering pregnancy tests, counseling regarding abstinence and STDs, and helping the girls find pro-life solutions to their dilemmas. These are complex problems in lives that are mixed up and sometimes appear hopeless. Many come to Christ as the gospel is shared and their lives turn around. What you may not be aware of is that often these girls find a safe place for prenatal care at Grace Family Medicine where Dr. Morehouse goes on to deliver their rescued babies. The young women continue to bring their new children for care at our office. This gives us a wonderful opportunity to continue the care and discipling that was begun upstairs at Embracing Options. What an amazing collaborative effort in His Kingdom! Isn’t God good? We need your help to keep this effort going!

Our Great Team at GFM!

2009-12-09T08:34:00.000-05:00

Stop in at Grace Family Medicine and meet our new staff members, medical secretaries Michelle and Crystal. We’re so glad to have them join us, bringing cheerful faces and new talents to our team. Dr. Matthew Mack is a very welcome addition, taking on new patients and urgent care needs. We are so pleased to have such a hard working front office team, training on the job while meeting the growing needs of our providers and patients. They work so well in collaboration with our nurses and billing staff.

Our nurses, Mindy and Linda, and our providers, Dr. Morehouse, Dr. Mack, and Jen Celso strive to work in unity as they provide the comprehensive care our patients so genuinely need. Prayer is a regular and vital component, both as a staff and with patients. Our dedicated nurses and providers often work through their lunch hour and after hours to bring excellent care to a needy population. We are grateful for the growing harmony of vision, dedication to serve, and sacrifice these people display daily.

With the complexity of medical billing, we’ve brought on a lovely lady, Gloria, who is doing a fantastic job with our billing in house. She is carefully sorting through insurance paper work and billing claims as they get rejected and have to be resubmitted.

Bill Waldert and Sarah Love are working hard on the many administrative details it takes to keep His Branches going: problem solving, planning staff meetings, backing up the staff, and simply being there when things get hectic.

Sliding Fee Scale

2009-12-09T08:24:00.003-05:00

Due to rising costs and loss of employment, more and more of our patients are using our Sliding Fee Scale, which bases the cost of their visit on their income, to pay for appointments. In addition, many patients come to us with Medicaid to pay for their visit. After submitting claims to Medicaid and applying our sliding fee scale, we’re paid significantly less than our usual “fee for service” charges. With the increase in patients that are uninsured or on Medicaid we’re finding that we can’t keep up with our overhead costs of staffing, building, vaccines, malpractice insurance, etc.

Many of our patients are on several medications, which they must pay for out of pocket. In the past, drug representatives have given us samples to help them out. Recently, the sample donations are dwindling, leaving us no avenue to help these patients. There are many health care needs in this community. We need your help in filling the gap between what the patients and insurers can provide and what it actually costs us to provide that care. Please help us keep our doors open to the uninsured and underinsured!

We’re still accepting new patients! Please call one of our offices for more details!
Grace Family Medicine 585-235-2250

Joy Family Medicine 585-697-0004

Health reform hits reality

2009-12-06T10:37:00.002-05:00

POST, TX - Another morning at the clinic. Far away in Washington, the debate over health-care reform drags on, while here in barren West Texas, Ben Edwards is moving fast. He grabs the chart for his next patient, his ninth of the day, and enters Exam Room 5, where Alma Lopez, 51, waits to see the only doctor in town...

"I'm always behind," Edwards says, summing up what it's like to be the only doctor within a 45-mile radius, and in that simple statement is his worry about what reform will mean:

What will happen in a place like Post, where the uninsured are waiting for a system to see a doctor regularly - and there's only one doctor to see them all?

If all of Post's 3,708 residents had full health coverage, Edwards believes they would flock to his clinic, but his practice is already full with more than 2,000 patients. He has no idea how he would fit in anyone else.

In this working-class outpost in this vast, flat no man's land, the everyday health-care needs of an entire community fall to Edwards. Health-care reform is on its way, and it is up to him to care for everything - every sniffle, ear ache and fever, every anxiety and sleepless night, every bad back and stomach pain and bladder infection.

And the truth is this: Edwards will not have time to treat them all.

Click here to read the full article in yesterday's Washington Post.

Swine Flu (H1N1) Shots

2009-12-06T06:21:00.002-05:00

The Monroe County Health Department held public swine flu clinics in November while waiting for enough vaccine to come in for other sites. Most of our patients at Grace Family Medicine and Joy Family Medicine did not find this to be a very accessible route for the vaccine, so our offices have been flooded with phone calls and questions about it. We received two shipments in mid and late November (with no promise of more) and have been inoculating those for whom it is recommended (pregnant women, children 6 months old and up, people who care for children or who are in health-related fields, and adults who have chronic health conditions or compromised immune systems). We’ve been busy!

Click here to read a Fact Sheet about the swine flu.

19th Ward Activities

2009-12-05T10:04:00.002-05:00

The 19th Ward Community Association was established in 1965 to promote the quality of life and character of the 19th Ward Neighborhood. Our motto is "Urban by Choice" and our mission is "To create a conscious multi-racial community where individual and cultural differences are celebrated and where people share a sense of community."

An all-volunteer, member-supported organization, the Association advocates for its residents with local government and organizations on community, crime, and public safety issues. It also hosts special and social events including:

Martin Luther King Luminary Evening (January)
Community Candlelight Dinners (February)
Citizen & Merchant of the Year Awards (May)
Square Fair & Parade, Garden Tours (June)
Neighborhood Potluck Picnics (Summers)
House Tours (October)
Annual Convention (November)

Officers for the coming year were just elected at last month's Convention and two of these annual events, the MLK Luminary Evening and Candlelight Dinners are coming up. See associated articles below.

19th Ward Luminaries

2009-12-05T10:00:00.000-05:00

For the past few years the 19th Ward has celebrated Dr. Martin Luther King’s birthday in a public manner and will be doing so again this year.

On Monday, January 18 there will be luminaries throughout the area. The luminaries themselves are small paper bags weighted down with sand or kitty litter and containing a votive candle. Luminary kits are available at Hunt’s Hardware, and Tops Market will have kits for sale on Saturday, January 10 and Sunday, January 11.

Neighbors make a number of luminaries and set them at the sidewalk edge of their tree lawn from sunset until 9 pm. Some people host warming fires and a hot chocolate stands. This is also a community building event.

Please call the 19th Ward Community Association’s office 328-6571 with any questions.

Candlelight Dinners

2009-12-05T09:55:00.002-05:00

Join us for this enjoyable 19th Ward winter event on February 22nd by either hosting a dinner or by attending as guest. This is a pot luck event, so pull out your favorite recipes. The host will coordinate the dinner and notify guests of time and what to bring. The guest will attend, meet new neighbors, and enjoy a social evening in the 19th Ward. If you have a new neighbor be sure to pass on the invitation. Call the Association office at 328-6571 and leave a message if you are hosting or guesting and how many adult guests you can fit around your table or how many adult guests will attend from your household. Cut off date is February 7.

If you would like to coordinate a special dinner - families with children, special dietary needs, etc. - please notify the office. We have been unable to do this in the past but would certainly do so if we have a volunteer. And, if you would like to volunteer as chairperson of the annual dinners, please call Adrienne Kllc, 328-6531: you will get on-the-job training!

The Manhattan Declaration

2009-11-27T20:31:00.005-05:00

A Call of Christian Conscience

Christians, when they have lived up to the highest ideals of their faith, have defended the weak and vulnerable and worked tirelessly to protect and strengthen vital institutions of civil society, beginning with the family.

We are Orthodox, Catholic, and evangelical Christians who have united at this hour to reaffirm fundamental truths about justice and the common good, and to call upon our fellow citizens, believers and non-believers alike, to join us in defending them. These truths are:

1. the sanctity of human life
2. the dignity of marriage as the conjugal union of husband and wife
3. the rights of conscience and religious liberty.

Inasmuch as these truths are foundational to human dignity and the well-being of society, they are inviolable and non-negotiable. Because they are increasingly under assault from powerful forces in our culture, we are compelled today to speak out forcefully in their defense, and to commit ourselves to honoring them fully no matter what pressures are brought upon us and our institutions to abandon or compromise them. We make this commitment not as partisans of any political group but as followers of Jesus Christ, the crucified and risen Lord, who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

Download a summary of the Manhattan Declaration.
Download the full text of the Manhattan Declaration.

Annual KVI Open House!

2009-11-01T16:45:00.002-05:00

It's almost here!

Open House is November 6/7 from 10am until 6pm.

Turkish Plates

Now we're hoping that all our new products "make it"! The placemats have arrived from Thailand and the scarves from Laos are here as well. The baskets from Nicaragua are en-route. Our new items from Cambodia should be delivered by the 3rd. And after a week of being "lost in space", our Kenyan jewelry showed up this past week. We'll have a wide variety of products for your shopping experience!

Throughout both days we'll have complimentary coffee from Joe Bean, Webster's own roaster of Fair Trade certified coffees, and on Saturday afternoon, Joe Bean's experts will be on site, sharing about their coffee and offering tastings. Both days we will have bags of Fair Trade coffee available for purchase.

It'll be a great time! If you're in the Greater Rochester area, be sure to drop in, say "Hi", and shop for people on your "gift list" (even if that IS yourself).

Kingdom Ventures, 336 Arnett Blvd., Rochester, NY 14619

Hidden Pain

2009-09-20T07:26:00.000-05:00

Politics suppresses the problems of many post-abortive women

Her tears spilled from her cheeks as she told me the story of her abortion, some 11 years earlier. “Last fall, my husband put his arms around me from the back and whispered in my ear, ‘Our baby would have been 10 years old today,’ and we both cried,” she said as more tears came.

She was in for her first prenatal visit, excited about having her third child. As part of her obstetric history, I asked her about other pregnancies. She happily told of her two term pregnancies. But then I asked if she had experienced any miscarriages or abortions. I learned early in my career that woman generally don't mention abortions unless specifically asked. “Oh, yes, one abortion,” she said. Then I asked an open-ended question, the question that generated all the tears, simply, “How do you feel about that?”

“Oh, terrible. It's the biggest mistake I've ever made in my life,” she said. I've heard many other women use that exact phrase.

Click here to read the full article by Matt Anderson in this month's issue of WORLD Magazine. Embracing Option's PACE program offers full support and healing counsel for women who have suffered the after-effects abortion.

Block Party Rocks!

2009-08-09T14:35:00.008-05:00

Our 2009 Block Party was a wonderful success, thanks to the generous participation of so many amazing volunteers and contributors. Thank you all from the bottom of our hearts!

Click here to see a full size slide show

We've had a cool and rainy summer, but Saturday turned out to be the best day of the season so far. Our God is faithful! So many marvelous people were involved in making our day a success that it will be hard to list them, but I'll give it a try. Our setup crew arrived early and up went the tents! Then Mitzie Collins, Padraic, and Tom Bohrer set up their Punch and Judy show, Richard Stutzman hopped out of his car as Happy the Clown, Aya Kaufmann and crew got their balloon-filled face painting tent ready, and a fantastic circus atmosphere began to emerge. We closed off Arnett Blvd. between Warwick and Rugby, Tom Ellinwood fired up the Owens' grill, and a crowd began to gather that numbered in the hundreds by mid-afternoon. When Jeff Peden and Joe Showers opened up their Airplay Jugglers stage, we knew the show was on!

Special thanks go out to Rora, Eula, Nancy, and all the other faithful members of the Arnett Block Association whose tireless planning, preparation, and free food service made the whole event possible, to the City of Rochester for letting us block off Arnett Blvd. and RPD Sergeant Frank DiPrimo for coming with Operation Safe Child and signing up 65 kids (!), to rap artist and brother Cuevas Walker, and to Benjamin Vasquez and James Powell for their amazing break dancing and mouth percussion (see YouTube video below).

Overwhelming gratitude goes out to Community Bikes for their generosity in giving away 15 free bikes this year and fixing numerous other ones, to Willie Lightfoot for his lively performance as our Master of Ceremonies, to all our sponsoring merchants who provided us with so many generous donations and raffle prizes, to Sandi Clawson and Mindy Monk for running our Embracing Options/Grace Family Medicine booth, to Lisa McElroye for her free massage demonstrations, to Jeanne from the Arnett Branch Library for her kids' story time, to Richmond Futch for his open air painting workshop, to Rebecca Fadner and the French Quarter Cafe for hosting an open house at Risego, and to Marion Reed and the entire New Progressive COGIC Sacred Dance Team for the wonderful tribute they paid to our Lord by leading us in open worship before our God and Maker at the close of the afternoon.

Remarkably, everyone pitched in and helped, so even the cleanup was a breeze and by 5 pm you never would have known the event had happened. Already folks are making plans for "next year's Block Party." Want to help? Just give us a call! God bless you all!

Breaking loose

2009-08-09T14:18:00.003-05:00

Webster Methodist Partnership

2009-07-27T05:27:00.006-05:00

Raymond Dutcher, Pastor Lee Carlson and Dr. William Morehouse

Last Sunday, Dr. Bill was invited to the Webster United Methodist "Praise in the Park" worship service. The congregations of, The First UMC of West Webster, North Ontario UMC, UMC of Webster, Union Hill UMC and Walworth UMC, came together to worship the Lord out at Casey Park in Ontario, NY. There were over 100 people gathered under two large tents, followed by a delicious pot-blessing picnic luncheon.

It was a beautiful sunny day in the park. The worship team and choir were just awesome! The joy of the Lord was truly present while everyone joined in worship and prayer with united hearts to give the praise and glory to our Lord Jesus Christ. A pastor or church elder from each church took part in the service. The theme of the day was from John 15:1-8 about the vine and the branches. Pastor Glen Hardman's message was titled "What Kind of Plant Are You?" His closing statement was that many people see the branches before they ever see the Vine (our Lord Jesus). How fitting that Dr. Bill was asked to come and share the ministry of His Branches during their Ministry Moment of the service.

Ray Dutcher opened in prayer and announced that the loose offering was being donated to the work of His Branches. Dr. Bill then shared briefly about his 30 years in the city and how honored he is to see his vision spread into the surrounding suburbs. He was called to the city of Rochester to serve the underserved and share the love of Christ. His Branches has many ways of doing so through medical care, counseling, and pregnancy help with Embracing Options and is looking forward to partnering with the East side folks at the UMC of Webster who are praying to open an Embracing Options satellite within the next year in their Ministry Outreach House. Dr. Bill thanked the gathering for their generous donations and closed in prayer with thanksgiving.

Reported by Sandi Clawson, Embracing Options