*Canyon Lake News
April Update:
March Update:
February Update:
It may have been raining, but it didn’t stop us! This month was all about love; love for ourselves and love in friendships.
The girls made friendship bracelets, wreaths with self love affirmations, played bingo, and had lots of treats. Thank you to our friends at Pearl Street Church (especially Maria) for making the girls feel so loved this weekend!
December Update:
The Christmas Party at New Life this weekend was a great time. We had so much food (and lots of sweet treats) that everyone built up the stamina to dance their hearts out!
Santa made an appearance and all the girls were able to get a picture with him and/or Mrs. Claus. Thank you to all that donated and allowed us to give gifts to the girls, which included a bag with a pillow, stuffed animal, socks, and a few other little items!
October Update:
What a beautiful weekend it was in Canyon Lake! 
We had a couple eclipse themed activities and a session on women’s health. It was fun AND informative. Thank you to all that came out and experienced this with us! Special thank you to Debra and Jackie for planning such amazing stations. It was a huge hit!! 
September Update:
While we weren’t able to do Chicktime this weekend, the New Life girls had everything they needed to make Good Vibes Jars complete with inspirational quotes, prompts to write affirmations about what they appreciate about themselves, and the things in this life they are grateful for.
Thank you to Laura Arenas for making this happen!
August Update:
What a blast carnival day was this past weekend! Bean bag toss, water guns, magnetic fishing, and ball toss all brought out the competition in the girls (and volunteers) because who doesn’t want to win fun stickers and rubber ducks?!
Thank you to all who joined for these memorable stations and to Juli and Randie for planning and crafting so much fun!
February Update:
November Update:
October Update:
! This month we had some spooky fall fun with the girls by making monster cupcakes, autumn crafts, and having pumpkin races!
The girls love seeing repeat volunteers and meeting new ones! It’s never too late to come serve with us and pour into these girls’ lives!
September Update:
We hope to see y’all at next months Chicktime!
August Update:
July Update:
The girls had so much fun doing science experiments at this months Chicktime! Thank you Liz Barger for leading and planning all the activities! Another thank you to the other volunteers who got up early Saturday morning to come serve with us! 
It means so much to us and the girls. They love spending time with the volunteers! We hope to see y’all at next months Chicktime
June Update:
Thank you to all of those who came and served with Chicktime this morning! A special shout out to Betsy Rudolph for planning the stations and being this months workshop leader! The girls loved the summer themed stations and had a blast connecting with the volunteers.
This month, a few young volunteers decided to come serve! The girls loved spending time with people their age and we got to see the start of some beautiful friendships! Thank you again to everyone who served, we hope to see you next month!
May Update:
March Update:
February Update:
December Update:
The Chicktime Christmas party for the girls at New Life was a great time for all. Our fabulous DJ, Karen made it so much fun with great music, trivia, and prizes! The girls loved the gifts of red hoodies, elephant stuffed animal, fun sprinkle donut pillow, socks, lotion, and lip gloss.
Thanks to all our great supporters who donated to make this possible. We served a delicious lunch of chili cheese dogs. Thanks to our cooks who came to serve the girls! And, let’s not forget about Santa! He was so kind and the girls really loved having their picture with him. Merry Christmas everyone!
November Update:
What a beautiful day for Chicktime!
The girls really enjoyed the time we spent with them during the November workshops. Sandra led minute to win it games, which kept everyone really engaged.
Carolyn organized the snack station where the girls made turkey cupcakes and then got fall trail mix. Jody showed the girls how to tie fleece pillows with fun fall themes.
October Update:
Our workshops today were so fun and inspirational!
Thank you to Lora and Jarisha for sharing your stories and inspiring the girls. Thank you Lora for inviting your beautiful daughters to lead the games workshop. What fun for the girls at New Life!
We also hosted lunch for the girls, staff, and volunteers. Huge Thank You to Rick for grilling the burgers and frying the tots! It was fabulous!
September Update:
We had a lot of fun at Chicktime this month! Thanks to our workshop leader Betsy for planning 3 great activities that the girls loved! The minute to win it games were a blast. The girls loved the apple treats and making the bracelets. Thank you volunteers for showing up for the girls. It was a great day!
August Update:
August was all about Joy! Our joy filled volunteers spent the morning playing scripture balloon games, decorating cookies (what brings more joy than Christmas cookies in August?!) and making Joy Journals. 
Thank you once again to all the volunteers who came out to love on our girls at New Life!
Special thank you to Shawna for planning this event!
July Update:
July was filled with summer fun! Thanks to our workshop leaders who put together all these activities for the girls. Slip and slide volleyball was super fun! The salad spinning art was such a creative idea. Pong and crafts are always a favorite! Please join us in August for more fun activities with the girls at New Life!
June Update:
This month we put the FUN in the fundamentals of living. The girls learned about money and budgeting, healthy eating, and decorated recipe boxes. Special shout out to our volunteers for being there to share their experience and guidance. Rachel, Julie, and Carol shared about budgeting. Angela and Juli mixed up some awesome smoothies and shared about healthy nutrition. And, Merrilee provided some awesome supplies and crafting expertise to the girls decorating recipe boxes. We appreciated our newest volunteer and Lori was great engaging with the girls at each station. Thank you to all our volunteers! We love that you love the girls!
April Update:
April Chicktime was so fun! Thanks to all the volunteers who showed up to make it a great day for the girls at New Life. Our workshop Leader Lori Davis provided all the supplies and activities!
Thanks for all the hard work putting it together! We made bunny baskets, played games and decorated decoupage eggs. It was a beautiful day!
March Update:
What a blessing to be able to be physically present at Chicktime Canyon Lake this month. The girls were so happy to see more volunteers and to feel the love and fun we brought them. We had new volunteers and returning volunteers but our common goal was to bring the girls the love and companionship they so much deserve.
We made sand art butterflies,..
peanut butter and seed pinecone birdfeeders…..
and played bingo!!
Thank you Sandra for providing all the wonderful activities and thank you to everyone who was there to spread love and joy to the beautiful girls at New Life. We love them so much.
December 2020:
Wow! This years Christmas party with the girls at New Life was amazing!!
We got to dance and see Santa and have amazing food!! We loved being outside and having all the girls able to interact from a distance by dance competitions from their cabins!
Such a blessed day in the midst of all the hard times we’ve all see in 2020! Thank you Jesus for the wonderful volunteers, the beautiful weather all the beautiful girls at new life!
November Update:
Chicktime was so much fun this month. Thanks to all our great volunteers for making it a special time for the girls at New Life.
We made turkey cupcakes, trail mix, and played fall bingo.
Carolyn shared her passion for art with gratitude paintings. They turned out really pretty and they were all unique. Looking forward to our annual Christmas Chicktime In December!
October Update:
What a fun time today at Chicktime. Thanks to our great volunteers that showed up to spend time with the girls. Lori showed the girls how to make a beautiful flower arrangement~
The girls also made Birthday cards for a little girl named Tina in Virginia with special needs.
What’s a party without snacks? We made cupcake spiders and “pumpkin punch”. The girls were energetic and enthusiastic about Chicktime today!
Under The Sea August workshop was so much fun! We were allowed to have 3 volunteers join Lisa this month!
Thank you for continuing to love on these girls during this very isolating time for everyone. Shout out to Paddle Canyon Lake for partnering with Chicktime and donating the supplies for the past two months! #unstoppablelove #paddlecanyonlake
When You can’t have Chicktime workshops on site due to Covid-19..
you do the next best thing….
get supplies donated and ask for the New Life volunteer coordinator Lisa Brown, to host the workshop!!
The girls made sun catchers and paper bracelets. Thank you Liz Barger and Laura Sowell for all the prep work!
Yummy brownies courtesy of Presidian Cares and cookies thanks to master cookie maker Rick Barger!
The risk of Covid-19 continues to be an issue and therefore volunteers are not allowed on the campus of New Life Children’s Center. We continue to look for ways to serve the girls and are so grateful when we have caring volunteers who believe the mission must go on virus or no virus! We have donated crafts and snacks for a May workshop to still take place from our fearless Managing Chicktime Canyon Lake Leader, Liz… and our incredible Charity Partner Liaison from New Life, Lisa… has agreed to lead the workshop for us in our absence! It takes a Village!
Chicktime continues to heal the Nation….one workshop at a time.
Chicktime Canyon Lake sent activities to their charity partner so an April workshop could still go on!!! Their fabulous liaison/volunteer coordinator, Lisa Brown, sent this message after she facilitated the workshop with the supplies we sent…
From Lisa….
Hey friends, my heart is bursting!! I missed each of you today ???????? The girls loved the activities and were very thankful. I was so busy running to the tables and playing the games and coloring I only took one photo as I was loading up this am. Thanks to all for bringing some Chicktime sunshine to the girls ????????????
February Update:
Our February workshops were awesome!
The girls learned about budgeting which was eye opening for some. They got an idea of how much it would cost to live on their own. We also learned about planting seeds and succulents. The girls planted them in their own container which they can keep and watch the plants grow. It was fascinating to learn how to plant and care for succulents.
And of course who doesn’t love a delicious treat. We decorated cupcakes with frosting and all kinds of sprinkles. It was such a fun and educational day! Thank you to all the volunteers who made this day so special for the girls.
December Update:
It was Christmas time again at New LIfe. Thank you to all our volunteers that came to show the girls a beautiful Christmas party filled with gifts, songs, and fun.
The food was amazing, with cookies, sandwiches, and a chocolate fountain.
The band performed some holiday favorites and some Christian music for all to enjoy! It was wonderful.
And of course, here comes Santa Claus.
Each girl made a frame to keep a treasured photo with Santa.
Merry Christmas to all and a happy New Year!
November Update:
November Chicktime was amazing. We had three great workshops for the girls at New Life Children’s Center. The girls made thank you cards for Operation: Military Matters. We sent the cards to that organization which will send the cards to deployed military in care packages. The snack station was another big hit with fun fall snacks.
And the activities in the gym were a lot of fun. We hope you will join us next month for our annual Christmas party for the girls.
September Update:
Party fun at Chicktime Canyon Lake this month!
Brenda and Lori led an awesome station where we taught the girls how to play the really fun dominos game, Mexican Train. Each cottage was given a game to keep so they can play during their down time. So much fun!
Kelly and Danette led the Party Food station where the girls decorated mini cakes. They were so creative and delicious!
And thanks to Riki and her enthusiasm with water balloons. The girls had a blast getting soaking wet, running around and having fun.
Riki also provided an opportunity for each girl to create a positive affirmation poster. With the girls from Chi Beta Delta there to play with the girls it was a perfect day of fun and friendship! Thank you to all the volunteers that showed up to love on the girls at New Life.
August Update:
August 10th we had a great Chicktime workshop led by Lora Williams. The three stations she developed provided a day of insight, reflection and a little sweetness.
Lora presented us with an opportunity to reflect on broken relationships and good relationships and the impact they have on us. Her story is compelling and the girls can relate to her. Thank you Lora for the inspiration! Diane hosted a station where we discussed dating and the difference between a good relationship and a bad one. It’s important for girls to realize if there is abuse in a relationship and put an end to it.
For a sweet treat Lora and Diane’s daughters led the station where we decorated cup cakes to look like an octopus. Very clever and tasty. Thanks to all our volunteers for sharing your love and friendship with the girls at New Life.
July Update:
July’s Chicktime workshop was called Summer Fun and it was fun!!!
Shawna led the Water Fun and the girls had a blast getting sprayed with the water hose and running relay races.
Corrina led Mini Edible Arrangements. The girls really loved cutting the fruit with cookie cutters and making beautiful arrangements that they could eat later.
Lindsay led the Bracelet Making station. The girls were very creative with the colors they chose and the bracelets were beautiful.
We had a great turnout of volunteers. Thanks to everyone who came out to enjoy the day with the New Life girls.
June Update:
Chicktime in June held a variety of activities that sparked the girls interest. Cora talked to the girls about creating a message that they would someday share with girls their age and showed them the joy of public speaking. Many of the girls shared beautiful testimony about their time at New Life and how it has impacted their lives.
Lori and Gracie showed the girls how to make their own ice cream and the science of how ice,salt and friction can turn cream and sugar into a delicious ice cold treat. Sandra shared more science with the girls by making bubbles from dry ice and soap. They really liked making their own slime from glue, water and a borax solution. Thanks to all the volunteers who showed up to spend precious time with the wonderful girls at New Life.
May Update:
Even though the staff does a phenomenal job facilitating healing, sometimes the loneliness of missing their families is hard for the New Life Girl’s as they recover from abuse and neglect. Especially during holidays. What a blessing it was to be with them Mother’s Day Weekend and share the opportunity to let go of their emotions through art, yoga, preparing meals for the food bank, and making a little something for themselves to keep. Thank you to all of the passionate women who came out and shared their love and talents with the girls. It made a difference. If you would like to impact the next generation please save the date for our June Chicktime event and plan to attend!
April Update:
April Chicktime was awesome! We had a wonderful turnout of volunteers.Corinna brought her daughter and their volleyball club which was so inspiring to see young girls serving the community.
Sandra led the egg decoupage and crafts station, always a favorite.
Phyllis led prayer boxes and butterflies.
Betty and Sonja led snacks and bingo. The girls love bingo.
Thanks to all the volunteers who showed up and showed love to the beautiful girls at New Life.
March update:
A day for the Arts was our theme this month at Canyon Lake. Linda led an excellent and fast paced workshop with water color painting and drawing, but more importantly, she talked to the girls about virtues .She shared with the girls how to call upon their higher virtues.
Sandra brought out more creativity with the girls paper flower wreaths made with beautiful spring colors.
Kelli energized the girls with Zumba! Thanks to our great volunteers for showing up to participate.
February Update:
The workshops in February were so much fun! Thanks to Mindy, Michele and Liz for leading the stations this month. Mindy served nachos and called out bingo for the girls.
Michele led the workshop to make mardi gras masks and photo frames.
Liz took pictures of each girl in the photo booth. Thanks to all the volunteers who showed up to play with the girls at New Life Children’s Home. Please join us again next month on March 9th!
January Update:
Chicktime in January was such fun! The girls and volunteers all helped Lisa Brown, our awesome Director of Volunteers celebrate her Birthday! We had a beautiful cake, presents and lots of fun activities for the girls.
Carol lead the workshop for sewing pillow cases. The girls created bright and cheery pillow cases that they could keep.
Sandra led the girls in a fun game of unwrapping a package with oven mitts and snowman crafts. In the Life Skills building we played games and shared Lisa’s birthday cake.
December Update:
It’s Christmas time at New Life and Chicktime is throwing a party! Thanks to our fabulous volunteers that met in the gym to coordinate a special Christmas event. As the girls started to arrive we had fun ice breaker activities so we could all get to know one another. Then praise and worship raised the roof of the gym with the praise band leading us in songs of the season. Delicious holiday goodies were enjoyed by all; flowing chocolate fountain, homemade candies, cookies, sandwiches, and punch. Then, the exciting visit from Santa Clause! The girls love to have a photo made with Santa! But best of all, each girl received a special gift to keep. The gift consisted of a colorful gym bag filled with bath and body lotion, snuggly socks, a cuddly teddy bear, a Chicktime sweatshirt and lip gloss. Blessings for a wonderful New Year and hope you will join us for our January event.
November Update
A day of Thankfulness at New Life was our theme this month with many fun and thoughtful activities. Nancy led the snack workshop where the girls decorated their own treats to enjoy. There were cute turkey cookies and adorable turkey cupcakes. The craft station was led by Michelle where the girls made Thanksgiving wreaths with beautiful fall leaves and other decorations. The wreaths really showcased the awesome creativity of these wonderful girls. For a fun twist we threw in some teamwork activities. Liv and Kaitlyn led the girls in some teamwork fun with puzzles, word scramble and word search. The girls had to work together in teams and really did a great job. Thanks to all our generous volunteers who continue to share their time with the beautiful girls at New Life. Chicktime wishes everyone a blessed Thanksgiving.
October Update
ACTS Church Lakeway put together some great workshops for the girls this month. Each girl crafted her own warm and cozy blanket. It was a favorite activity and they loved that they got to keep this snuggly blanket for themselves. What a treat! Thank you Jody for leading the station. Lisa led the fun snack station where the girls made pudding pumpkin patches and trail mix. They also made little oranges into halloween pumpkins. Carolyn taught us all about creativity with this beautiful craft which had an inspirational message. Thanks to all of our volunteers for sharing your time and talent with the girls at New Life. You truly make a difference in the lives of these precious girls.
September Update
Loving Me and God’s Love was the theme this month. Lora Williams put together a team of workshop leaders that shared their own personal experience to show the young girls at New Life hope for the future. Lora led the Loving Me station where she about growing up in a culture of drugs and abuse and how she was saved to become the person she is today. She explained that the past and what happened in it does not define who you choose to be. The session had lots of laughter and tears. Diane talked to the girls about Loving Me Through Relationships. This was valuable and thought provoking information for all of us. Finally, Jarisha shared The Depth of God’s Love. Her story is one to which so many of the girls and volunteers can relate. Thank you to our excellent leaders and volunteers for making it a positive and hopeful Chicktime experience for the girls.
August Update
It’s back to school time! What a great bunch of volunteers to come out and spend time with the girls getting them all geared up for school! Lori and Katy led the activities this month. We had a fun station making slap bracelets, and really cute book marks. Lot’s of stamping supplies were provided to make the activity very creative. In Chapel a nice relaxing Yoga session was going on with lots of participation. What a great way to chill out before the busy school year starts. In the gym we had an expert teach us about creative ways to journal. The girls were taught that journaling can be a great way to express your feelings, thoughts and ideas. Thanks to all our volunteers for the great activities and participation.
July Update
Corrina Green engaged the girls this month with her love of party planning. Our station leaders were busy showing the girls a variety of party planning tactics. Corrina and team of Payton, Emma and Kate showed us how to decorate cupcakes and use fondant. Icing cupcakes is always a great activity for the girls and who doesn’t love cake at a party! Cheryl along with Katy and Dorothy provided all the ingredients for a party snack bag along with making bookmarks. Stephanie, Megan and Leanna played party games and painted nails. The girls really enjoyed these party planning activities on such a hot summer day. Thank you to all our volunteers who came out to help.
June Update
What a great experience this month at Chicktime. We had three fun and fabulous activities. Thank you Cora for leading the workshop called My Amazing Self. Here we set the stage for each girl to picture herself as a successful grown woman and what would she say to the girls at New Life when she came back to bring her message. Each girl crafted her message and walked up on stage to deliver a powerful statement that engaged everyone in the room. We mixed in a little creativity with Mindy’s butterfly box station. The girls really enjoyed decorating butterfly shaped boxes with glitter, pom poms and other crafty accessories. Finally, always a favorite is make your own ice cream and decorating cookies led by Carolyn. The ice cream always turns out delicious when you make it from scratch. We decorated butterfly cookies with blue berries and strawberries. Thank you to all our wonderful volunteers who came to spend the day with the girls at New Life.
May Update
Thanks to Beth Ann for leading a wonderful day of spiritual growth and thought provoking activities for the girls at New Life. One of our volunteers was touched by the girls who prayed with Valerie at the testimonial station. What a wonderful experience to see our New Life girls restored by God’s nurturing love. Thanks to the over 25 volunteers who came to spend this special day with these special girls.
April Update
It’s Luau time at New Life! Thanks to the sweet ladies from Mount Olive Lutheran Church led by Sandra Hatchett we had a fun filled day of Hawaiian themed activities. Sandra led the game station in the gym. We had an exciting round of limbo that the girls loved. All kinds of games were spread around the gym for the girls to play and tossing the huge beach balls was a favorite activity. Phyllis led the Island craft station. The girls made beautiful hibiscus flowers, Tiki masks and fish sand art. Melissa led the Tiki snack station. Delicious brownies were decorated like Tiki masks, gummies were used to make octopus snacks and also we decorated rice crispy treats. Thanks ladies for a great day of fun with the precious girls at New Life Children’s Center.
March Update
It was carnival time at New Life in March thanks to our workshop leader Merrilee. It was also the national day of volunteering and we had the best turn out ever! 61 volunteers were there to play with the girls at New Life. The Sigma Delta Lambda Sorority showed up in full force representing 4 area Universities: University of Texas at Austin, Texas A&M at San Antonio, Texas Lutheran and Texas State. Thank you to these wonderful ladies for serving the community. We had so many great activities at the carnival game station. There was Giant Jenga, Pig Races, all kinds of tossing games, and nachos. In the life skills station we made “stained glass” butterflies and snack mixes. The girls love to do for others so in the chapel we made thank you cards for all the volunteers that serve New Life throughout the year. Thank you to all the volunteers that made the day so special for the girls.
February Update:
Special thanks to our fabulous leaders, Sandra, Carolyn, Lori, Nancy and Merrilee for leading the workshops this month. You are so greatly appreciated! The girls love to give back to the community and this month they put together rice and bean packs for those in need in South Texas. Your precious hands are feeding those who might go hungry otherwise. Our theme Daughters of the King showed us that as girls and women we are crowned in His glory. Best of all it was our Founder, Lori’s Birthday celebration. Everyone enjoyed a beautiful and delicious cake. Thank you to all our great volunteers who showed up to make the day so special.
January News
Carol Biesemeier and her band of volunteers provided a great experience for the girls at New Life. They really enjoyed learning how to sew by making their very own pillow cases, There were beautiful fabric combinations with bright and bold prints, something for anyone’s taste. Many of the girls have never even seen a sewing machine and watching them learn to use one was a pure joy. Mr. Jay is always a big hit with the girls, playing the guitar and singing really fun songs. Such great entertainment! Carolyn led the snack and game station where we also celebrated our Director of Volunteers, Lisa Brown’s birthday with delicious cake pops. What a treat!
December Update
Santa Clause is coming to town at the New Life Children’s Center! Thank you to all the volunteers that met in the gym to coordinate a special Christmas event for the deserving girls at New Life. As the girls started to arrive we had fun ice breaker activities so we could all get to know one another. Then praise and worship raised the roof of the gym with the praise band leading us in songs of the season. Delicious holiday goodies were enjoyed by all; flowing chocolate fountain, homemade candies, cookies, sandwiches, and punch. Then, the exciting visit from Santa Clause! Each girl received an individual photo with Santa to keep and save in her own Christmas frame that she made herself. Best of all, each girl received a gift to keep. The gift consisted of a colorful gym bag filled with bath and body lotion, snuggly socks, a cuddly teddy bear, a Chicktime sweatshirt and lip gloss. Blessings for a wonderful New Year and hope you will join us for our January event.
November Update
We had a wonderful time in November with lots of great activities. Thank you to Janie and Nancy for the snack and craft stations. The girls really enjoyed the coloring and the candy, of course. Elena and Maria led us in the gym where we had all kinds of fun dancing. The girls even did the Chicken Dance. Rose and her daughter did a great job engaging the girls in rock painting. Rose will be hiding the rocks all around Canyon Lake and the surrounding area to promote Chicktime and New Life. Thanks to all our volunteers who showed up to spend time with the deserving girls at New Life.
October Update
What a fun fall event courtesy of Nancy Torres who led this month’s activities. In the gym, Sandra led the games. One of the favorites was the Oreo cookie game. Put an Oreo on your forehead and try to get it into your mouth without touching it. Also, some volleyball was enjoyed. Michelle led the girls in crafts where they created beautiful masquerade masks. Always a favorite is snacks. Nancy led the girls in a variety of creative snack crafts, creating spiders and ghosts and other interesting creatures. Join us next month for another fun fall event.
September Update
Fit for life was the theme this month. Lora Williams put together a team of workshop leaders that shared their own personal experience to show the young girls at New Life hope for the future. Lora led the Holistically Fit station where she and her sister talked about growing up in a culture of drugs and abuse and what they are doing today. They explained that the past and what happened in it does not define who you choose to be. The session had lots of laughter and tears. Diane talked to the girls about how to Identify Unhealthy Relationships. This was valuable and thought provoking information for all of us. Finally, Jarisha shared God’s Love for You. Here story is one to which so many of the girls and volunteers can relate. Thank you to our excellent leaders and volunteers for making it a positive and hopeful Chicktime experience for the girls.
August Update
Thank you Dona for bringing your friends to lead the activities for August. Without you we would not have had these great activities to engage the girls at New LIfe. The girls deserve this great day of pampering. Dona lead the manicure station where the girls soaked their hands and polished their nails in an array of beautiful colors. Donna led a great program of self care for the girls, then they developed their own self care plan featuring your mind, body, friends & family, spirit, and hobbies & fun. Stephanie and Jackie showed the girls how to take care of their skin with an educational program about facials. Dona, Donna, Stephanie and Jackie, thank you for being here for the girls and being a part of Chicktime!
July Update
Special thanks to our long time volunteers who came to play with the girls at New Life Children’s Center. The girls loved Sandra’s bubble station! What a great idea for some outdoor fun. Sandra also created paint spinning art with of all things a salad spinner. Some beautiful designs were developed with this interesting technique. What kid doesn’t love to play with slime! Carol and her helpers Julie and Katy showed the girls how to make their own glittery slime along with elephant toothpaste. Always a treat is making your own ice cream. The reaction of salt, ice and friction created a creamy delicious vanilla ice cream that the girls enjoyed with some homemade sugar cookies. Please join us in August as we pamper the girls that live at New Life.
May Update
Merrilee Berger brought The Prom to New Life this month. It was so beautiful and so special. She transformed the gym into an elegant setting for enjoying a delicious lunch from Gennaro’s Trattoria and fabulous desserts provided by all the volunteers. Over a hundred dresses were donated so the girls could select one that suited her taste and complimented her figure. Volunteers helped the girls with hair, make-up and nails. The girls were pampered and adorned with beautiful dresses and flowers. Our New Life girls are so beautiful to us on any given day, it was a delight to give them this experience to dress up and feel extra special. After getting all fancied up, the girls spent some time making paper wrist corsages and picture frames to be used for their “Prom” picture. The luncheon of Chicken Fettuccine Alfredo, salad and Gennaro’s famous garlic knots was delicious. All the beautiful desserts were nicely displayed by long time volunteers Katy Barger and Tara Johnson who also helped with serving. It was a momentous occasion with over 40 volunteers showing up to help. Thank you to all the volunteers. During our meeting before we got started with all the activities, we had a special announcement. Our Junior Leader, Kerrilee Berger is heading off to the Airforce Acadamy. We were able to celebrate Kerrilee with a breakfast and special gift. We will miss her and wish her all the best as she starts this new chapter in her life. Thank you Merrilee for this wonderful experience and all the hard work you did to make it a reality.
April Update
April was filled with Easter goodness. Phyllis led the adorable snack station with “bunny butts” made with a donut hole and carrots in the ground made from cupcakes and candies. What delicious treats. Sandra led the egg craft, and cross and bunny clay crafts. The decoupage eggs made with fabric were beautiful and the girls always love to make crafts with clay. In the Chapel Patricia and Carol led us in making really cute bunnies out of tube socks, what a clever idea. We also colored butterfly decorations. It was a special day with great volunteers from Texas State and the military sorority Kappa Epsilon Psi. We are really looking forward to next month’s Prom. We hope you will join us!
March Update
Our beloved Anna hosted March Chicktime at the New Life Children’s Center. The theme was Dr. Seuss, Oh, The Places You’ll Go! It was a fun day filled with crafts, games and goodies! Anna led Dr. Seuss bingo in the chapel. She had spent the week before building all the bingo cards. It was funny when we played “blackout”, and everyone screamed “BINGO!” at the same time! So much fun! Sandra led card making and letters to the military in the gym. The girls love to give to others and writing the letters to those serving our country left a great impression on each one who wrote a letter. Karen led cookie decorating in the LIfe Skills building. Sticking with the Dr. Seuss theme we decorated Hat shapes from The Cat in the Hat and airplane shapes with yummy frosting and sprinkles. Delicious! Anna will be leaving us now moving away from the area to face new adventures. We celebrated her last Canyon Lake Chicktime with flowers and a gift of the Oh, The Places You’ll Go! book signed by all of us. We will miss you Anna!
February Update
We had an awesome turnout of volunteers this month. Thanks to the girls from Texas State that came to play with the girls this month as well as all our other great volunteers. We did a lot of really fun activities. Renee led us in painting the girls nails. Always a favorite, the girls love to be pampered. Kym led us in flower arranging, something we haven’t done before. The flowers were so beautiful and colorful. We learned about the history of the carnation. Carmen and Lisa led the station for cookie decorating. They were so delicious, and we also had a fun game of heads up! Sharing in the girls laughter brought us such joy.
Happy Anniversary Chicktime!
Our founder, Lori Rhodes, started Chicktime ten years ago in January. This month was very special with lots of volunteers, cake, cupcakes, and a special presentation by Lisa Brown. Special guest Dan from Upbring joined us with his daughter as did the New Life Executive Director, Jacob with his children. Thank you to all our volunteers who made the day so wonderful. Carol put together a lot of great activities for the girls of New Life. We started in the Gym making pillowcases. This is a great activity that the girls love. Marlene and friends unpacked their sewing machines and beautiful fabric and showed the girls how to sew. Many of the girls reminisced about sewing with their grandma or aunt. It was touching to hear their memories. In the Chapel, Jay played the guitar and ukulele for the girls. They really got into the music, dancing and singing. Thanks Jay for being a positive and uplifting man in the lives of the girls. The Life Skills building had many activities: napkin folding, card making, lots of cake, cupcakes, and fruit. It was a great day and a great celebration of this wonderful organization that serves girls at places like New LIfe all across the country. Thank you Lori for your vision and leadership.
December Update
Santa Clause is coming to town at the New Life Children’s Center! Thank you to all the volunteers that met in the gym to coordinate a special Christmas event for the deserving girls at New Life. As the girls started to arrive we had fun ice breaker activities so we could all get to know one another. Then praise and worship raised the roof of the gym with Kristy and the praise band leading us in songs of the season. Delicious holiday goodies were enjoyed by all; flowing chocolate fountain, homemade candies, cookies, sandwiches, and punch. Then, the exciting visit from Santa Clause! Each girl received an individual photo with Santa to keep and save in her own Christmas frame that she made herself. Best of all, each girl received a gift to keep. The gift consisted of a colorful gym bag filled with bath and body lotion, snuggly socks, a cuddly teddy bear, a watch, candy, a Chicktime sweatshirt and a book written by Lori Rhodes entitled Prayers Over Our Children. Blessings for a wonderful New Year and hope you will join us for our January event.
November Update:
Sandra and friends planned a great day for us this month. It was full of crafts and delicious crafty snacks. In honor of the coming Thanksgiving holiday we made really cute turkeys in a variety of media: coloring, sand art, stickers and more. Another creative station featured the arrival of fall with modeling clay, paint, and special papers in which we made beautiful leaves. The snack station was a big hit with amazing ideas of how to make fall designs from candy and cookies. Each girl put her own spin on the turkeys, acorns and pilgrim hats we made from pretzels, Hersey kisses, donut holes, and other kinds of candy. To sum it up, we had a very engaging and fun filled day. Thank you to all our volunteers who came to spend time and show the girls of New Life some much needed love. For more great photos of our event visit the Photo Gallery.
Welcome to our News Page!
Please scroll down to enjoy our latest news and keep scrolling to peruse the news from past months to absorb more of our story!
June News
*If you did not receive the invitation/date change to our June event in your inbox, please update your contact information by clicking the ‘subscribe’ button at the bottom of every web page, select TX- Canyon Lake from the menu.
NEW DATE: Tuesday, June 19th
NEW TIME: 9:00-12:00noon
Please visit the events calendar and register for this Chicktime event. It is extra special and we need to know how many are coming!
** Also, we invite you to join us as we enjoy the New Life Girl’s talent show on Thursday, June 21st. Please arrive at New Life by 9:30 for the talent show so we can get settled in our seats! The show starts at 10:30 and will feature the girls performing Christian worship songs.
Thanks to everyone who participated in our last Chicktim event. We had a ball with Audra Hughes and her photography sessions with the girls, Katy Rhodes and her make-up tips clinic, Judy Golden and the girl’s favorite crochet ladies, and a very special leader from Austin named Helen Peck. Please continue reading below to hear about Helen’s activity… it was increcible!
Helen Peck, a 13-year-old Girl Scout and 8th grader from Austin, is working on her Girl Scout Silver Award project, and she recently brought her great idea and excellent organizational skills to New Life Children’s Center. If you are not familiar with a Girl Scout Silver Project, it is a big, sustainable project a girl plans, leads, and implements to help out her community.
Helen attended a “We Are Girls Conference” in Austin and went to a “Kiss Your Worries Goodbye” class where girls get to make miniature dolls out of pipe cleaners and scrap cloth materials. As they each create their own unique doll, they make a special connection with it, and the doll becomes a sort of diary replacement that a girl can tell her private troubles, worries, and special moments to—actually saying these things aloud instead of keeping them locked up inside. This is especially appealing to girls who don’t like journaling (or writing in a diary) or for those who have trouble with writing.
So Helen wanted to set up a worry doll program in a place that helps girls. A place like New Life. Helen thought of New Life because she knew her church (St. Paul Lutheran Church in Austin) makes quilts and has donation collections for the New Life girls. She made several example dolls, and offered to coordinate the initial set-up with all materials and hold a workshop to teach the girls how to make the dolls and the staff how to teach the process.
We loved Helen’s idea, but because of some of the behaviors of our residents, we would be unable to use the pipe cleaners. We have girls here who are self-harmers so we don’t allow anything sharp, metal or pointed. So Helen proposed using Wikki Stixinstead of pipe cleaners to make the worry dolls, The Wiki Stix can be bent and posed like pipe cleaners, but they don’t have wires inside. This was an excellent solution because they are sold in many stores and are inexpensive to boot. With Wikki Stix, the girls can also use their creativity to make accessories and extras to go with their dolls, like dogs, cats, purses, earrings, sunglasses, and necklaces.
The class allowed the girls to be creative, watch their own doll come to life, and then to confide their worries and concerns to the dolls instead of keeping them inside themselves. Helen left us with instructions and enough supplies for each cottage to hold another Wikki Stix session again.
May News
Join us on May 12 from 8:15am-12:00noon at the New Life Children’s Center for a day of cultivating inner and outer beauty!
Activities:
- Make up Tips/Make-Overs- hosted by Katy Rhodes and her Baylor friends
- Glamour Shots- hosted by Audra Hughes of ‘Through Audra’s Eyes Photography’
- Clever Techniques to Clear the Cobwebs of your Mind (Worry Dolls)- hosted by Helen Peck
- Crocheting Beauty- hosted by Judy Golden and our fabulous Crochet Ladies
Volunteer Needs:
We need volunteers to show up and play along with the girls. This all important bonding time while oohing and ahhing and telling the girls how beautiful they look as they are being photographed, crocheting along with them on the sofas, and learning together that we all have worries and develop techniques to reduce them… shows the girls in tangible ways that they matter. The volunteers who just show up and play along with the girls is possibly the most magical part of Chicktime morning! So gather your girlfriends, and your teenage daughters 12 and older and just SHOW UP! We don’t even require an RSVP… the more the merrier!! 🙂
FIESTA IN APRIL!
In true San Antonio tradition, we had a party in April at New Life! In honor of NIOSA, our friends showed up with scrumptious treats from around the globe…South America, Africa, Japan, Greece, Germany, Italy and the Good ‘ol USA! The girls tried many new tasty treats – some they liked and others they graciously disposed of! That’s okay…we are just here to broaden their horizons!
The girls had a blast at the outdoor game station
led by our Carnival Queens Paula and Haylee Oliver!
Jenny Rudd and the crew from “Corks, Coffee and Canvas” led the girls in creating their very own special work of art on canvas! It is amazing what can be created out of patience, time, instruction and love…
April News
Attention Ladies! Mari Alexander and Jennifer Clarke invite you to join us on Saturday, April 14th from 8 am to Noon as we bring FIESTA to the 80 abused and neglected girls that call New Life Children’s Center home (Chicktime Canyon Lake). This has become an annual tradition for us and the girls adore this activity. We have fun themed games, activities, crafts and, of course, their favorite – FOOD! We need hands to help with crafts and games, but we know we have some amazing cooks out there and we are asking you to share your gift of cooking with the girls. We create sort of a Night In Old San Antonio area where the girls have the opportunity to sample foods from different cultures and countries (and the good ol USA!). 80 sounds like alot, but it’s really not when it’s just a sample.
If you would like to join us on April 14th, please contact Jennifer Clarke on fb, todjen@gvtc.com or 830-456-5334 for more details. We need to hear from you soon!
Chicktime: Inspire the next generation and change your life
article written by Carolyn Boden
As we drove from Lakeway to Canyon Lake, we anticipated seeing and spending time with the girls again and meeting the other volunteers from Chicktime. This month the leaders were from San Marcos and the events that were planned included manicures, making collages, singing and creating tote bags.
The first activity of the day was giving the girls manicures. As they soaked their hands in heart shaped bowls of warm scented water, I couldn’t help but think of the journey of where the girls have been and what the future is holding for them to discover. Some hands showed signs of nails that were chewed down and arms that were scarred from self-harm. Then the girls selected the perfect color of polish for their nails and helped each other pick out stickers and embellishments to apply on their freshly polished nails. To see the beautiful transformation of their nails and hands, reminded me of the beautiful transformation that must be going on inside of them during their time at New Life.
Next it was on to the chapel to sing with a group of musicians… the songs that they lifted up were filled with the sweetest harmony and heart-felt praise. We sang some country songs along with praise songs and recalling the lyrics… the words seem to inspire the girls… words that reminded the girls to know that they are beautiful and loved.
The rain was still coming down as we left the chapel and made our way down to the cottage by the river. Here the girls would spend time making collages from images they found in magazines. The assignment was to close their eyes and think of where they wanted to be in 15 years, what was their dream if they could do anything they wanted and money was not an option. The dreams of the girls were filled with the same dreams you and I have… one girl dreamt of being a forensic pathologist so she could help others. One girl pasted 2 images of children with cleft palettes and her dream was to adopt children like them. Others had dreams of being fashion models or artists. Their creative minds were busy scanning the pages of the magazines to find the perfect images that reflected their individual dreams.
The final event was to create handmade tote bags from bandanas. After finding their favorite colors, they cut and tied the edges together and some even filled their totes with the other items that they made during the day. This was another moment of watching their battered little hands and arms from self-harming being used productively to create something beautiful! New Life is definitely a place where these girls are given a second chance in their lives, a chance to dream again.
At Chicktime, we’ve been given a wonderful opportunity to participate in the lives of these girls… not just by sharing our time, our love, and our passion with them, but to allow them the freedom to discover their own passions.
I pray that God will help us recognize the beauty in each of these girls and help them to become what is already inside of them… what God himself has already placed in them. The desire and calling that is a reflection of God himself.
Why do we do this? Because of what God does for us… He reminds us that we do matter to Him no matter what our past looks like, we too have a second chance to start over as His children. We believe the girls at New Life need to be reminded that they do matter to someone and that there is hope and love in this world. Nobody showed that better to us than Christ himself.
To learn more about Chicktime, visit www.chicktime.com <http://chicktime.wpengine.com> . Chicktime is a grass roots movement created to serve the next generation, by bringing together groups of women using their unique gifts in the service of others. Chicktime New Life encourages the girls at the Center through fun projects that bring a bright spot to their lives. New Life Residential Center is a ministry of Lutheran Social Services of the South (LSSS) whose mission is to provide help, healing and hope in the name of Jesus Christ. LSSS annually serves about 45,000 persons across Texas and Louisiana.
Link LSSS to: http://www.newlifechildrenscenter.org/
Link New Life to: http://www.newlifechildrenscenter.org/
March News
Please join us and help pamper the girls!!
What a Wonderful Time We Had
article written by Jennifer Clarke
On Saturday, February 11, we gathered on a cold and breezy morning at New Life with such lovely activities planned for the precious girls there. Our Chick Leaders this month, Christi Ingles and Dee Patterson, had enlisted the help of Ricki Anderson and Robin Reed to lead stations, and we had our quarterly regulars, Judy and the crochet crew on hand to lead their station! We had several other volunteers on hand this morning to assist our leaders and hang out with the girls.
The day began with Robin and Christi inspiring the girls to create Valentine cards, but not just any beautiful Valentine with a heartfelt sentiment. These Valentine’s were created to be hand delivered to the residents at the Live Oak Nursing Home in Blanco, Texas. NLCC has formed a relationship with this home and does activities from time to time there. We were provided with the names of the residents so that the greetings could be personally addressed. There is never a lack of creativity in activities like this!
The next stop was games with Ricki Anderson. We played a guessing game in which a card was placed in a holder on our foreheads and we had the chance to ask each person in our group questions that could only be answered with a “yes” or “no” answer on our way to guessing what our card said. This was very hard, challenging and FUN for all! Boy did we laugh!
On to the chapel and some downtime with the ladies at the crochet station…the girls would learn how to make a circle scarf and they seemed very interested in learning how to create something new! It was amazing to see the kindness and care that each volunteer took with the girls. Some of the girls were quite adept at this crochet thing having made numerous different items with their skillful hands! Others required a helping hand to hold the needle and have the just right amount of tension in the yarn. Quite a change from our previous rambunctious activity – this was a time to settle down and concentrate on our amazing ability to create something with our own hands.
Finally, we reached the cookie and cupcake decorating station and boy did Dee go all out on this activity! The girls were provided with a cupcake and two cookies to decorate using a variety of frostings, applicators, sprinkles, whipped creams, strawberries and chocolates! Most of the girls challenged themselves to include every single item on their blank palates! We LOVE to eat and the snack activity is always one of our favorite parts of the morning! A little taste of heaven and the icing on a beautiful and fun filled morning at Chicktime!
February News
You are Invited…Yes! You!!!
Our Day With Chicktime @ NEW LIFE
[story by Carolyn Boden, New Life volunteer]
“A new you… the same you but better.” That was the theme-of-the-day for the girls at New Life Children’s Center in Canyon Lake, when a group of 11 volunteers from ACTS Church Lakeway joined the New Life Chicktime group for a day that none of us will soon forget.
“Chicktime”* is the wonderful mother/daughter service group that is very active and involved at New Life. This was the first trip to New Life for our ACTS women’s group, and we were excited, but didn’t really know what to expect.
We left Austin around 6:30 a.m. and caravanned to San Marcos to pick up the daughter of one of our group at Texas State University, then we all headed to New Life. On the way we visited, watched the sun rise, and anticipated the day ahead.
At first we were just going to volunteer, but when Chicktime founder Lori Rhodes contacted us about leading a station, we knew God was asking more of us. I believe He had a bigger experience in mind for us that day. As it turned out, the time with the girls and the Chicktime volunteers had a huge impact on all of us.
Our group led a scrapbooking station where the girls designed the front of their personal journals. We also shared a handout with the girls, to give them ideas of what they could journal about and how journaling can tell a story of our journey with God.
Some of our group also volunteered in the zumba and yoga stations, or joined the girls as they moved from station to station.
We were very grateful to Nancy and Kelly of Chicktime, who answered all the questions we had before, during, and after the event. My heart was humbled as I experienced Christ’s love in each of the women who were there that day… their love of Christ for each other and for the girls.
ACTS Church Lakeway’s mission is “Sending Changed People into a Changing World” and as you read the quotes below from our group, you can see how we were all “changed” in one way or another on January 14th! I will always remember that special day, and am looking forward to being “SENT” on the next Chicktime event at New Life!
In their own words:
“Ashley and I discussed how those girls touched our lives more than they will ever know! We are looking forward to more time spent at Chicktime.”
“It’s a huge accomplishment to get the schedules of 11 busy women together, let alone be able to make a difference in the lives of some special kids.”
“I didn’t know what to expect and was struck by…just girls wanting to be girls – creating something beautiful…finding their favorite colors, words, patterns. We may never know what that brief time meant to them but certainly touched me giving me such a profound thankfulness for the blessings in my life and a desire to come back!“
“Attending a ChickTime event at the New Life Treatment Center was a privilege. The partnership between these two organizations to improve the lives of young women is inspirational. Leaving New Life that day, I knew I would be back very soon with ChickTime. As I wait for that day, I continue to pray for all those amazing girls who gave more to me than I possibly could have given them.”
“I was touched by the girls’ looking out for each other and thanking us for coming. The last two groups were smaller, allowing some one-on-one interaction. One young lady put her deceased Dad’s motto on her journal cover…and her son’s initials…my heart really went out to her. They were so creative, and the time seemed to fly. I’m looking forward to future visits.”
“One girl was really looking out for her friend and wanting to help her since her friend’s father had just passed away. Her friend’s father’s favorite Bible verse was John 3:16 and she found a sticker that had that verse on it. Although she wanted to use it on her journal, she really wanted her friend to have it. When she gave it to her friend, her friend just melted and thanked her. I was touched by the selfless act and compassion she showed. You could really see some of the friendships and bonds these girls have with each other.
I was touched when they took the time to thank us before they left. They weren’t prompted to do so but did. I can only hope my teens would do that in a similar instance.
I loved watching all their creative thinking going on….”
“I would echo the sentiment about the girls helping each other, especially if one was ahead of another. All the girls were very respectful and eager to follow through on the brief instructions. I thanked one girl for coming to share time with our station and she looked me in the eye and said “no, thank YOU” … to be sure I really knew she appreciated us there. Looking forward to going back again!”
*Chicktime is a grass roots movement created to serve the next generation, by bringing together groups of women using their unique gifts in the service of others. Chicktime New Life encourages the girls at the Center through fun projects that bring a bright spot to their lives.
JANUARY NEWS!!
Mark your calendars for January 14th for Chicktime at New Life Children’s Center. Nancy Pappas and Kelly Vizzone are leading a wonderful morning of activities perfect for the New Year. The girls will learn tips to take better care of themselves and hopefully get a foundation of healthy new routines to help in the restoration process as they heal from years of abuse and neglect.
We need your help! So please plan to join us!
January 14, 2012
8:30-12:00
New Life Children’s Center
650 Scarborough, Canyon Lake, TX 78132
Our December event was magical. Chicktime Hope brought out their famous praise band and led the girls in Christmas carols and worship music. The surprise of the day was the lifted hands of many young women obviously connecting with their spiritual side that beautiful morning. So many of these young women are desperately wanting to believe they are loved beyond measure and music has a way of connecting them to the source of that love like nothing else can. Thank you to the 40+ volunteers who showed up to make Christmas Merry for so many!! Can’t wait to see you again in the New Year!!
DECEMBER NEWS!
Terri Watts lead the New Life girls in a day of ‘giving back’. We hand painted pots that will be filled with flowers and delivered to nursing homes… 600 pounds of rice and beans were packed with love for the local food bank… Christine Spencer taught her renowned etiquette class… and the crochet ladies were back to help the girls make warm hats for themselves and to share.One New Life girl who was quite entertained by the etiquette class commented that she felt ridiculous eating like a princess… that she had never felt like a princess in her entire life. Later in the morning as she was painting her pot, she commented that it was a princess pot! Guess acting like a princess helped her to feel like the princess that she is… not the abused and broken young girl who came to New Life many months ago.
New Life is a place of resotration. Join us for Chicktime and BE the love of God to a young girl walking the path to resoration. Contact Lisa Brown to learn more about New Life or join in the monthly Hope Tour (the last Thursday of every month). lisa.brown@lsss.org. Visit the chicktime events calendar to save the date and join us for Chicktime at New Life Children’s Center or contact info@chicktime.com for more information.
