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Home Tour Is A Family Tradition

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By BARBARA ROUTEN, Tribune correspondent

Published: December 19, 2007

Updated: 12/17/2007 06:35 pm

BRANDON - Every year for about the past decade, for as long as the Brandon Service League has been organizing its Holiday Home Tour, three generations of women in Sharon Smith's family have visited the decorated homes together.

Smith, of Brandon, her mom, Diane Allain of Riverview, and Smith's daughter, Calene Hernandez of Lakeland, make the pilgrimage together, just the three of them.

"Then we go to lunch and make a day of it - our own girls' day out," Hernandez said.

But this year they changed their tradition. Hernandez's infant daughter, Caitlyn, joined them, adding a fourth generation to the family outing. Caitlyn was the youngest tour member the league hosted that day.

When asked whether they decorate their homes like the ones on the tours, they nodded in affirmation but added disclaimers.

Allain said, "Not as nice as these," and Smith said, "Not as beautiful, but we do decorate."

The Holiday Home Tour is the General Federation of Women's Clubs' Brandon Service League's main fundraiser of the year. Money raised enables members to help local charities and give scholarships to students.

For information about the league, go to www.bsl.cc/ or write to brandonservicel @yahoo.com.

'Believe Again' Is Advent Theme

BRANDON - St. Andrew's United Methodist Church, 3315 Bryan Road, will hold services for the fourth Sunday of Advent at 8:30, 9:50 and 11:10 a.m. Sunday. The Rev. Bob Gibbs will ask his parishioners to "Believe Again That God Is Love."

Advent is the liturgical season that begins four Sundays before Christmas. Gibbs' Advent message Dec. 2 was "Believe Again in the Peace of God." On Dec. 9, it was "Believe Again in the Justice of God," and on Dec. 16 it was "Believe Again in the Hope God Brings."

"These four Sundays before Christmas give us time to reflect on the incarnation of God in Christ and to prepare ourselves spiritually for the celebration of Jesus' birth," Gibbs said in a recent church newsletter. "We use this time of preparation individually in our own spiritual lives, and as a church with all of the programs and activities of the season.

"This year our Advent theme is 'Believe Again.' In our times of worship, we will be considering and celebrating the hope, joy, peace and love that Christ brings, and reminding ourselves to believe again, to believe still in these marvelous gifts of God."

Members of the congregation have been active this season. They have been ringing bells for the Salvation Army at a local Publix, and on Dec. 9, they held the church's annual Jesus Walk for Missions, in which they spread information about and collected items for local and international missions. They include the Brandon Care Pregnancy Center, Cynthia Pinckney Ministries, the Emergency Care Help Organization, Mississippi Hurricane Relief, Steppin' Stone Farm and a mission in Zambia in southern Africa. Church members also are preparing to serve a Christmas feast for those in need.

For information, call the church office at (813) 689-6849.

Homeless, Hungry To Share Christmas Meal

BRANDON - Local United Methodist churches will help serve a Christmas dinner to the homeless and hungry from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Christmas Day at the Bill Carey Brandon Boys & Girls Club, 213 N. Knights Ave.

The churches are the Seffner, Limona Village Chapel and St. Andrew's United Methodist churches and First United Methodist Church of Brandon.

"Guests will gather ... to celebrate the birth of Jesus and to hear the good news that Jesus has not forgotten his children," said the December 2007 St. Andrew's UMC church bulletin.

"I am co-hosting the event with them, as I did last year," said Cynthia Pinckney of Cynthia Pinckney Ministries, which provides food and supplies monthly to the homeless and needy. "I will be responsible for the clothing, toiletries, blankets, shoes and other necessities."

The Rev. Susan Lewis of St. Andrew's said no more volunteers are needed, but organizers would like to welcome anyone who is homeless or hungry to the holiday dinner. Guests will be treated to a hot meal, fellowship, haircuts, blood pressure screenings, clothing and other donated items and services.

Transportation will be provided every 30 minutes beginning at 11:30 a.m. from Able Body Labor, 12006 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Seffner, and Labor Ready, 110 E. Brandon Blvd., Brandon.

For information, contact First United Methodist at (813) 689-4161; St. Andrew's at (813) 689-6849; or Pinckney at (813) 571-1556 or cp@cynthia pinckneyministries.org.

Send news and photos of community interest to Barbara Routen at The Tampa Tribune, 505 W. Robertson St., Brandon FL 33511, e-mail neighbors@tampabay .rr.com or call (813) 657-4531.

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