Meet The Family: Michelle Luhrs

Michelle Luhrs was one of the first members to bring Family Promise to fruition in New Braunfels. Once FPGNB was official, she served as the coordinator for Unity Church before transitioning to the Board. She currently serves as Board President in her second term.

Michelle first became involved while looking for a way to give back not only money but time to her community. Rev Tutor at Unity pointed her toward the Family Promise program and invited her to the early meetings.

When not supporting FPGNB, Michelle is a mother of three, working full-time for Workplace Resource, a commercial furniture provider in San Antonio. Her hobby is remodeling old homes.

“[Family Promise] is fulfilling to be able to provide a secure place for families,” she says. “It is so much more than giving them shelter and food. Family promise teaches people how to manage money, find a stable job, secure childcare, and transportation, so they are set up for success. FPGNB has had a wonderful impact on my life.”

Michelle shared her most memorable moment with us: “One Sunday when we were late converting a Sunday School room to a bedroom for a Mom and her two daughters. My children were there, and I was stressed about running late and being a little short with them. The Mom and her daughters arrived and came into the room while we were still in there. The Mom started crying and hugged me, thanking us so much for creating a beautiful space for her and her daughters. She couldn’t stop telling me how grateful she was to have a safe, beautiful room to sleep in. I’ll never forget the look on my children’s faces watching this happen and the way it changed our perspective forever. It helps us to feel so much gratitude for the things we take for granted, and it shows how a simple act can have a bigger impact than we could ever imagine.”

She looks forward to building on the relationship FPGNB has with the churches and finalizing plans for a transitional home.

Thank you, Michelle Luhrs, for your work and dedication to FPGNB!

Back to School Pro Tips

'Tis the season to head back to school! Are you ready? Are your kids excited to see their friends again? Grab that classroom supplies list, and let’s look at some of the best ways to save money on back-to-school basics! 1. Texas Sales Tax Holiday: August 6 – 8 Coming up August 6 - 8, 2021 is the Sales Tax Holiday, where state law exempts sales tax on qualified items—such as clothing, footwear, school supplies, and backpacks—priced at below $100. That saves shoppers about $8 on every $100 spent. A full list of qualifying items can be found on TexasTaxHoliday.org. The Comptroller’s office estimates that shoppers will save an estimated $107.3 million in state and local sales tax during the holiday. 2. Get Those Extra Savings Check local ads, social media, and storefronts for back-to-school sales and savings. There are also wonderful resources like Coupon Mom, which shows you what’s on sale in your neighborhood and the matching coupon. For online shopping, look to sites like RetailMeNot for savings on base prices, shipping, and more. Also, make sure to grab the digital apps for the stores you frequent. Target and Walmart, for example, have serious savings perks on their apps for consistent shoppers. Oftentimes they offer savings you don’t see in stores. 3. Buy Used Whether you’re searching for clothes, backpacks, or books, buying used is an excellent way to save a lot of money on supplies. Consignment shops, garage sales, thrift stores like Community in Schools, and Facebook Marketplace are all great places to look. Required summer reading or in need of a study guide? Check out ThriftBooks for secondhand copies of thousands of titles and free shipping for purchases over $10. 4. Buy in Bulk When planning lunches, consider buying staples in larger sizes to save with bulk pricing and repacking them into smaller sizes. For example, buying a 5-pound bag of mini carrots and putting them in snack-sized plastic bags for a healthy lunch option is a 30% savings over the smaller pre-packaged sizes. 5. Preform a Supply Sweep You may not realize it, but you may have plenty of school supplies around the house from last year’s desk cleanout. Check closets, desk drawers, and basement bins for reusable, money-saving treasures. Make a list of your pens, pencils, highlighters, and any other supplies you already own while shopping for what you still need. 6. Compare Prices If you’re looking at purchasing a bigger-ticket item or electronic this school year, you can save by keeping a keen eye on Amazon’s ever-changing prices. CamelCamelCamel tracks the price range history for every product sold on Amazon, including historical highs and lows. Also, check your grocery store or neighborhood drugstore for bargains on school supplies starting midsummer. Sometimes they offer the same products for cheaper when they’re on sale than at the big-box store. No matter how you choose to shop, there are plenty of options to save money on back-to-school supplies! What are your best practices for the year?

If you make any purchases through Amazon, remember that you can do so through the Amazon Smile Program. Each purchase donates a percentage to Family Promise at no additional cost to you! Click here to sign up!

Meet The Family: David Pope

David Pope first became involved with Family Promise of Greater New Braunfels through the First Baptist Church of New Braunfels. Now a prominent corporate sponsor, his family has also served meals to Family Promise guests, helped to move the FPGNB trailer at the close of the week, and stayed overnight with the guests in the church. David loves how the programs help to restore people and their families to dignity. He says, “Bringing housing, food, and administrative help to families is all the more sweeter when delivered with the love of Christ.” In the future, he wishes to see FPGNB “strengthen their partnerships with God’s people, the church, [and] to do even more to restore people both physically and spiritually.” Outside of FPGNB work, David works with a fantastic group of people in serving the residents and business community at Barnard Donegan Insurance.

Thank you, David Pope, for your work and dedication to FPGNB!