Stone Soup

The old French story Stone Soup was one of my favorite books as a child. It’s the story of three soldiers returning from a long military journey. At the end of a long day, hungry and tired, they come upon a small village. This village is suffering from a famine and the villagers can barely meet their own needs, much less the needs of three soldiers. In the end, the soldiers encourage the villagers to come together, each person contributing one ingredient, to create soup from stones. The result is a feast fit for a king that fed all the villagers.

As a child, I enjoyed this story, but it wasn’t until recently that I realized the significance of what takes place. In the story, a community encounters a need that no one person or family could meet. But when each family contributed what they could, the need was not only met, but the entire village enjoyed a feast.

It’s becoming more and more evident that our community has needs that cannot be met by one person. We learn from Stone Soup that if we all contribute what we have, the entire community enjoys the benefits. Every day at 6 Stones, people like you do just that – they give of their time, talents, and resources. And it’s this collaboration that allows us to cook up our own Stone Soup. We couldn’t do it without each one of you!

‘Many thanks for what you have taught us,’ the peasants said to the soldiers.  ‘We shall never go hungry, now that we know how to make soup from stones..."

‘Oh, it’s all in knowing how,’ said the solders.

What's for lunch?

It’s 11:30am and my stomach is starting to tell me that it’s just about time to eat lunch. As I’m finishing up some work at my desk, I start to think about what I’m hungry for and make a plan to go pick up something to eat. Without a second thought, a run down to the local taco joint and put down 7 bucks for a tasty lunch.

For 55% of students in HEBISD, the question this summer will not be “What do I want for lunch?” but “Is there anything for me to eat at all?” During the school year, these 12,000 kids have the opportunity to eat a full meal for lunch and breakfast while at school. Unfortunately, the summer months don’t just bring a break from homework and tests for these students. The summer months also present a new challenge – food insecurity.

A family that is food insecure has limited or uncertain access to adequate food supply. When a child lives in constant uncertainty about when or if they will be able to eat, it becomes an emotional, physical, and mental challenge for that child.

Fortunately, families in HEB can turn to 6 Stones New Hope for reliable access to food throughout the entire year. With the support of this community, New Hope can continue to be a source of help and hope for these families. So next time you are deciding, “What do I want for lunch?” remember these kiddos whose only question is, “Do I get to eat lunch?”

a mender of bad soles

A man knocked on the office door. He asked if we had a pair of shoes for his friend whose shoes were ripped. I went down stairs to meet the girl and looked at her shoes. They were tattered and worn through. Each shoe was in pieces and held together by rope. They went in New Hope and the girl was able to look at the shoes. She came out jumping up and down while wearing a pair of black and white Air Walks and holding two new pairs of socks. She told us she didn’t remember the last time she had a new pair of shoes.

They didn’t ask for anything else. Just the shoes. I watched them as they crossed our parking lot. As I went back upstairs, I could see them all standing admiring her new shoes.

As I reflected on this, I remembered a scene from Shakespeare's Julius Caesar. "I am but, as you would say, a cobbler…which is, indeed, sir, a mender of bad soles."

This is what being a catalyst of hope is all about…being a mender of bad souls. For this girl and her friend it only took a few minutes and some new soles.

Thank you Atmos Energy & Accenture!

On Wednesday, more than 120 employees from Atmos Energy and Accenture joined forces and provided home repair and landscaping for 3 houses in Hurst, Euless and Bedford.

After several hours of scraping, painting, mowing, trimming trees and replacing woodwork, the employees regrouped to share stories both humorous and heart-warming. Local dignitaries joined them for a cookout and closing ceremonies. At the climax of the ceremony, Atmos officials presented Wes Higdon of 6 Stones with the keys to a pick-up truck.

As the day was winding down, one of the homeowners, through a big grin and watery eyes said, "Every morning for 20 some odd years, I drank my coffee on this porch. Tomorrow, I think I'll step out there and enjoy it lookin' at my porch. Ain't this one fine looking porch?"

Thank you Atmos Energy & Accenture for being catalysts of hope!

Check out the photos at facebook.com/6stones.
If your company is interested in a corporate event, email info@6stones.org.

Team Up to Clean Up - press release

Bedford, TX (April 25, 2012) – Atmos Energy is teaming up with Accenture & 6 Stones to provide free weatherization and beautification services for three local families living in Hurst, Euless and Bedford on Wednesday, April 25, 2012.

More than 100 volunteers will be armed with brooms, paint brushes, rakes and  shovels to help spruce-up the HEB neighborhood.
       -Dan Alderson, Atmos Energy Director of Energy Assistance

Atmos Energy and Accenture turned to 6 Stones, a christian-based non-profit organization, to identify three families to receive free spring cleaning which includes yard work, scraping fences, cleaning gutters, and weatherization. 

The event will conclude at 5 pm with closing ceremonies and remarks from city dignitaries at the 6 Stones headquarters in Bedford.

About Atmos Energy

Atmos Energy Corporation, headquartered in Dallas, is one of the country’s largest natural-gas-only distributor, serving more than 3 million natural gas distribution customers in more than 1,600 communities in 12 states from the Blue Ridge Mountains in the East to the Rocky Mountains in the West. Atmos Energy is a Fortune 500 company. For more information, visit www.atmosenergy.com.

About Accenture

Accenture is a global management consulting, technology services and outsourcing company, with more than 246,000 people serving clients in more than 120 countries.  Combining unparalleled experience, comprehensive capabilities across all industries and business functions, and extensive research on the world’s most successful companies, Accenture collaborates with clients to help them become high-performance businesses and governments.  The company generated net revenues of US$25.5 billion for the fiscal year ended Aug. 31, 2011.  Its home page is www.accenture.com. 

About 6 Stones

6 Stones, a local nonprofit, is building a coalition of businesses, churches and other entities to provide solutions and meet the needs of our community. Since 2009, 6 Stones has been a catalyst of hope transforming lives, homes and our community.