Over the past few years Widows Harvest Ministries has sponsored a week, May 5-12, called “Causing Our Widows Heart’s To Sing Week” or “Widow’s Sing Week” for short. This comes from the book of Job, 29:13, where Job said that he “caused the widows heart’s to sing with joy.” 

Widows continue to be, bar none, the most invisible group of people on the planet and that it why it has long been part of the ministry's mission to “plead their cause” whenever and wherever it can and to whomever will listen.

The following is the stated purposes for “Widow’s Sing Week” as well as suggestion for causing their heart’s to sing with joy:

- Honor widows by recognizing their plight as a specifically identified group in our society

- Defining who should be legitimately considered a widow by society (any woman who has lost her husband regardless of circumstance)

- Help to promote and establish a positive image for widows by recognizing the talents and experience that they themselves have to contribute in their respective communities

- Honor God by honoring those He has instructed us to care for, and thus “Causing their hearts to sing with joy” (job 29:13)

Throughout this week Widows Harvest Ministries would, therefore, encourage everyone to take time to do something special for those widows that you know in your church, neighborhood, work place, family, civic organizations, etc.  Some suggestions might be to:

Change a light bulb - Mow a lawn - Paint a room - porch or house - Repair a roof - Repair a leaky faucet or toil - Buy flowers - Go out to lunch or dinner - Have lunch or dinner in your home on “Mother’s Day” - Take time to visit - Go for a walk.

In the case of younger widows with children, just having a break for, an evening or an afternoon from all of the responsibility and stress that comes with being a single-parent can bring the kind of rest and encouragement that can mean the difference between giving up and going on.

Or, just use your imagination, because the possibilities are limitless.

Organizers said, "In addition to the individual actions that we are appealing to all of Chattanooga’s citizens to consider doing in order to “cause all of our widows heart’s to sing with joy, Widows Harvest has also been organizing a home repair construction push for many of the widows who have appealed to us for help in the last year, or longer, but due to a lack of funds and/or skilled volunteer help we have not been able to meet these needs. This year we have put together a steering committee in order to try and do this more effectively than we have been able to do in the past.  The members of this construction committee are Stuart Bickley, Hamilton Brock, Ted Griffin and Arch Willingham.  There are 27 projects that we set as our goal to try and get started and completed this week.  The total cost of the construction materials for these projects is $22,545.00.  To date we have raised a little over half of this amount, approximately $12K, leaving a little less than $10K left to raise.   Please pray that the rest of these funds will come in over the next week so we can accomplish what has been laid on our hearts to do for widows during this week."

There is also a need for more skilled volunteers to help us out with these projects.  If you are a roofer, or have a roofing company and can help replace a roof for a widow we are in particular need of your help.  Skilled carpenters are also a huge need.  There are many smaller carpentry jobs that need to be done that requires, at least, one skilled carpenter and one or two helpers.  Other areas of skilled help includes flooring, sheetrock, plumbing, masonry, gutter installation and tree and limb removal.

If you can volunteer your time or would like more information about specific projects, please contact 266-0260 or through the web site at info@widows.org.  Donations can also be made through the web site as well at www.widows.org.