March Campus Update
The first two months of the year have been busy at Shults-Lewis! In the months of January and February we welcomed lots of new staff members!
Stephanie Balcerak stepped up to the task of balancing the work load of Director of Development and Finance! We are so grateful for her endless supply of energy and frugality.
Staci Kociara has taken on the role of case worker with ease and excitement. It has been a joy to watch the kids spending group time under her leadership and direction!
Sarah Turnmire has gladly joined the team as Executive Assistant and loves that she never knows what tasks she may have to tackle that day! A real jack of all trades!
Sadly in February we said goodbye to Kiana Baldwin as she moved on to a job more specific to her career desires. We are overjoyed for her and this opportunity, but her presence will be missed!
Jasmine Lindley has stepped into the role as Development Assistant with grace and vitality. We are so blessed to have her on staff to strengthen our admirative team!
The residents have been enjoying opportunities that the winter weather has provided them with to get outside! They are also looking to new hobbies to explore indoors!
December Campus Update
We ask you to pray for Hannah Baldwin, Joy Smith, and Jenn Swartz as they have all moved on to different chapters in their lives. We welcome Tammy Warren, Director of Operations, to the team!
I know I keep asking you all to pray, but that’s what this ministry is all about. Not only do we ask you to pray for our new kids for their transition, but we ask you to pray for them during the holiday season. It is very hard for our kids during the holidays, no matter what their situation is. As we prepare for Christmas, we thank you all for the prayers and for your donations to help make this holiday special for our kids.
I just wanted you all to know how much I have appreciated working with you. I stepped into the role as Development Director after Beth Frump passed away to help fill a void. However, it is time for me to step out. Thank you for your patience, love, and support. -Lissa Baldwin
Happy Holidays from the Staff and Kids at Shults-Lewis!
November Campus Update
THANK YOU FOR YOUR PRAYERS!!!
SHULTS-LEWIS HAS HIRED A NEW EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR!!
We cannot thank you all enough for your persistence in prayer for a new Executive Director. Johnnie Coley was hired September 1st. Johnnie came from Mt. Dora, Florida just in time to be a part of Annual Day. Johnnie has hit the ground running with social services to find more kids that would benefit from this ministry. We will have 3 more new kids by November and more in the pipeline. Continue to pray for the kids and their families as they make this next step.
We also ask that you keep the kids and their families in your prayers as we get closer to the holidays. Even though Mrs. Terhune, our Principal, and the houseparents keep the kids busy with fun activities and good food over the holidays, it is the hardest time of the year for our kids.
Thank you all for the part you play in this ministry. Thank you for sharing your blessings with us.
For the kids,
Lissa Baldwin
Development Director
June 2022 Campus Update
Hoping you all are enjoying the start of summer.
Our school closed out the year with a mini “Strengths Luncheon” to honor our kids with a STRENGTH that the staff sees most in them. We enjoyed a Mexican themed lunch and fellowship as we encouraged and honored our kids.
Erik received the strength of “Hardworking” 
Zip earned “Responsible” 
TJ’s strength was “Humorous” 
Mrs Terhune hands out the Honor Roll awards
During this past month, we also celebrated one of our “Zero” birthdays. Don Jones was honored with a fun luncheon and cake for his 60th. Don is one of our housedads, maintenance supervisor, and commodity driver. Don is also one of our “Masters of Puns”. I frequently throw him out of my office after a string of bad puns. We appreciate all of the hard work Don does for this agency as well as being a spiritual leader for our kids.
For the kids,
Lissa Baldwin
Development Director
May 2022 Campus Update
Hello everyone!
It is so exciting to be able to have time to do the job I was hired on to do and finally send out a campus update. The last 4 months have been the most difficult that I have had in a long time. Since the Smiths had to step out of relief houseparenting, some of the staff have had to step in and do relief for the other houseparents on top of their normal jobs until we could find their replacements. Usually, finding new houseparents can take several months up to a few years. But, about a week before the Smiths stepped down, I received a random phone call from Jimmie Banks (from Alsip, IL) who was interested in houseparenting. The rest, as they say, is history. Jimmie and Jessie Banks officially joined our team on April 11, 2022 (THAT’S MY BIRTHDAY AND GOD GAVE ME THE BEST PRESENT!!) The Banks stepped in to this ministry, they have been trained, and are now doing the relief houseparenting. Those of us staff who have been doing the relief since February are SO GRATEFUL! I had a lot of fun getting to know the Banks as they went through the training process. They are a good fit with positive attitudes and leading with Christ.
We have also been able to find someone to do counseling for our kids, which means once we get them on board, we can take more kids. YAY! We still need an English teacher and a Math teacher so that we can take even more kids. We are still looking for an Executive Director and a Program Director so that our Interim Executive Director, Irene, can move back to Texas. We need a Principal so that Vickie Terhune can go back in to retirement. We are also still looking for a Director of Operations to relieve our contracted accountant, Stephanie, who comes in 2 days a week, after her full time job, to help pay bills and do payroll. Jenn Swartz, who was hired on to be our Social Services Secretary, made a lateral move to be our Administrative Assistant again so that she could take some of the tasks off of my plate. Hannah Baldwin was kind enough to move to Social Services permanently to fill that void. But as soon as we can hire another Social Services Secretary, Development can have Hannah back. YAY!
All of this to say, some of our burden has been lifted but we are still in need of many positions, the most important being the EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR and PROGRAM DIRECTOR. Keep spreading the word and keep praying for us. We love you all and thank you for all you do in keeping Shults-Lewis a safehaven for our kids.
For the kids,
Lissa Baldwin, Development Director