Cheryl Hood & Victory Flows: Meeting the needs of familes with special needs children

One of the beliefs that guide Wise Insurance Group is giving back to our community.  I’ve personally had the pleasure of being a volunteer with Cheryl Hood and her organization, Victory Flows.  It was a great experience to support her, her organization, children with special needs and by extension their families.  Cheryl is a leader who’s making a difference in peoples’ lives across the DFW area, Texas, the surrounding states and in other parts of the world!  I’m honored to introduce a friend and a person that inspires me…

Imagine going  twelve years without sleeping through the night.  The precious baby you had twelve years ago is living with autism and cannot sleep at night.  Your child has night habits that do not  allow you the luxury of even one restful night of sleep.

Or maybe you married the person of your dreams, had four beautiful children , and you had to watch your spouse go off to defend our country.  After enduring that separation, your partner returns wounded, physically disabled, in constant pain and mentally changed forever.  The person you exchanged vows with and had children with is forever changed.

Or maybe you became a single parent because the pressures of raising a child living with a disability was too stressful on your marriage.  80% of all marriages with special needs children end in divorce because of these stresses.  The burden is now yours alone to navigate through the myriad of doctors, government forms, treatments and therapists, illness and hospital visits.  All while holding down a job to pay for a place to live, food to eat and rasing any other children you may have.

“For I know the plans I have for you”  say the Lord “they are plans for good and not for evil, to give you future and a hope”  Jeremiah 29:11 [biblical text]

Cheryl Hood formed Victory Flows in July 2011 as a Christian ministry.  Victory Flows is dedicatedto serving families and individuals living with a disability. Many organizations offer support, care and even camps for those with disabilities.  However, the goal of Victory Flows is to serve the whole family on a regular basis, at no charge to the family.

In 2012 Victory Flows hosted five Fun and Freedom Day events. Parents were given a much needed break from their routine.  They could structure their day with massages, haircuts, mani-pedis, fishing, golf, archery, Bible and worship time, chill time or explore their artistic skills.  There was a man-cave for the Dads, card and game room, and a sit down dinner for just the adults.

Trained volunteers worked with the siblings and those with disabilities so they could have their own fun time and break from their parents.  The activities they could choose from included many of the same activities their parents did but on a different time track.  In addition there was horseback riding and indoor games including Wii and scavenger hunts.  Dinner for the kids was exactly what all kids’ love, a pizza party! The days concluded with either a family dance or talent show with prizes and trophies for everyone!

Victory Flows also served directly at;

• The Wounded Warrior Getaway in San Antonio in April
• Created a Fundraising event for Wounded Warriors as a Day Of Heroes in Winnsboro, Texas in May
• Served at Joni and Friends Family Retreats in Texas in June and Ghana Africa in July

The focus of Victory Flows’ programs is the families and those affected by disabilities.  They are our heroes. We have designed our program to allow the whole family to relax, feel special and to receive the care and nurturing you and I take for granted.  This restores a sense of hope and future as promised in Jeremiah 29:11

God has blessed Victory Flows with incredible volunteers who serve as the hands and feet of Jesus, giving up their time, and often donating to help the ministry continue our no-charge policy for our special families.

Our goal in 2013 is to continue serving these families and expand our outreach.  To accomplish this we need to grow our financial base beyond the seed money provided by the sale of Cheryl Hood’s home and several small donors.  Our goal is to raise monthly support and special gifts totaling $8,500 a month.  The Fun and Fredom Days are often the only breaks these families get …we hope to allow more families to feel the love of Jesus and the hope that there are people who care for them and are willing to serve and support them.

Please visit our website www.victoryflows.org for more information or to make a donation.