When God Blesses Us, It's Not Just For Us: Meet Donors Justin and Rachael Wade
In the BJM community, absolutely everybody plays an essential role. We can’t do it without our youth, nor can we do it without their staff mentors. We can’t do it without our Nail Day friends, nor can we do it without our volunteers. And we can’t do it without our donors.
Meet the Wade family, who have been donating to BJM for six years. Justin, Rachael, Maya (age five), and Caleb (age two) love all aspects of our ministry, but the dance program tugs a special heartstring.
“Our daughter Maya has always been dancing,” says Rachael. “It’s played a huge role in teaching her life skills. Dance develops character of being confident in who you are in mind, body, and spirit. It creates space for dancers to be free with their bodies and make beautiful movements, and it’s an outlet from learning at school that helps develop the artistic side of the brain.”
Rachael says she’s asked herself, “What would it be like if we didn’t have the opportunity and ability to pay to put Maya in dance classes?” That’s why the Wade family supports BJM—to allow more girls that opportunity. And get this: Justin’s employer matches the Wade’s donation, doubling their impact.
“When God blesses us, it’s not just for us,” says Rachael. “Dance is a gift, and we have the ability to give that gift by donating to BJM.”
Justin and Rachael brought Maya on a fun outing to our dance showcase last spring, cheering alongside other families in the crowd as our dancers beamed onstage.
“We love the work BJM does with a range of women from youngest to oldest, girl to woman,” says Rachael. “Women encouraging women in the Tenderloin spoke straight to my heart and calling—we’ll get behind that any way we can!”
Just like the Wade family, we’re all about empowering women and girls in the Tenderloin. Your support enables us to continue doing this. Click here to learn how you can have an enduring impact on the life of a girl in our dance classes.
Want to grow your influence? Click here to check if your employer will match your donation! And get ready for #GivingTuesday on December 3—we have some exciting news about ways to multiply your impact coming down the line!