Raivu For Kids / Teaching Youth To Live With a Purpose - Christian 501c3 non-profit corporation

We love because he first loved us. 1John 4:19

To our Raivu family and friends,

It’s not about whose blood you have; it’s about who loves you and who loves you back. That was said by Jackie Chan in the movie The Spy Next Door. It’s about love; that is why each day we get up and continue to work on fulfilling the vision of Raivu.

Over the course of the past few years our family has changed. Our daughter Faith, has just about finished College and was married to Ian, a wonderful young man who loves the Lord. Our son Tristan is in his last year of Middle School and as of December 18 the adoption was complete and Santana Michael Klepp has a forever family. Though there has been a lot of joy, we have also had great sadness as we had to say good-bye to our family dog of over 9 years Jenna.

With that said our Raivu family has grown. Each and every one of the kids and volunteers who come each week have a piece of our heart. We laugh and cry with them. We even love the ones that we have not met face-to-face yet.

Raivu 1440 continues to see the lives of youth changed; with December being a very special month when one of our youth told us that she was no longer on medication and was not suicidal and that she has accepted Jesus Christ as her savior.

We had our third capture the flag event, learned how not to be an Angry Bird and had a cookie decorating/trip to see a Christmas program in Milwaukee day.

November 2012 has also officially kicked off our independent living program, College Years. We are currently working with our first young adult nearing the end of her time in the foster care system. We meet her where she is at, however each week that goes by we truly feel the importance of getting the College Years homes set-up to be able to work with them each day to help them reach their fullest potential.  We are actively seeking 2 homes or a duplex to rent in Washington County.  Please feel free to visit our website to learn more.

The plan for Raivu Gardens CSA is complete and the new seeds for the 2013 growing season will be ordered by the end of January. We will soon be accepting new shares for the gardens stay tunes for more details.

In closing, just remember to LOVE with all your heart.

Lovin’ life and living with a purpose.

Serving Jesus,

Pastor Corey and Jodi

~Prayer Requests~

2 homes/duplex to rent for the College Years

Financial increase to support all areas of Raivu

Wisdom on fundraising

Health, peace and patience for our family

For we are God's workmanship created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do. Ephesians 2:10

Raivu, which we pronounce ray-voo is a Japanese word meaning "to live". Therefore for us, Raivu for Kids means "to live for kids". We have dedicated our lives to serving. Our vision is to equip today's youth with the skills they need to succeed regardless of their challenging situations and instill in them a desire to live their lives to honor God.

Raivu For Kids consists of three unique parts designed in reaching youth to fulfill our mission and vision. First is Raivu 1440. This is our weekly outreach based around teaching youth from the community about living with a purpose. This outreach is held on the grounds of Cedar Springs Church in Slinger. We reach youth from 1st grade through 12th grade. Local youth are either dropped off by their parents or children are brought by volunteers who pick them up at a local apartment complex. During the summer months we have a project garden where the youth are taught on the same level about all facets of agriculture and being self-sustaining. With our focus year-round in discipling them that they were not just created to merely exist but to live this life with a purpose. We want them to live their lives to honor God regardless of what challenges they are facing.

Second is Raivu Residential, we will provide children, whose parents are unable to care for them, with residential homes that are a loving and stable Christ-like environment. We are currently fundraising to begin the building of our first residence at 3128 Slinger Road, in Slinger Wisconsin, in partnership with Cedar Springs Church, which will now be our headquarters. A part of Raivu Residential is "The College Years". “The College Years” is an independent living program designed for young adults ages 18-22 and is a service provided by Raivu For Kids. An individualized structured plan will be designed to help meet the physical, spiritual, social/emotional, and educational needs of these young adults. Through our relationships within the community and with God; we will build upon the unique strengths of each individual to create goals and develop a plan to help fulfill them.

Third is Raivu Gardens, this is one way we build strong relationships with our community. Our fruits and vegetables are locally grown and help to provide food from ground to table. We offer this to community "shareholders", those who are able to receive our fresh produce at an affordable rate. Because our gardening is so unique, it not only impacts our youth but also our reach into the community. We help teach the concept of getting back to nature and becoming self-sustaining. As we are now moving forward with "The College Years", the Gardens will give the opportunity of potential employment and service time for both them and our Raivu 1440 teens.

We are excited that God is moving us forward with our vision and invite you to join us at anytime. Please feel free to contact us if you are interested in learning more.