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We are excited to see what 2025 will bring! The interest level is high for the next phase of Community Resilience as we launch the Neighborhood Emergency Response Plans throughout the community. 

If you have not started one in your neighborhood, the holidays is a great time to start as people come together and gather to celebrate time with family, friends and serve those in need. You can locate the NERP HERE to download and begin building a plan in your neighborhood. We will even come to you to help launch with you. 

To unlock the full benefits of having your neighborhood connected to others, membership is required. This will give the connection to fill in the needs in your neighborhood with surrounding neighborhood and vice versa. This also build a stronger more resilient community to be able to support each other when we need it most. 

We are happy to be here in this time with you as we build a better tomorrow for the next generation.

December Event

December 10th @ 6 PM

Let's Celebrate the Together

2025 will bring lots of action and work to bring our communities together and build a resiliency that will stand for generations. 

It is important to gather, celebrate and build community in the down times. 

Come in your best Christmas outfit, bring a dish to pass and while we get to know each other and enjoy this season together. 

Register for address.

• Promote self-reliance through substainable farming practices.
• Provide training programs on personal and community self-sufficiency.

December Garden Care, Stewardship over Sustainability 

When approaching garden care from a stewardship perspective, you emphasize a deeper connection to the land, taking responsibility for its health and vitality long-term. Stewardship is about understanding and nurturing the ecological relationships between plants, animals, soil, and water while ensuring the land can thrive for generations to come. In Northern Georgia, where the weather can be variable, your care practices in December should reflect these principles: 

Part 1 of 2:

1. Soil Stewardship 

• Nurture the Soil Life: The soil is the heart of regenerative gardening. Focus on maintaining a healthy soil ecosystem by avoiding tillage and using minimal disruption. Instead of turning the soil, incorporate organic matter (compost, cover crops) gently by adding layers on top to feed microbes and other beneficial organisms. 
• Cover Cropping: Planting winter cover crops like hairy vetch, clover, or rye will protect and enrich the soil. These plants don’t just "sustain" the soil but also build it by fixing nitrogen and preventing erosion. In stewardship, we aim to leave the land in a better condition than we found it. 
• Compost and Organic Matter: Organic matter, especially compost, is key to maintaining soil health. Consider creating a rich compost pile from plant waste, kitchen scraps, and other organic materials. The resulting compost will help balance soil nutrients and provide life-giving elements back to the soil for future growth. 

2. Ecological Harmony 

• Encourage Biodiversity: A healthy, thriving garden requires a variety of species, both plant and animal. Stewardship means fostering an ecosystem that supports local pollinators, beneficial insects, and wildlife.  
• • Add native plants like elderberry, coneflower, or goldenrod to provide food and shelter for pollinators and birds. 
  • Keep plant debris in place when possible; decaying plant matter supports soil health, and leaving standing stalks for insects or birds is good practice. 
• Wildlife Habitat: Think beyond the garden itself and contribute to the local ecosystem. You can:  
• • Create bird habitats with birdhouses or plant species like winterberry for food. 
  • Build insect hotels for pollinators and beneficial bugs to overwinter. 
• No Chemical Inputs: Use no synthetic fertilizers or pesticides. Stewardship requires working with nature, not against it. Instead, encourage natural pest control by fostering predator-prey relationships between birds, beneficial insects, and other wildlife. 

3. Water Management 

• Rainwater Harvesting: Water is a precious resource, and stewardship means managing it wisely. December is a great time to set up or improve rainwater harvesting systems—using barrels or other containers to collect water from rooftops. This method reduces reliance on municipal water systems and creates a more resilient garden that can thrive in drier times. 
• Rain Gardens: If you have areas of your yard prone to excess water, consider installing a rain garden—a planted area that absorbs and filters runoff, helping to prevent erosion and nutrient leaching into waterways. 
• Mulching and Soil Moisture: Use mulch not just to conserve moisture but to ensure that soil organisms (earthworms, fungi, etc.) thrive. Mulch provides protection against frost, improves soil structure, and allows water to penetrate more efficiently. 

The Rights of the Colonists by Samuel Adams November 20, 1772

I. Natural Rights of the Colonists as Men.

Among the natural rights of the Colonists are these: First, a right to life; Secondly, to liberty; Thirdly, to property; together with the right to support and defend them in the best manner they can. These are evident branches of, rather than deductions from, the duty of self-preservation, commonly called the first law of nature.

Federal Farmer XVIII (18) by Richard Henry Lee January 25, 1788

The military forces of a free country may be considered under three general descriptions — 1. The militia. 2. the navy — and 3. the regular troops — and the whole ought ever to be, and understood to be, in strict subordination to the civil authority; and that regular troops, and select corps, ought not to be kept up without evident necessity. Stipulations in the constitution to this effect, are perhaps, too general to be of much service, except merely to impress on the minds of the people and soldiery, that the military ought ever to be subject to the civil authority, &c. But particular attention, and many more definite stipulations, are highly necessary to render the military safe, and yet useful in a free government; and in a federal republic, where the people meet in distinct assemblies, many stipulations are necessary to keep a part from transgressing, which would be unnecessary checks against the whole met in one legislature, in one entire government. — A militia, when properly formed, are in fact the people themselves, and render regular troops in a great measure unnecessary.

• Strengthen local economies through the establishment of community-supported agriculture and local businesses.
• Encourage collaboration and neighboring communities for mutual benefit.

Supporting Our Local Patriots 

Together we are stronger and there are more of us than we may think. 
Take Action Cherokee has spent the last 3 years building a coalition. These groups are vetted and we all rely on each other for more than just political action. We are each others support in legislation, action and also in an emergency. 

Please consider looking at this list of amazing local patriots to support or connect with. 

• Offer educational programs on sustainable farming, community development, and personal growth.
• Develop partnerships with local schools and educational institutions.

Pastors and Community Leaders 

Networking Event

Monday, Dec. 16th @ 9 AM

Pastors and leaders supporting education, you are invited to the leadership open house hosted by Unite Homeschool Network. Please share invitation with your pastors as we strive to make meaningful connections within our communities. 

• Support spiritual growth through community activities and mentorship programs.
• Connect experienced individuals with those seking guidance and mentorship.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who is to co-chair a proposed Department of Government Efficiency, posted a 10-second video clip of Katherine Maher CEO of National Public Radio on X in which she said, “I think our reverence for the truth might have become a bit of a distraction that is preventing us from finding consensus and getting important things done.” The clip was taken from a 2021 TED Talk given by Maher who was formerly CEO of Wikipedia.  Musk wrote, “Should your tax dollars really be paying for an organization run by people who think the truth is a ‘distraction’?”

This is an important discussion about consensus and unity.  Many people feel that not telling the truth is justified by the rationale that it’s better to have unity in agreement even if it’s wrong.  But was does God say about this?

2 Thessalonians 9-12

⁹ The coming of the lawless one is according to the working of Satan, with all power, signs, and lying wonders, ¹⁰ and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved. ¹¹ And for this reason God will send them strong delusion, that they should believe the lie, ¹² that they all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.

We have just seen this illustrated in our nation with tragic results.  Joining together under a manipulated narrative of lies is what produced the agreement that cost the lives of many in wars and illness.  But the good news is that God has given us the Spirit of Truth, the Holy Spirit, that we can know the truth and restore our freedom as One Nation Under God.

John 8:31,32

³¹ Then Jesus said to those Jews who believed Him, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. ³² And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”

Resilience Tip of the Week

Develop a Strong Network 

Caring, supportive people around you act as a protective factor during times of crisis. Community resilience is the ability to prepare for anticipated hazards, adapt to changing conditions, and withstand and recover rapidly from disruptions. Disaster preparedness—which includes prevention, protection, mitigation, response, and recovery—is crucial to resilience.  Find your network of people in your neighborhood, church, and other like-minded groups.

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