Ketterer wanna Spahn The story of the Lovelady Center is told beautifully in Brenda’s book, Miss Brenda and the Loveladies. It is available in paperback from Amazon for $12.00 or the Kindle edition which is $9.00. I found it inspiring and heartwarming. Warning: If you read it, you will want to help Miss Brenda keep the Lovelady Center going! Loveladies If you are curious about why I have told you more than you wanted to know about a women’s ministry in Birmingham, I can explain. I was profoundly impressed with the redemptive work the Lovelady Center is doing to help broken women. This is not just one more rehab center; this is a ministry that is changing lives! However, my primary reason is very personal. One of those 17 women who graduated on June 7 is my granddaughter Caroline Sinclair Albritton whose 41st birthday is tomorrow. Our family owes a huge debt to Miss Brenda and the Lovelady Center for helping our Clair to get clean, maintain sobriety, and become a new person by the grace of God. You can see the newness in her eyes! They betray a work done in her heart! We are so proud of Clair for completing this very demanding program that we want to shout it from the rooftops! “Thankful” is too mild a word to describe our feelings! Yes, our family realizes that a relapse is possible. But we are hopeful! And Clair is hopeful! She tells us her confidence level is high. She knows the path to recovery is not easy but she believes she can stay the course. Miss Brenda understands her need; Clair had to spend several hours in “Required Relapse Prevention” before she could graduate. One solid reason for hope is that Clair’s habits have changed. She explained why this makes such a huge difference: “I have learned that we can’t change our future but we can change our habits and surely our habits will change our future.” Yes! Clair knows her family is in her balcony, ready to do all we can to assist her in rebuilding her life. We know we cannot do it for her but we believe that, like Miss Brenda, Clair knows now how to access the grace and gumption she needs for a new life. So my final word is a shout-out to our beloved granddaughter: Clair, you can do it! We love you! We’re in your balcony! You’ve got what it takes! We believe you will make Miss Brenda proud of the amazing work to which she has given her life! Glory! + + +