Tag: Pensacola

Blood drive potentially saves 225 lives

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Local blood donors saved as many as 225 lives by giving blood during Baldwin EMC’s Spring Into Action drive March 15 in Orange Beach and April 26 in Bay Minette.

The staff from LifeSouth Community Blood Center collected a total of 75 pints of blood, each of which can benefit as many as three people.

The co-op elected to divide the drive between two dates and their two district offices this year in an effort to reach members from the southern and northern parts of their service territory.

“We traditionally host Spring Into Action at our headquarters in Summerdale, which is our most centrally located office,” says Mark Ingram, Baldwin EMC’s vice president of corporate services and public relations. “However, Summerdale is still a bit of a drive from Bay Minette or the beach. Hosting it at our district offices gave our members and residents in those areas an opportunity to donate without distance being a factor.”

In addition to blood donations, non-perishable food was also collected for local distribution.

Ingram says the Spring Into Action drive is a part of Baldwin EMC’s vision to be community involved.

“As a member-owned cooperative, we’re called to do much more for our community than just provide electricity. Our goal is to improve the quality of life for those we serve, and events like this are one of the ways we can do that.”

A rundown on my 5 books

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My full house is complete. 

Two fiction novels and three works of nonfiction. 

And due to work and graduate school, I may not be publishing another book for quite a while, despite having several ideas in mind. Who knows, though? Maybe I’ll have another published in the near future. It’s something I love doing.

So, in the meantime, why not provide a quick video rundown of Trussville, Alabama: A Brief History, Deep Green, Heart of the Plate, Valley Road: Uplifting Stories from Down South, and Ray of Hope?

In the video, I briefly talk about each book, summarizing the plot and letting you know where you can find each. I even profess my feelings for the Atlanta Braves, a tumultuous relationship that I can’t seem to quit.

Please share this post with your friends!

Check out the video below.

New book chronicles Florida wheelchair ramp ministry

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All proceeds to benefit Ray of Hope nonprofit
 
MOODY, Ala. – Author Gary Lloyd has released his fifth book, Ray of Hope.

Jimmy Ray was quiet, shy, and humble, but even the most unassuming people have burning passions in their hearts. Jimmy’s was for the disabled, those in northwest Florida who were stuck inside their homes because they could not afford to have wheelchair ramps built. That bothered Jimmy to his core. He began constructing wheelchair ramps with the help of his wife and young daughter, and along the way, a church ministry was born. It became Jimmy’s mission in life. Men, women, and children volunteered. Money and materials were donated. More than five hundred lives were changed forever. In Ray of Hope, Jimmy’s passion is revealed by family, friends, and more than a dozen people who received wheelchair ramps when they had nowhere else to turn. 

Jimmy was Lloyd’s father-in-law, but Lloyd never had the chance to meet him. Jimmy died on Feb. 28, 2010, two years before Lloyd met his daughter, Jessica. Ray of Hope’s publication date is eight years to the day after Jimmy’s death.

“The idea for this book came in 2016 on a ride to the Atlanta airport,” Lloyd said. “Jimmy’s wife, Ramona, was driving Jessica and me there for a trip we were going on, and we spent some time talking about Jimmy and the Ray of Hope organization, which builds wheelchair ramps for those in need. I discovered that the nonprofit had built more than 500 ramps in northwest Florida alone, and I knew that this man’s story, this ministry’s purpose, needed to be told in a book.”

Ray of Hope was published through CreateSpace Independent Publishing. The book is available on http://www.Amazon.com for $10 and on Kindle as an e-book for $7.99. All proceeds from the book’s sales will benefit the Ray of Hope nonprofit organization.
 
Lloyd is also the author of Trussville, Alabama: A Brief History, Deep Green, Heart of the Plate, and Valley Road: Uplifting Stories from Down South. 
 
Lloyd has been a journalist in Mississippi and Alabama. He grew up in Trussville, Ala., and earned his bachelor’s degree in journalism from The University of Alabama in 2009. He lives in Moody, Ala., with his wife, Jessica, and their two dogs, Abby and Sonny. 
 
For more information, email garylloydbooks@gmail.com. Also visit http://www.garylloydbooks.squarespace.com and Like his author page at http://www.facebook.com/GaryLloydAuthor. 

For more information about Ray of Hope, find the “Ray of Hope Wheelchair Ramps” page on Facebook.

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