20-year Anniversary and Open House Summer has always been a special time of year here at the Alpha Omega House, a repose and a preparation. The creeping vines are in full bloom and the back patio fonts are gurgling. Sweet birds serenade the sleepy grounds, their songs adrift lilac perfume and golden-morning rays. There is stillness. There is peace. But this summer is a little extra special. Amidst the stillness, there is celebration. A CELEBRATION OF 20 YEARS! For 20 years, the Alpha Omega House has been fertile ground for friendship, has born witness to spiritual growth, and has shaped the lives of students here at the University of Montana. Every person who has walked through these doors has placed a brick, and with careful guidance, partaken in constructing the story and the home that we are now so blessed to share. In celebration and in gratitude, we raise a toast to you. But it’s not just any toast, oh no. We needed to do something memorable for such a milestone. We raise a glass of our custom AO House Cabernet Sauvignon to your Sauvignon Blanc, with a “Cheers!” to the past twenty years and all of those to come! Yes, to celebrate our 20th anniversary, we crafted a private label with Brutocao Cellars located in Mendocino, California, sparing no degree of excellence nor enthusiasm. Don’t miss out on your chance to indulge in two personal bottles of AO wine! For a minimum donation of $100, you will have two bottles of wine shipped straight to your door, hassle-free. And you can be sure your money is going to a worthy cause. YOU choose where the funds go. Ranging from causes like student scholarships to house trips and retreats, this wine label is not only a celebration but a fundraiser to keep the Alpha Omega House a vital piece of UM students’ lives. The link will be on the front page of our website all year, with proceeds supporting many more blessed years here at the Alpha Omega House. But you didn’t think we were going to celebrate this momentous occasion alone, did you?? How could we when YOU were such a big part of making it happen!? You’re invited! Join us TOMORROW at 7:00 p.m. MST for our Open House! Come, take a seat in the living room, pour yourself a glass of AO wine, kick back, relax, and mingle with alumni from hither and yan. This year we’re making it really easy to get there. You can find us located at: The Link Home Page of the AO House Website 20th of June, 2020 7:00 PM Although we’d rather see you all in person, consider this an extraordinary way in which technology is pulling through and uniting us not only from the far reaches of the world but the deep, dark crevices of our Corona-proof couches. Our Director of Operations, along with numerous alumni and longtime friends of the AO House, have collaborated on this epic project that is our virtual Open House. Through their efforts, we will be able to share in not only the story, but the key sentiments of life here at the AO. It’s open to anyone and everyone, so bring friends, family, neighbors and all. Aside from our Golden Birthday celebration, we are thrilled to announce that the beds are filling up! After a low census year and the uncertainty of COVID-19, we were hoping to reach our 15-student goal. Well, ladies and gentlemen… we surpassed that goal with flying colors, and we couldn’t be more excited to welcome a wonderful crew for the coming year! BUT WE STILL HAVE SPACE! So if you know of a college student looking for a safe space to grow, a spiritual support system, or just a place to call home, send them our way! They can download an application from the “Housing” or “Contact Us” pages on our website. We’d love to meet them. All that to say, there is much to celebrate and the future is looking bright for the Alpha Omega House. Typical summer projects are underway: All the rooms now have a fresh coat of paint (thanks to our staff members, Aunika and Elizabeth, and Burke, a student in the House); the annual flowers have been planted in their potted, patio homes outback; the herb garden, sprouting; the big umbrella, outstretched and inviting of good conversation and shelter from the summer sun (if and when that decides to come around). It almost seems normal! Oh yeah, other than the need to throw a 21st birthday bash in-house because, you know, downtown isn’t quite the same... that was new. But hey, we do what we must! We had a blast partying-down with Hannah, a three-year resident, on her 21st here at the AO House. Aunika, with the help of Elizabeth and friends, converted each room into a different downtown bar, with matching signs, decorations, and even music to create the appropriate ambiance of a 21st in downtown Missoula. During the school year, the Alpha Omega House is dry for all purposes of safety and respect, but we have no quarrel with celebrating our students and walking alongside them through all the corridors of college life. This was certainly one of those opportunities and we were so blessed to have been a part of it! In all reality, there probably won’t be another 21-run like Hannah’s here at the AO. But that makes it all the more special and another memory of AO House life to hold as precious and fleeting. Like so many memories made here, “you just had to be there.” Slowly but surely, as things open up, our students are returning to work, finding new jobs, or in some cases continuing the essential work they’ve been doing throughout the shutdown. (Stay tuned for a student highlight on Bethany Bryant, and what it means to be an essential caregiver during the height of a pandemic!). It’s a joy to share in each other’s little triumphs. As we are comforted in knowing that this too shall pass, we reflect on our fortune to have one another, and we do what we can to make the best of its passing. Christ sees our stories, every season of pain and every point of celebration. Superseding it all, he calls us to live in community and love one another. That is what we do here at the Alpha Omega House. We hope you are feeling our love! And we hope to see you all this Saturday at 7:00 pm. Blessings from all of us to all of you. written by Sarah Griffin, former resident.
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