Above, the residents of Mustard Seed

December 2016 – “There aren’t always a lot of opportunities for adults with special needs,” shared Mandy Sisson, community relations director at Mustard Seed. “A parent might have a child with special needs who has special education class at school, has friends and people who want to invest in them, and then he or she turns 21 and is out of school and may be sitting at home all day watching TV. What do you do, quit your job and stay home with them?”

That is the question founders of Mustard Seed were answering in 1981 when they established a community home in Brandon, Mississippi, for adults with special needs. Their goal was to provide a place where special needs adults could fulfill their potential.

“We call them Seedsters,” Sisson told AFA Journal. “They thrive in this environment that really encourages them to be themselves. There is life after 21; there are things for them to do, and they can lead enriched lives.”

As a Christian organization, the community is intentionally directed at being an environment that protects, encourages, and feeds faith.

“We want them to grow in faith every day,” Sisson said. “We are very G-rated, very innocent, and we want to protect that. We’re all friends here and we’re all children of God, and we hope that every day we can minister and counsel them.”

Rich talent
The program includes Mustard Seed University classes on anything from Pilates to Spanish to money management, various social activities, craft projects, daily devotions, and Fun Fridays. But a favorite Seedster project is painting ceramic pieces.

“We paint 4,000 ornaments a year, and we typically sell out by the first week of December,” Sisson explained. “We have an Ornament of the Year that we make 800 of, and those are our only dated ornaments, so a lot of people collect those.

“That provides 20% of our total operating budget, which we’re really proud of and our guys are really proud of. We have a big sign that says to the penny what they bring in with their ceramics. They love coming into the gift shop and saying, ‘Oh, I just painted that platter, and it’s already sold.’”

The Seedsters create other decorative pieces by transferring artwork onto textiles and custom Christmas cards. Items can be viewed and ordered online or by phone. (See below.) Each piece, ceramics in particular, is irreplaceable.

“Another way Seedsters show their abilities and gifts rather than their disabilities is in our hand bell choir,” Sisson added.

Bells of Faith performs for free, donations accepted, traveling to different events, churches, schools, assisted living homes, especially during holiday seasons such as Valentine’s and Christmas.

“There is not a dry eye in the audience when our bell ringers play,” she said. “People don’t know what to expect when they see 18 special needs adults up there, but they’re blown away by their ability to play beautiful music and touch lives.”

Out and about
The bell choir is not the only way the Seedsters touch lives. While the Mustard Seed is a safe haven, they are by no means isolated from the outside world.

“They’re an integral part of the community, and we’re always looking for ways to be the face of the Mustard Seed,” she said. “We want you to see us at the movie theater, at your school’s gym, when you pass us at the store and remember us from when you came out and volunteered.”

Volunteers are welcomed in a variety of roles, from being a pen pal to working in the gift shop to crafting to playing basketball. But volunteering for special needs individuals can simply mean being a friend.

“Maybe you’ve never been around adults with special needs who want to hug you and meet you and know your name,” Sisson said. “Maybe you work full time or have young kids and think you can’t minister. But it doesn’t have to be a big thing. We have one volunteer who gives up his lunch break and brings a brown paper sack to eat with our guys and visit with them. Or it can be painting fingernails for a girl who longs for that one-on-one attention.”

And Seedsters are not content to stay on the receiving end. As a nonprofit that is supported through the generosity and time of others, Mustard Seed is mindful to give back.

“We couldn’t do what we do without our volunteers, and the Seedsters know that,” Sisson said. “And we are a Christian community. So we’re always teaching them to do things for others. We provide many opportunities for them to volunteer.”

Not alone
The Seedsters are not alone in the joy they bring to others. The Baddour Center in Senatobia, Mississippi, is another such community founded in 1978 with the help of the United Methodist Church. The center fosters the potential of adults with disabilities.

“We enrich all aspects of their lives through programs and services that focus on their interests, needs, and wellbeing,” said director Parke Pepper. “We focus on persons’ abilities, not disabilities. We want to help residents grow, in all aspects of their lives.”

While Baddour accomplishes this in four areas – residential services, vocational services, community life, and education and research – there are three primary ways in which they interact with the outside world.

Situated on 120 acres, Baddour operates an advanced horticulture business where residents grow and sell plants under the tagline: “growing people with plants.”

Another arm of the vocational aspect is Baddour Custom Packaging, where residents are employed in connection with business partners from Washington state to New Jersey.

Finally, and perhaps most popular, residents audition to be part of the 27-member Miracles choir. The choir “travels with a three-fold mission … to praise God, to bridge attitudinal barriers toward persons with disabilities, and to tell the story and raise awareness of Baddour,” said Miracles director John Matlach.

The choir performs for love offerings, but requests help with travel expenses beyond a three-hour drive. Like Bells of Faith, the Miracles choir is a favorite during the Christmas season. Christmas performances include Christmas carols and tell the story of Jesus’s birth.

“All songs point people to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ,” Matlach noted. “The Miracles first and foremost sing and minister to God for His glory!” The residents of Mustard Seed and Baddour demonstrate how those with special needs give back when their potential is matched with opportunity and when their gifts exemplify God’s glory.  

mustardseedinc.org
601-992-3556
(includes schedule for Bells of Faith)

baddour.org
1-888-422-3368
(includes schedule for The Miracles)