Last Saturday, Oct. 3, marked a monumental moment in Smile Again
Ministries history.

Judy and I were excited to see over 100 people come to see our
ribbon cutting ceremony and Open House for White Tail Lodge which
officially opened this week.

It was a bittersweet moment for Judy and me. Naturally, it was sweet
to see a dream that had moved to a vision and finally to reality. White
Tail Lodge marks a turning point from simply talking about helping people
to actually having people come to our retreat center for counseling and
support.

It was a bit bitter in that Saturday marked a day after what would have
been our Mickey’s 34th  birthday. So there were certainly emotions
circling our hearts and minds as we welcomed our friends and guests.

Below are pictures of our open house and some of the people who came to
see White Tail Lodge. Check them out.

This is a picture of one of our bedrooms that we’ve named Black Bear Den.

Trae Schmidt, one of Pat and Judy’s grandchildren, cut the ribbon that opened White
Tail Lodge.

After we had our ribbon cutting we had people release balloons in honor of loved
ones we remembered at the Open House.

Bobby Vry, one of our many volunteer workers, sat around our fire ring during the Open House.

This is a picture of the living room area of White Tail Lodge. In the background you can
see the kitchen area.

Several people loved looking at the dining area and the enclosed play room.

The Peace Garden was a focal point of people looking from some real peace and quiet.
Fall colors are quickly replacing the vibrant colors of flowers in full bloom.