Spreading the Word with a full court press

Christmas is a time for children.

At that time of year, more than at any other, the thought of a child in need tugs at the heartstrings and opens the purse strings.

For some people, that focus on children is a year-round mission, and a child in need is not necessarily defined as one who is hungry or cold or won't have a gift under the tree.

Tim Goodpaster is one of those people. His mission in life is to reach out to kids, and the need he sees is one of the spirit.

In an effort to fill that need, Goodpaster is president of two youth-centered organizations.

One is Enter His Courts, a basketball youth ministry.

According to the Enter His Courts Web site at www.enterhiscourts.org, it began when an old bent basketball rim nailed to his garage attracted a little boy who routinely passed his house. He tried to get the boy to come to the third-grade Sunday school class that he taught with his wife, but was unable to minister to the child through a traditional church setting.

Out of a burden for the boy, the Enter His Courts youth ministry was begun. The program has since reached thousands of boys and girls.

"I have 7-year-olds playing (now) that their mommy and daddy played" in the program in the past, Goodpaster said.

The other organization with which Goodpaster is involved is COFY (Community Outreach for Youth), which involves bringing speakers and sometimes bands into schools.

The object is to "talk to (students) about making good choices in life," he said.

While youth of today have many challenges to face, such as drugs and peer pressure, Goodpaster mentioned additional problems with which young people must deal - credit card debt and gambling. These problems are severe enough that they have led a number of young people take their own lives, he said.

"Gambling is more addictive than crack or meth or porn," he said.

Speaking of the trials kids of today face, Goodpaster recalled visiting a high school in the region to discuss presenting a program there.

"They were on their third bomb threat of the day," he said, with people in flak jackets and bomb-sniffing dogs going through the school.

"Even tough, hard-core kids were rattled," he said.

In addition to outside worries, "(Some) kids have such a mess at home ... I'm shocked they even go to school," Goodpaster said.

He and his wife, Sally, have three children of their own, Maggie, Tyler and Michael, all grown, and a grandson, Drake.

Goodpaster grew up in Jennings County and graduated from high school in 1978. He worked for UPS for 15 years. Now, he devotes his time to his ministries, based out of Cornerstone Ministry Center in Seymour, his home church.

Sally works at Seymour Middle School and, with Tim's hours being more flexible, he does much of the cooking at home.

Goodpaster recalled that, when he was 8 or 10 years old, his mother became ill and his father, working full time and caring for three boys, also had to try to feed them.

One meal in particular was memorable.

"Dad made spaghetti with bologna," he said, laughing, even as he gave his father credit for doing the best he could under the circumstances.

Goodpaster resolved not to go down that path, and today, "I just like to cook," he said.

"I like to bake bread. My wife is a cookie maker."

There is, however, one thing yet to be conquered - blackberry dumplings the way his grandmother made them.

Tim's Sage and Turkey Dressing

1- 3-pound (49-ounce) can of chicken stock or broth

4 teaspoons rubbed sage

½ cup chopped onion

2 full stalks of finely chopped celery

3 teaspoons of salt

3 teaspoons of black pepper

2 cups of cooked and chopped turkey breast

Bring all of the above ingredients to a boil and then turn down to simmer for about ten minutes until the onion and celery are fork-tender. Set aside and let cool.

Break up one sandwich-size loaf of bread (1 pound and 4 ounces) into a 10x10x4-inch (buttered or sprayed with cooking spray) baking pan.

Pour cooled broth mixture into the baking pan of broken-up bread. Stir thoroughly until all of the dry bread is softened and integrated with the broth into a gooey mixture.

Beat one egg and pour over the surface area of the cooled bread/broth mixture and once again mix up very well to create a binding agent for the dressing.

Liberally shake rubbed sage over the top of the dressing and then apply several pats of butter evenly to the surface of the dressing (about 1/4 cup).

Bake at 350 degrees on the top rack of the oven about one hour until golden brown. Let rest for five minutes.

Smile, serve and enjoy, with about ten of your friends and loved ones.

Pecan Bark with Coconut

1 1/2 cups unsalted butter

1 1/2 cups firmly packed brown sugar

1 cup chopped pecans

24 graham cracker squares

1 cup chopped coconut

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a 10x15-inch cookie sheet with aluminum foil. Lightly grease the foil. Place the graham crackers on the cookie sheet in one layer (24 should fit exactly). Sprinkle pecans evenly over the top and set it aside. Melt your butter in a saucepan. Add the brown sugar to the melted butter and stir until it boils. Boil for one minute. Pour mixture evenly over the graham crackers and pecans. Sprinkle the coconut on top of the pecans before baking. Bake for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and immediately place the cookie sheet in the freezer. Remove the pan after one hour and break the bark into pieces. Does not need to be refrigerated.