Mike and Lynda Stohler from Cincinnati escape the winter every year and go to Kissimmee in search of warmth.

 

"The beach is wonderful, going to Disney World is wonderful… But you need more than that in your life," said Lynda.

During their stay the couple came across First Kissimmee Christian, a church that reminded them a lot of the church they've been attending back home for the past 40 years.

"But this church looked like it was about the same size. It had some of the same programs that we have up there and so we came,” Mike explained. “And once we came, we were convinced this is where we wanted to be and we've been here ever since."

Jim Book, the senior minister at the First Kissimmee Christian Church, says snowbirds start kicking in around November and last all the way through April.

"Not just their physical presence but their encouragement, their involvement, our programming,” Book said. “They actually heighten the energy level while they're here and they're also very supportive financially."

The Stohlers are in the process of starting a tutoring program at the church for at-risk kids, the idea mirrors a similar program back home.

"We all have a need to serve I think, and a need to love other people and be loved by them," Lynda said.

The Stohlers believe religion is something you carry with you no matter where you go and said they're happy they've finally found the warmth they were looking for all along.

"We wouldn't be happy here if we didn't have our local church to be a part of," Lynda said.

Once these snowbirds head back home we're told they don't lose touch, they continue to communicate with other church members online.