I am pleased to stand here today to share with you an exciting new Food Ministry that has been in the works since last spring!
First, for those who may not be aware, my name is Dean West, I was baptized into the church last May, due to seeds being planted by kindly Adventists over 25 years ago, and watered and cared for well by the good members of this church this past year!
My wife - who was also recently baptized in the church - and I run a non-profit called "490 Outreach", named after the scriptures that speak of forgiving others - or giving them extra chances - not seven, but seven times seventy times!
That non-profit very broadly aids alcoholics and addicts in recovering, providing generalized aid and advice. Specifically it operates two homes, wholly owned and paid for, as "sober living homes". It had provided everything but supplemental food aid.
So. We had been desiring a Food Ministry for a long time, and when I came here, I noticed that Mike and Monica were doing a Food Ministry for the church in that they were collecting, making and distributing food to the homeless. Including some of the same homeless that I was trying to reach.
Now, a formalized Food Ministry is not a cheap thing, nor easy. It involves collecting food, sorting it, packaging it in bags and distributing it to various food insecure members of the community. It's not lunches gave out at that point, it's extra groceries, typically about 10 pounds worth, to aid the person and their family in getting through the month.
The bag lunch ministry, which is still ongoing and will if anything be expanded, is for street level giving to those who stay at shelters or under bridges. A formalized Food Ministry is more for those who are in apartments, trailers and houses, yet still need food aid.
You see, the LINK card - what some call "food stamps" - only purchases about two and a half weeks worth of food for the average person and their family. The rest of the slack needs private churches and charities to make up the difference. Now the number of noticeable Food Ministries in Sangamon county is hardly more than a dozen, with perhaps only half a dozen of those being "heavy hitters". That's because even what I'd think of as a "mid-level" Food Ministry is expensive.
It takes roughly $500 per month for a mid-level Food Ministry, and that assumes all volunteer labor, all the facilities for it up and running, and all the contacts and networks and procedures generally known. This would let a church - or charity - provide roughly 2,000 pounds - a ton! - of food per month to approximately 200 people. Or 50 ten pound bags of supplemental groceries per week.
Not bad, really. A great value, and it would help a lot of people. It'd even be worth it. But $500 is $500 and thus out of hundreds and hundreds of churches in Sangamon County, only about half a dozen churches even try. I know, that is surprising, isn't it? But true. There are hundreds and hundreds of churches in Sangamon County. Yet scarcely half a dozen have any kind of "real" Food Ministry.
But I know that a Food Ministry is "where it's at" so to speak. It is a specific thing that Jesus did specifically command. And if some few churches that have not the truth can have such a program, why can't we who have the truth have a Food Ministry, too?
I thought of that, and I thought of how our own 490 Outreach wanted to have a Food Ministry. I knew the charity my wife and I have and our new church could do better together than either of us could do separately.
I thus, months back, proposed to the church board that we be allowed to start a Food Ministry for the church, that would be done in the name of the church, but with heavy financing and volunteer labor and general aid provided by our charity. That we'd start with a one year trial agreement. That the church would provide the facilities - that new pantry some of you have noticed - and $200 per month, and we through 490 Outreach would provide another $200 per month plus pick up the delivery costs of $100 per month and provide volunteer labor.
This was approved. Since then, I and Art have gone through orientation at the Central Illinois Foodbank, I've visited various food pantries doing research, asking questions and meeting with various people who know how to do this, and the Men's Ministry has built a pantry for our church. Let me tell you, by the way, that the Men's Ministry was outstanding! Good men, with professions and families that would have excused them not participating, nonetheless came in on their day off and rolling up their sleeves, tore out the wall and re-built a simple closet into the spacious pantry we have now!
I also had brought two guests from our sober living homes to aid, and those of the Men's ministry were a remarkable evangelistic example to both of them. There is preaching the gospel, but working side by side with a man, like Jesus did with fishermen, does a lot more to plant seeds. And I know seeds were planted that day.
The pantry substantially done, I contacted others in the Food Ministries that I knew, like the Director of Kumler United Methodist Church's Food Ministry, and had them out to look things over, and to share with them what all we were planning. Those who I spoke to liked it, and we got a great letter of recommendation from them.
I then finished the two dozen page application - ok, I exaggerate, it was only 20 pages, with then 3 letters of reference attached! But I finished that and went to another orientation, and turned in all that, and then heard back from Central Illinois Foodbank's director, who came out to inspect our pantry!
And we passed! With flying colors! In fact, she was very pleased that we are filling a very important niche, wherein we are distributing food on Sundays - something no other church does! - and that we are delivering to various people who otherwise would not be able to come out and get food. Such as sober living homes, group homes, halfway homes, and various shut ins - the elderly and/or disabled - around town.
This then is how our church now has a $500 a month Food Ministry for $200 per month!
Our new Food Ministry is going to be rather substantial. While originally we were going to confine ourselves to dry goods and canned goods, learning about how much produce Central Illinois Foodbank has available at little or no cost caused us to reassess that, so 490 Outreach donated a refrigerator to our church so that the new pantry can accommodate produce.
What is going to happen is this. Twice a week, Central Illinois Foodbank will email me with a list of all the available food. Within the confines of a $100 a week budget, I will select 500 pounds of food. Or more. This reflects the fact that the maximum cost of food at the Central Illinois Foodbank is 19 cents per pound, so each dollar can purchase at least 5 pounds of food. Some of the food is free, though, so you can see that while we'll only spend $100 per week, we may get far more than 500 pounds of food per week.
The general public will be aware that we are open as a food distribution point between 2pm and 4pm every Sunday. As mentioned, we are already noticed as one of the few churches that operates on the weekend, and the ONLY one that does so on Sunday! We expect then not only more notice that way, but when a person aided inevitably asks, "How come you're working on the Sabbath?" we can say, "Well...since you ask...!"
The church's website and facebook page have been updated so that there is now a "Food Ministry" telephone number for those who desire food aid to call. 490 Outreach has also updated their website and facebook page. People will be able to come in between 2pm and 4pm each Sunday to pick up food. Or, in many cases, they can have food delivered.
And - saving the best for last - not a bag will go out without some tract, pamphlet or such about our church! 200 seeds will thus be planted each month, and not to 200 people, but to 200 families, 200 homes, 200 groups!
Exciting times!
Now, I know what you're thinking! This all sounds very exciting, but what can I do?
Well, as much or as little as you like!
Like Mike and Monica's bag lunch ministry, this Food Ministry will be open to any and all who want to participate! We can use aid in coming to pick up food, in helping unload the food at the church pantry, in sorting and bagging up food for distribution, in passing it out at church on Sunday, and even in some deliveries to various homes around town!
Call me now, or call me later, help some days or other days, the help is always appreciated!
And while it goes without saying, your help in the bag lunch ministry is still needed and appreciated, too. The more who go out on that, the better, and we have had people actually come to Sabbath service before who were reached by Mike and Monica's bag lunch ministry. I have been able to find new guests in need of the shelter of 490 Outreach due to that same bag lunch ministry!
Besides time and effort, what other ways are there to help?
Financially, of course. But we'll have to clear up some specifics on that. First, donations should be to the church, there seemed to be some confusion on that, but no, this is a church ministry. 490 Outreach is aiding the church's Food Ministry, and has an agreement with them to do so, but that is all. So donations go to the church. They should be earmarked, though, so the church knows where it is meant to go.
Secondly, while it would show your heart is in the right place, going out and buying a bunch of canned goods - or any other kind of food - to donate to our food pantry will not be as helpful as you just donating the cash.
See, a can of tuna fish costs, let us say, .79 cents. With tax, you can see that works out to almost a buck for five ounces of food. But the same dollar, donated to the church's Food Ministry, means we could take that, and go to the Central Illinois Foodbank and buy at least five POUNDS of food.
That's an enormous difference.
In closing, all are not only invited, but encouraged to participate! In fact, I'm not even encouraging, I'm flat out pleading for all to come and have a hand in this!
As Mike and Monica have said before, the more who participate in giving out those bag lunches, the better, and the same goes for toiletries and the same goes for this new Food Ministry. Yes, we are giving out material items, but the more of us that are seen participating in this, the more it is seen as a church effort. An active church effort.
And guess who has active church efforts?
Active churches!
Guess who has growing and dynamic efforts?
Growing and dynamic churches!
So don't be shy! This new Food Ministry is everyone's business, and everyone's responsibility!
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