Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” And I said, “Here am I. Send me.” – Isaiah 6:8
Sometime in 1999 a friend of mine, Jack Jones, and I began discussing the need for a ministry in our area to assist families who needed home repair. Since Kendra and I had our own home repair company we could see that some families had incomes that were too much to receive government assistance, but not enough to pay for much needed home repairs themselves. Also, we often found that those who could qualify for government assistance would not receive enough to truly make the repairs properly.
In 2000, without really knowing it, Jack and I began a ministry. As God brought needs to our attention we would address them in our spare time with whatever funds we could mustard up. Somehow God provided. A few others came along side and before we knew it we had an honest to goodness ministry going on. We had no name, no funding, no support, just a willingness to be used by God.
Then Ken Hooper got involved. Ken saw something bigger and urged us to become incorporated. Since both Jack and I were still working full time, Ken, now retired, took the lead. In 2002, under Ken’s leadership we became Here I Am, Inc. We took the name from Isaiah 6:8, I know it should be Here Am I, but that sounded too formal and we are most definitely not a formal group. Joe Kilpatrick and Donald Autry joined our Board. Others would come and go, but for years the five of us were the core group.
In December 2003 we received our 501 (c) 3 certification. Now better organized and with proper credentials we began to truly live up to our name. We took on any task God gave us believing and trusting in Him to provide. We did everything from handicap ramps to complete remodeling, major and minor repairs. On one occasion Ken even took a truck load of medical supplies from Chattanooga to Texas for distribution to Third World countries.
So there we were, not an ordained member among us, eager to serve Christ by serving others and willing to fail for His name sake. A food pantry was not on our radar, but nothing sneaks up on God. During the summer of 2004 Kendra shared with us the vision God had placed in her for a food pantry ministry in Walker County. Without hesitation the Here I Am Board agreed to foster her vision. In June 2005, Here I Am, Inc. d/b/a The Care Mission opened its doors.
In 2014 God used The Care Mission to provide food and/or clothing assistance to 7,277 households which included 21,823 individuals. Approx. 80% of the individuals served were children, senior citizens or disabled. We serve an awesome God.
This June we will celebrate the 10th Anniversary of The Care Mission. But, this would not have been possible if it weren’t for a handful of men who were willing to go outside the walls of the church; willing to forsake denomination and tradition for obedience and compassion. I count myself greatly blessed and highly favored to be one of those men. I thank God every day for the men and women He has placed around me, knowing it requires each of them to keep me headed the right direction. Today Ken and I are the only original members still active in this ministry, but God has been faithful to bring others to stand in the gap as needed.
In our next newsletter I will provide a complete summary of 2014. However, with our 10Anniversary drawing near, I felt it important to share with you Ken, Jack, Joe and Donald. And to let you know that approx. 15 years ago God took a ministry with no name, no funding and no support to lay a foundation for what is now The Care Mission. These men looked pasted the unlikely, pasted the impossible and said “Here I am, send me.” Nothing sneaks up on God.
Congratulations $500.00 BI-LO Gift Card Winner!
Chris Sandow, a retired Gilbert Elementary school teacher won the raffle for the gift card. Mrs. Sandow purchased her ticket(s) from the folks at Cohutta Bank. We appreciate all who purchased raffle tickets.
BI-LO’s 2014 Holiday Hunger Relief Campaign
Monetary donations collected at check-out of the Lafayette, Rossville, Mission Ridge and a portion of those collected at the Fort Oglethorpe BI-LO Stores during Nov. / Dec. 2014 were given to the Care Mission Food Pantry. In all $8,999.00 was donated. Praise God! Please thank the staff at BI-LO the next time you’re in there.
Prayer request;
- The Care Mission family lost one of our original volunteers and Board members. Dolores “Dee” Rivera was a special lady who faithfully served the Lord. Please keep her husband, Tino, and the entire family in your prayers. We know our loss is heaven’s gain.
- Please continue to pray for our mission Board, our volunteers and our wisdom / discernment.
- Volunteer and Board member Steve Trievel’s wife, Kim, is in need of prayers for health issues.
- Our community, our nation and our world.
Food for thought…
God used a fish to pay taxes (Matthew 17:24-27), a great fish to save and transport a reluctant prophet (Jonah 1:17 – 2:1), ravens to feed a prophet in hiding (1Kings 17:1 – 4) and even a donkey to chastise its stubborn owner (Numbers 22:21 – 39). If God can use fish, birds and a donkey, surely He can use you?
God is great so we don’t have to be great, just willing.