SEBASTIAN — Christ the King Lutheran of Sebastian was awarded a $5,000 “Lutheran Community Economic Outreach Bridge Grant” from the Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Foundation on Nov. 4.
The funding was awarded to Christ the King based on its effectiveness in addressing basic needs of the local community through its support of the Ecumenical Food Pantry.
Lutheran congregations/organizations receiving the grant were also eligible to participate in an additional $5,000 challenge grant in which funds raised would be matched by the Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Foundation for 50 cents on the dollar up to an additional grant amount of $5,000.
Christ the King is participating in this challenge grant and invites others to help reach the $10,000 fundraising goal to receive the second grant monies.
“Difficult economic conditions and high unemployment rates have caused many Americans to seek support for basic needs such as food, clothing, and shelter from local nonprofits,” said Kathy Larson, grants program manager for the Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Foundation.
“This grant program is designed to help effective organizations maintain their financial stability in the face of increased demand on their resources,” Larson added.
“Applying for this food pantry grant is one of the ways Christ the King fulfills its purpose of sharing God’s love and will as we reach out to our neighbors,” said the Rev. Karen Leedahl. “God uses us to change lives, and we can help do that by feeding others just as Christ did.”
Two less food pantries
The Ecumenical Food Pantry on Roseland Rd. in Sebastian is not only feeling the effects of the present economic situation, but also of the closing of two other food pantries in the area.
“The demand is growing by leaps and bounds,” Jinny Earnshaw, food pantry director, said. “We had 25 new clients last week. Last year we served 1,900 people, including 30 homeless people. This grant will take a lot of the pressure off the Ecumenical Council about where the money is coming from to continue to do our boxes.”
Butter, eggs, pumpkin
“It means we will be able to provide a greater variety of food and keep up with demand. We probably will be able to purchase some fresh vegetables for the holidays for the families. If we have money for the Christmas boxes, we add in a dozen eggs and a pound of butter, which normally are not in the food boxes.
Maybe we can buy some cake mixes and some canned pumpkin for Thanksgiving meals. These are extras they don’t normally receive because they aren’t donated,” Earnshaw explained.
“We are so grateful for this support, especially right now as we get into the holiday season with extra expenses for Thanksgiving boxes and Christmas boxes,” Earnshaw said. She added, “Our clients are so grateful for the help. Some may come monthly, maybe some only once every couple of months.
We try to make each person feel welcome and treat them with respect. We remind all the volunteers that we represent many churches, and we are there to share God’s love with all by caring for ‘the least of these.’ So very, very often, our clients say three simple words, ‘God Bless You.’”
“Thrivent Financial is able to make such donations because of its members,” said Sam Lyons, Thrivent’s financial representative for Indian River County. He presented the check at the Nov. 4 church service to Christ the King, which in turn presented it to Ecumenical Food Pantry representatives Earnshaw, Betty Letrick, pantry volunteer, and Gloria Fennell, Ecumenical Council President.
Christ the King was one of the five Florida churches to receive the grant from Thrivent.
“The not-for-profit financial services membership organization awarded the Sebastian Lutheran church the grant because of its mission statement, goals, and commitment to reach out to the community. It is fully engaged in reaching out to the community, which is in alignment with Thrivent’s values of strengthening faith-based communities like the Ecumenical Food Pantry,” Lyons said.
Food pantry challenge
Christ the King is working in several ways to raise additional funds for the new challenge grant. Half the proceeds from their rummage sale will go to the food pantry. A special “bucket” collection taken during an October church service was sent to the food pantry already.
To make it easier for others in the community at large to support this drive, an account is being set up at PNC Bank to receive donations.
Other churches are invited to make donations to the food pantry through Christ the King. One church, Concordia Lutheran of Barefoot Bay, already has chosen to do this.
In addition, offerings received at the Nov. 20th Ecumenical Thanksgiving service, which is sponsored by the Ecumenical Council, will be forwarded to Christ the King’s special food pantry account at PNC Bank to be counted toward the challenge grant funds donated to the Ecumenical Food Pantry.
“This will help us to raise still more money through the Thrivent Challenge Grant for the Ecumenical Food Pantry,” said Doris Kilbane, Christ the King’s social service chair. “It’s really awesome for all to be working together so we may help others.”
About the Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Foundation
Founded in 1982, the Thrivent Financial for Lutherans Foundation is a private foundation that operates exclusively for charitable, educational, and religious purposes. It supports the health and vitality of the Lutheran community, the Fox Cities of Wisconsin, and the Twin Cities of Minnesota.
Grants are provided for projects and missions that reflect Thrivent Financial for Lutherans’ charitable interests. The primary charitable interest of the foundation is assisting nonprofit organizations and those they serve in achieving economic security and sustainability. To learn more about the foundation and its programs, please visit the website at www.Thrivent.com/Foundations.
About Thrivent Financial for Lutherans
Thrivent Financial for Lutherans is a not-for-profit, Fortune 500 financial services membership organization helping approximately 2.5 million members achieve financial security and give back to their communities.
Thrivent Financial and its affiliates offer a broad range of financial products and services. Thrivent Financial creates and supports national outreach programs and activities that help congregations, schools, charitable organizations, and individuals in need.
For more information, please visit www.Thrivent.com. Also, you can find us on Facebook and Twitter.
