Today’s blog is from Cynthia, a longtime member of our SWH leadership team

I recently took my five-year-old granddaughter, Olive, to the LOVE WEEK 2022 Servants With a Heart packing event on July 27 at the Elevation Riverwalk Campus.  On the way there I was telling her that the food we were packing was going to be sent to families in Ukraine who were now living in tents. Naturally Olive asked me why were the families living in tents. As a very prepared grandmother (NOT!) I answered with the first thing that came to my mind, “Because the enemy forced them out of their houses.”  I was trying to avoid words like bombing or war.  Her next question was something like, “Why do they have enemies?”  At that point I wished I had been more prepared to explain what a war is on a five-year-old level.  Olive and I had played the card game War a few weeks ago, so I did use the word war.  I simply answered that Russia and Ukraine are in a war, and that seemed to satisfy her. I did know enough to give simple answers and wait to see if that satisfied her.  It isn’t necessary to give a long elaborate explanation; however, I came home and did a little research on how to talk about the situation in Ukraine to young children.  

Here’s what I learned from Jim Daly, a Focus on the Family writer and advisor:

First, limit what a small child sees on TV or other media. His or her brain is not capable of processing the dramatic news and images.  Actually, don’thave television news on at all when children are around.

Second, provide a perspective that will help the child see how far away Ukraine and Russia are from where we live. It’s difficult for a child to distinguish immediate threats from distant ones. It’s a good idea to show the child a globe or a map so he or she is able to see how much water and land separate our country from theirs.

Third, use simple language and terms that a young child can understand. Referring to Putin as a bully who wants to take control of the land in Ukraine is something a child would understand.

Finally, and most important, assure the child that he or she is a child of God and He loves and cares for each child. Help the child know that God listens to prayers and will always be with His children in scary and difficult situations.

https://jimdaly.focusonthefamily.com/how-to-talk-with-children-about-the-war-in-ukraine/

The food packed by SWH volunteers to be shipped to those suffering in Ukraine has been safely delivered to Romania, from where it will be distributed throughout Ukraine.

Please see this video from Convoy of Hope about their fantastic efforts to help those who are in need in this tragic situation: VIDEO

A tremendous milestone will be reached this week for the BeDoTell Youth Ministry at Fort Caswell. They will pack their 1 millionth meal with Servants With a Heart for shipment to Haiti. By the end of the summer they will have packed over 175,000 pounds of life-sustaining food for the people of Haiti.

Since 2017, BeDoTell has been a great partner of SWH. Each summer (other than 2020) for 8 or 9 weeks between 4,000 and 7,000 young people and counselors pack meals. At the end of Summer 2022, nearly 30,000 campers will have had a hands-on opportunity to provide food for their partner in Haiti.

One of the neat things that has come from this is the relationships that have developed with Baptist churches across North Carolina. I have always believed if someone can participate in an event, they will become an advocate for those that have no opportunity to get food regularly. Abject poverty and rampant starvation are foreign to most of us who have not seen the real struggles that people in developing countries deal with daily. We get calls every year about bringing SWH to churches that have packed meals at summer camp and want to continue making a difference for those less fortunate.

If your church or organization would like the chance to become an advocate for those suffering from food instability, please feel free to reach out to us at info@servantswithaheart.org and we will be happy to discuss options for hosting a meal packing event at your site. With looming food shortages throughout the world, your help is greatly needed.

Brandon Faulkner, SWH program director

Today’s guest blogger is Christina Taylor, egroups & Outreach director at elevation church - Riverwalk in rock hill, Sc

I have packed meals with servants with a heart for years, but something settled differently in my heart when I saw 46 churches and community organizations come together to meet a crisis need. Many of us have felt a sense of helplessness watching the war in Ukraine develop and create such a devastating need. SWH partnered with Convoy of Hope to be the catalyst for us to act on the desire to DO something. They offered the opportunity to feed communities in Ukraine experiencing food scarcity.

During four days of packing events we saw over 1,100 volunteers dedicate time to pack meals. Our goal was audacious—300,000 meals! You can imagine how full my heart was to learn by the end of day four we had packed closer to 330,000 meals! As we cleaned up the event I couldn't help but think of how powerful it is to operate in community. Hundreds of thousands of people will have a meal because of the sacrifice of a few.

Serving alongside church leaders from different denominations, business leaders with different focus areas, and so many incredible community members reminded me that TOGETHER we can create a tremendous impact. It's worth it every time we come together for a collective good. It makes a difference to our local neighbors and this time it made a difference to families across the world.

We are excited to share that we are partnering with Elevation Church and Convoy of Hope to ship a second container of meals for distribution in Ukraine—and we would love you to join us! Everyone is invited to help pack meals at Elevation Riverwalk in Rock Hill, SC next week. We have shifts at a variety of times, on a variety of days Wednesday May 18-Saturday May 21, and there is still plenty of space to volunteer.

Make an impact on those who really need it right now, as well as on yourself, your family, and your friends!

Sign up here!

We are happy to report that we partnered with Convoy of Hope to send our first container of food (nearly 300,000 meals!) to help feed people in Ukraine during this time of intense struggle in that country. Convoy of Hope is doing wonderful work there, and you can watch some videos below that include distribution in that war-torn area. Our food will actually transit through Romania, and we hope to receive confirmation of its arrival and distribution in the not-too-distant future.

We are grateful for those who packed meals in McDowell County, NC with Pleasant Gardens Baptist Church; Relevant Church in Lake Wylie, SC; Calvary Church in Charlotte, NC; and Jenkins Restorations in Chantilly, VA for allowing us to divert your food to this severely impacted area. We have two groups currently working to pack one or two additional containers to bolster our efforts in Ukraine, and will notify our email list if there is an opportunity to help pack those meals. If you are not on our mailing list, please email info@servantswithaheart.org and request to be added.

Response Page
Irina's Story
First Truck- Look Inside Ukraine
Poland Warehouse Update
Distribution Footage

Today’s post is from grace covenant church in Cornelius, nc

On Saturday February 12, 2022, Grace Covenant Church gathered over 370 volunteers into their Grace Life Center to work with Servants With a Heart on a meal packing event.  Over the course of a little less than 4.5 hours and two packing shifts, the volunteers were able to pack 84,888 meals!  These meals will be sent to Nicaragua to help those who are suffering from hunger and malnutrition.  Grace Covenant has been on the ground in Nicaragua and supporting churches, schools, and ministries in Nicaragua for over 20 years.  This year, due to the devastating effects of Covid-19, the Grace team sensed that people in Nicaragua were losing hope.  Pastor Farrell asked the congregation for a special offering to help restore hope to our brothers and sisters in Nicaragua.  We called the campaign ‘Building Hope in Nicaragua.’  From the generosity of our congregation, we raised enough money to help re-build a church damaged by an earthquake, provide support and materials for a school, support a Bible Institute to train pastors and evangelists, and do other special projects such as this meal packing event.

We had an amazing day working with Servants with a Heart.  It was truly a multi-generational and family centered event that everyone enjoyed.  We even had kids as young as three years old helping!  The joy and fellowship were palpable as we served together to help others less fortunate.  We know at our core that God has blessed us to be a blessing to others.  Servants with a Heart allowed us to do this in a way that will provide a tangible blessing to those in need.  When we were finished packing the meals and cleaning up, the unanimous cry was, ‘When can we do this again?’  So, we have another meal packing event with Servants with a Heart scheduled for September and we are anticipating that we will have even more volunteers and pack even more meals!

Today’s post and photos are from Duke student, Grant Wernick

The Servants With a Heart packing event was an opportunity for all different parts of Duke’s campus to come together and donate their time to a really important cause. I happened to have spent time in Nicaragua and I’ve seen the conditions in parts of the country firsthand; even if you hadn’t, the introductory video and signs positioned throughout Card Gymnasium showed you the level of poverty in the second poorest country in our Hemisphere. They made me more grateful for my opportunities and put us in the right frame of mind to serve those who aren’t nearly as fortunate.
From members of different campus ministries weighing and scooping the nutritious ingredients, to football players loading the heavy boxes once they were full, to more than a few K-ville tenters drawn into Card by the promise of warmth and free pizza who ended up staying for the chance to serve, the meal packing was a chance for Blue Devils to come together and break the mold of a typical Saturday morning in college. When the mark of 35,000 packed meals was passed, we let out a collective cheer—this was even better than sleeping in!

Below is an article written by Chip Cross, who organized a packing event last weekend up in Marion, NC. He writes about how a community can join together and make an impact, both locally and abroad!

Tim Mozingo and Paul Withrow are members of a local investment group called The Wolfpack Investment Club.  Near the end of 2021, Tim was speaking to Paul about their success in growing their investments and indicated a desire to give some of it to those less fortunate.  Paul, with an entrepreneur and investor mindset, wanted to use the same principles in giving that he uses in business.  He wanted to compound the gift, through matching funds, and contribute to an organization that is frugal with its donations and “makes a little go a long way.”  They determined that they would contribute $5,000. 

Paul approached Chip Cross, as they brainstorm frequently about how to multiply their giving.  Chip suggested contributing to a food packing day through Servants with a Heart.  The cost of the meals is 15 cents/meal: so $15,000 would provide 100,000 meals to be sent to Nicaragua to those in desperate need.  Chip had become acquainted with Servants with a Heart during a trip to Camp Caswell, a Baptist Summer Camp, in 2017, and had been a part of 3 packing days: to pack 100,000 meals each day.

Chip & his wife Penny decided to contribute, Paul’s daughter, Rachel, said to count her in, and Marcella Silva, a land banking specialist in California, offered to contribute without being asked when hearing about the project. Within a week, Paul and Tim’s initial contribution of $5,000 had been multiplied to $15,000, which was enough to hold a food-packing day in Marion, N.C. on January 14, 2022.  Thank you!

From the first packing day in 2017 and every one since, Mike Conley, of The McDowell News, and who is also a member of The Marion Rotary Club, has been very instrumental in promoting the food packing in our area.  Thank you!  

Nebo Crossing Church has the ideal facility to pack the food: with a loading dock, forklift, tons of space, a lobby with multiple TV screens to watch training videos, and a huge parking area.  Bob Ritter, Pastor of Nebo Crossing, told Chip they could use their facility any time.  Bob was disappointed that he would be out of town on January 14; Kristen Waddle and the entire staff at Nebo Crossing were extremely helpful in preparing for the food packing and taking care of needed items that came up throughout the day.   Thank you!

David Likens, Principal, and the staff and students of Nebo Crossing Academy, provided 150 volunteers to pack the food during the 1st shift: 9:00 -11:15 am.  They also provided much needed manpower and were very instrumental setting everything up 7:30 – 9:00 am.  Thank you!

Tracey Widmann, Principal of McDowell Academy of Innovation, Lisa Robinson, Principal of McDowell Early College (who had to be out of town on January 14), and the staff and students of these two high schools provided over 200 volunteers to pack the food during the 2nd shift: 11:30 am – 1:45 pm.  They also helped with the clean-up, which was huge.  Billy Cline, of McDowell Early College, was extremely helpful in coordinating the planning for the students to be involved.  Thank you everyone!

Pleasant Gardens Baptist Church provided a cookout for lunch,serving approximately 400 people between 11:00 am – 12:00 noon.  The following people cooked and served the meal: Van Lonon, Tony Mitchell, Thomas Atkinson, Tommy Hendley, Brian & Penny Lonon, Ethan Hester, and Simeon Hester.  Van Lonon, Pleasant Gardens Baptist Church Treasurer in 2017, was instrumental in influencing the church to sponsor the first food packing day.  Thank you!

Jad Brewer, Roger Miller, and Charles Ledford of The Gideons International handed out 285 Bibles to students. They enjoyed interacting with the students and commented on how respectful and appreciative the students were.  Toby Talley was a big part of planning the scripture distribution and providing the Bibles.  Thank you!

The Marion Rotary Club is very active in community service and raising funds for our community, with this past year’s auction raising $30,000, which will all go directly to meet needs in the community.  The following Rotarians participated in the food packing: President Brandi Belke, Past President Alpo Portelli, Jim Williams, Walt Bagwell, and Chip Cross.  Jim and Walt, also past presidents; and Brandi are on the auction committee, having a major impact on the success of the auction.  Alpo is very involved in our local Food Hub.  Philip Reed, of the Hickory Rotary Club and Membership Director of Rotary District 7670, is planning to recognize the food-packing day on our district level.  We hope that this exposure to Rotary will lead to even more involvement and support in the future.  Thank you!

In preparation for the food-packing day in 2017, we were short of volunteers as the day for packing was approaching.  Rob Dempsey, who was visiting Marion from Utah, made a call on a Friday to our local Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.  By Monday, 60 people in the church had volunteered; they also provided 80 volunteers to the packing day in 2018.  We would not have been able to meet our food-packing goals without them.  Roy & Deb Clark, Cliff Blood, and two young men currently serving as missionaries: Elder Rath and Elder Groneman participated in packing food; continuing their church’s support of this great project!  Thank you!

Tyrome Rushing drove the truck to bring the supplies here and take the meals back to Charlotte.  He got us going!  Thank you!

Let’s talk about the Servants with a Heart Volunteers and Staff who put in a 12-plus hour day to make this happen – talk about dedication!  Brandon Faulkner coordinated the event.  He unloaded the truck, set up the packing stations, provided the training along with videos, answered questions all day, and organized the cleanup effort.  Cynthia Hair set up the packing teams, directed volunteers during set-up, packing, and clean-up; made adjustments to packing stations, and did whatever needed to be done.   John Pina has been to all four packing days in McDowell County; he is the energizer bunny going all out to get things done!  All three were in constant motion throughout the day!  Thank you!

Servants with a Heart was founded by Jeff & Suzanne Yoh in 2011 and is now approaching 22 million meals being distributed.  All donations are used entirely to buy and distribute food.  What an amazing ministry!  Thank you!  

If you contributed, participated, or were involved with the food packing in any way, you made a difference!  You may never know the impact of your unselfish acts of kindness!  There is a high probability your efforts have saved lives!  I wish we could list every single person’s name; as you were crucial to the success of this project!  As always, the Lord provided us with everything we needed to be successful!  Thank you!

Let’s look at the results of the food packing day on 1/14/22: over 106,000 meals were packed through a wonderful organizationdedicated to providing life sustaining meal to those in need: Servants with a Heart, 3 schools were involved by providing over 350 students and staff, 50 community volunteers participated, Nebo Crossing provided the ideal facility and huge support from their staff, Pleasant Gardens Baptist Church provided a cookout lunch for all the volunteers, The Gideons International handed out 285 Bibles, numerous community volunteers participated, publicity was received through our local newspaper, social media, and throughout our Rotary District; and the following community organizations were represented: Rotary, McDowell Technical Community College, The Wolfpack Investment Club, and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.  Who knows how many food packing days and meals this will lead to in the future?  It started because one person was motivated to give, and 400 others joined in with unselfish acts of kindness to make an impact!  Thank you!

It only takes a spark to get a fire going!

Todays blog is courtesy of Brian Bastis, who works at Jenkins restorations and has visited Nicaragua with servants with a heart

On Saturday December 11th, Jenkins Restorations held a food packing event at our Corporate Headquarters in Chantilly, Virginia. For the 9th year, we pulled together as a family and packed food for Servants with a Heart’s food packing ministry. We were delighted to pack 68,040 meals in 2 shifts, and provide healthy meals for many who go hungry in the US and in Nicaragua. We didn’t do it alone – we had help from our families and friends, as well as from our other Virginia and Maryland offices, and one participant even travelled from Minnesota to participate in the event. For many years, we have been pairing our company Christmas party with this food packing event. We feel that this is a great time of year to celebrate the birth of Jesus and to give back to those who are less fortunate.
As is typical for us, we assembled a competitive group of 150 volunteers, including some local youth sports teams, to participate in Saturday’s activities. The competition among the lines was fierce, having many teams completing 28 boxes (over 6,000 meals), and one team completing 32 boxes! The winners are ALL the volunteers who participated, and the families who receive the food. We normally have the opportunity to join together as a work community for business purposes. On this day, we get the opportunity to work together with our colleagues to serve others. It’s a special feeling knowing where the food will go, and that it’s in good hands from packing day to distribution day. In our 9 year history, nearly 2,000 volunteers have packed over 700,000 meals with our company for this program. The Jenkins team is delighted to partner on these SWH events, and our team looks forward to next year when we will surely do it again!