Hawks with a heart

Today’s blog is from Eve wallwork, Elizabeth lane elementary school

In March 2016, Elizabeth Lane Elementary students and staff, in Matthews, NC, packed meals for the first time with Servants with a Heart. We call this our Hawks with a Heart project. Fast forward eight years and we are now partnering with Servants with a Heart for the sixth time to pack meals. 

One of our school commitments is to ensure that each student grows socially, emotionally, and academically under our care. Hawks with a Heart is a great opportunity to teach our students empathy, compassion, the value of hard work and the impact of service through a hands-on project that makes a huge impact on hungry families in Nicaragua. 

The cost to host a packing event is covered for public schools the first year. Our challenge for each of the subsequent years we host a packing event is to raise the funds to cover the cost of the meal ingredients. Our goal is to raise $8,500 so we can pack 50,000 meals. We want our students to understand the power of working together toward a common goal. We have met or exceeded that target every year!  

Students are encouraged to raise money by supporting their family, friends, and neighbors through acts of service. Teachers, students, and families brainstorm ideas for earning money with a goal for each student to contribute around $15. Every year our students impress us with their creativity and entrepreneurial spirit. This year we had many students perform chores at home or help siblings with homework. Other students held lemonade or bake stands. Some students helped neighbors spread mulch, walk dogs, and water plants.  One student even made a deal with a his parents to match his earnings so he could donate double the amount. Through this service work, Elizabeth Lane students raised over $11,000 in just under two weeks! 

We love seeing how our students will earn the money needed to fund our next project. We look forward to working with Servants with a Heart to make an impact in our community and around the world.

ELE 2nd-grader, Tristan Tully, sold cookies and brownies to earn money for our Hawks with a Heart project.

Suzanne Yoh
Nicaragua—finally!

Today’s blog is from Jeffrey yoh, co-founder of servants with a heart

I am writing this while flying home from spending four days in Nicaragua on our first Servants With a Heart trip since September of 2019. We had planned for a group of four men to go down, but as it turned out, only David Hair and I made the trip due to some unfortunate traffic the morning we left.

I am happy to say that it appears the country has made it through the pandemic and other immediate issues and seems safe for us to visit regularly again. Our partner, Samaritan’s International, is doing very well and we had a good visit with Patrick and his team. During the past few years, although they were unable to receive our food, they continued to receive some from other contacts. One difficult change the government has made is to require Samaritan’s to submit a list of all people who will receive the meals as the meals go through the customs process. Then they must show proof that those people did indeed receive the food. This is a very time-consuming ordeal, but they are ready to receive our food again—and one container is already on the way!

We were blessed to meet with one of the groups we have sent our food to in the meantime. Eddie from Orphan Network has been working with different nonprofits in Nicaragua and has a very large network of schools and churches to which he provides food. I am confident that our food over the last couple of years has made a big impact.

The highlight of our trip was a visit to the village of Las Hamacas, an “off-the-grid” area with no cell service, electricity or water. The people there had a church service for us, honoring Servants With a Heart with many kind comments regarding the impact our food makes. It was quite humbling! We also cooked meals for them from the one box of meals we hand carried on the flight down. It was packed on December 11th at Relevant Church in Clover, South Carolina, which is our (Suzanne’s and my) home church. The children and adults we fed there were truly beautiful people.

I certainly look forward to making regular visits to Nicaragua again!

Suzanne Yoh
Feeding the soul through feeding the hungry

Today’s post is from Chuck Scoggins, Communications director at relevant church in Lake Wylie, sc

There is a strong connection between hunger and chronic diseases. When there is an absence of nutrition, people suffer and die. Making sure people have access to nutritious and clean food should be a priority for all of us, as it is for Servants With a Heart. That’s why it was a privilege for us as the people of Relevant Church to cancel our worship services and pack meals as part of our Live to Give event back in December 2022.

After all, Scripture tells us in Proverbs, James, and Romans — among other places — to feed those who are hungry. We are even commanded in the Bible to go so far as to provide provision for our enemies.

Feeding people is a virtuous endeavor and an end in itself. Hunger is bad.

However, it’s also important for us to remember there is a type of hunger that cures our ailments; a thirst to cure our spiritual disease. In fact, we are instructed to seek it out:

Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied. (Matthew 5:6; emphasis added). The satiation of our souls is found in craving. The food we need most is found in a person. Jesus says, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.” (John 6:35) 

The cure for a famished spiritual life is found in loving Christ. But how does that love demonstrated? We must look back to the beginning. Jesus tells us: “Feed my sheep” (John 12:17).

The work of Servants With a Heart is crucially important for the practical need of human life and sustenance. Their important work will prevent disease and death. The miracle of their work, though, is that as we support them in their mission, we fill the bellies of our own souls with living water. Oh what a blessing to taste and see the goodness of our Lord in serving his children.

Thank you, Servants With a Heart, for providing the opportunity to feast at the table of service.

Suzanne Yoh
Short trip…massive impact

Today’s blog is courtesy of Jenkins restorations employee Jacob hall

A little over three years ago, I had the opportunity to travel with a group of Jenkins Restorations employees and Servants With a Heart to Nicaragua. It was a short trip with a massive impact.

While our mission was to serve the people of Nicaragua through the meals packed by Servants With a Heart, I could not have anticipated how I would be served by this experience. Each night we would debrief the day and digest what we had seen and heard and been part of through our daily trips to small towns, trash dumps, and other areas. For 4 days we endured rainstorms, heat, humidity, and bugs; but we were able to see the end result of meal packing events that have led to nearly 25 million meals being provided to those in need. The trip was short, but the impact on my life wasn’t.

This year, at the conclusion of our annual fall leader meeting, Jenkins Restorations sponsored yet another annual packing event, and we packed roughly 64,000 meals on a chilly Saturday morning. I had the task of weighing and sealing the bags once the 4 ingredients had been added. As a team, we had to ensure each bag had between 390 and 400 grams of food to make sure each box hit within a certain weight, which in turn would lead to correct pallet weight, etc. Each step of the process is dependent on the previous step for success, but what I stay the most focused on is the opportunity these meals provide for the gospel of Jesus to be shared with the people of Nicaragua.

It can be easy to get lost in the speed and challenge of trying to pack more meals than the table next to you or to outdo the number of meals packed from an earlier packing event. But the reward is knowing that you are a part of placing a meal in a stomach of a person who may not have known earlier that day when they would eat again. The reward is also knowing that supporting this ministry has opened the doors to thousands of conversations that speak of the love and affection of Jesus for those who repent and turn to him in faith.

I would encourage anyone who has thought about doing a packing event to set aside time in the next few weeks and join an event and be part of something bigger than yourself to support those in need and be an active participant in bringing the gospel to others.

Suzanne Yoh
Love people sunday

Today’s guest blogger is Esti pepitone from lake forest church westlake in Denver, nc

Here at Lake Forest Westlake, we believe that Jesus gives us the power and command to “go” make disciples and care for those in need. Therefore, we have joined the Missio Dei (mission of God) by engaging in the lives of vulnerable people…that was what Love People Sunday was about.

On Sunday November 20th Lake Forest joined forces with Servants With a Heart to provide over 80 thousand meals to families in Nicaragua. Families had the option to choose from 3 different times to come in and prepare meals.

Not only was the turnout a success but many families expressed their gratitude for this event. Many of them inquired about the next Love People Sunday, in hopes of hearing they would be able to participate again next year! All of Lake Forest Westlake was and is excited to be a continuous helping hand for many years to come.

Suzanne Yoh
More than a half million meals since 2012!

One of our longest standing relationships here at servants with a heart is the partnership we have formed with Centenary United Methodist Church in Mt. Ulla, NC. With the exception of covid-canceled 2020, they have packed meals with us every year since 2012—a total of 548,208 meals since then!

Carla Kluttz, a Centenary member, has worked every year to plan awesome packing events, along with fundraisers like their recurring '“Will Run for Food 5K.” We are so grateful to Carla and her church for supporting us since our beginning and always being excited to host great events. Below are some photos from last weekend’s most recent packing event, with a few “vintage” shots added in…

Suzanne Yoh
One weekend

Today’s guest blogger is Phillip beacham, from one weekend in Sumter, sc

Over the past 10 years the Youth Pastors in Sumter, South Carolina have been organizing an event called One Weekend. This event is focused on getting teenagers from different churches, denominations, and cultures together for the purpose of worshiping and serving together as one. We have always placed a major emphasis on serving together and want everyone serving at the same time, and ideally doing the same thing.

So in 2016 we began to partner with Servants with a Heart. We have tried many different service projects, but nothing is as wonderful as working with Servants With a Heart. Their team is knowledgeable and helpful. Every year we have been in a different location but no matter the limitations, the team always makes it work.

In 2022 we were actually able, for the first time, to raise our normal goal of 50,000 meals to 75,000 meals. I am incredibly proud of our students in Sumter County. They packaged 75,000 meals and were cleaned up, in 2 hours! I am so thankful for Servants With a heart; they continuously impress our team here in Sumter, and we cannot wait to work with them again next year.

Suzanne Yoh
Nutrition

An important part of my work with Servants With a Heart is teaching the education piece that we present when we have events in schools. Our curriculum focuses on nutrition and poverty. The students are taught about the 6 nutrients in food: protein, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins, minerals, and water. Most students can name foods with these nutrients; for example, chicken is a protein and pasta is a carb. They also know that milk has calcium and oranges contain vitamin C. We talk about the importance of everyone eating nutrient-rich foods. Then we look at the ingredients in the Servants With a Heart food. It contains rice, soy, freeze-dried vegetables and a vitamin/mineral powder.

  • Rice: long-grain white rice is widely recognized around the world (and people know how to cook it!); it fills the stomach and has a long shelf-life

  • Crushed, fortified soy: very high in protein (52%), 3 times more protein rich than red meat, vegetarian (acceptable to most diets around the world) and has a long shelf-life

  • Dehydrated vegetables: blend of 6 vegetables enhances vitamin and fiber content, improves taste and visual appeal

  • Vitamin powder: chicken-flavored, vegetarian mixture of 21 vitamins and minerals, and all 9 essential amino acids

I ask if there’s any milk in the bag and of course the students say, “No.” Then I inform them that there is the mineral calcium in the bag, along with vitamin D. I ask about other foods like spinach, which is iron-rich. That mineral, too, is in the bag. They can continue the questions with chicken or apples or whatever nutritious food they think of. Each of the nutrients from these foods is in the meals they pack.

The students learn that if a child eats only a one-cup serving of our food per day, he or she will receive the daily recommended nutrients a body needs to grow, develop and fight diseases (although they will likely still be hungry!).

We end our education sessions telling the students that while they are packing food for the children who desperately need it, they should think about what foods they are putting in their bodies. They should make food choices that are nutrient-rich so their bodies can grow, develop, and fight diseases too.

—Cynthia Hair, SWH Leadership Team Member and Education Leader

Suzanne Yoh
Ukraine and children

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/

Suzanne Yoh
Progress!

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

Suzanne Yoh