Outreach-Global
Presbyterian Disaster Assistance {PC (USA)} – Presbyterian Disaster Assistance (PDA) is the emergency and refugee program of the Presbyterian Church U.S.A. PDA enables congregations and mission partners of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A) to witness to the healing love of Christ through caring for communities adversely affected by crisis and catastrophic events. Our initial involvement with PDA was with teams from our church participating in the recovery efforts from hurricane Katrina primarily in Slidell, LA just outside New Orleans. We will be continuing our support for those efforts as well as other disaster recovery efforts in the US and globally. Additional information is available at www.pcusa.org/.
Alternative Missions – Jesus to the Needy (South Africa): Joe and Averyl lead the mission team located in Kwa Zulu-Natal, South Africa. Their ministry reaches out to the needy, bringing them food, clothing, and the Gospel. We minister to the refugee population in Durban and Pietermarizburg and to the HIV/AIDS affected families in these areas, as well as the Valley of 1000 Hills. We feed about 100-150 people a week and work with others depending on the type of ministry we are doing. Their goal is to reach as many people as they can in South Africa and Swaziland and then go to Zimbabwe when the country stabilizes. Their ministries include: Medical, Alpha Course, Food distributions, Life Skills Training, Aids awareness/Prevention training, and Hosting Short Term Mission Teams. For more information visit www.alternativemissions.com/ministries/south_africa.
Mission Encounter International – Larry Benson (Helene): The Benson’s have been in Helene for five years during which time they have continued the Alternative Missions medical and dental clinics, trained several islanders in the ministry, started the English school, and have brought on local leadership for the school, drinking water distribution, and much of the spiritual leadership for the community. Mission Encounter International plans to continue their services and transfer more and more of the responsibility to local leadership. Short term mission teams engage in many of the above ministries with the addition of the Clean Sweep, outreach activities, Kids Clubs, Habitat for Helene, (needs based construction projects). More information is available on their we site www.missionencounterintl.org/.
Lifewind (Medical Ambassadors International): – Lifewind International, formerly known as Medical Ambassadors International, commits to transforming nations through disease prevention, evangelism and community development. Lifewind International trains and supports national leaders within 56 developing countries to reach and disciple their own people physically and spiritually. Their integrated ministry, Community Health/ Evangelism, serves in God’s grace to transform individual lives, lifting communities out of poverty and multiplying this success to entire nations. With over 30 years of experience as an international Christian organization Lifewind International empowers individuals in communities around the world by using and teaching the Community Health Evangelism strategy. They enhance the dignity and capabilities of the people they are privileged to serve by strengthening local leaders and helping find solutions to problems using local resources. Their goal is to bring lasting change. For more inmformation on Lifewind go to www.lifewind.com/.
Partners International – Pastor Nouh Ag Infa Yattara (Timbuktu, Mali): Our church has been supporting Partners International for more than 15 years and recently through the Annual Harvest of Hope catalog with individual support with specific gifts. Partners International seeks financial support for Pastor Nouh and the Tahahint n’ Massinag e Tinbuktu (TNT) ministry in Timbuktu, Mali.
This ministry’s vision is to establish more new churches (3 new church started last year) among the tribal groups living in the “Belt of Misery”, the extremely poor camps on the outskirts of Timbuktu. Elijah House Center teaches, clothes, and feeds 65 children each year. It also provides medical care for them in a Christian atmosphere. The Women’s Center trains 100 women annually in a 9-month training program in sewing, knitting, embroidery, fabric dyeing, and literacy. One day a week there is a Bible class using films, Bible lessons, comparative studies of Islam and Christianity. Men’s Vocational Training Center to train Tuaregs in tailoring and baking in a 9-month program that also includes literacy and health training and hearing the Gospel. They hope to establish a gardening project in the Tassinak camp outside Timbuktu where a generator, pump, and pipes will allow irrigation for forestry and gardening using a well previously drilled by the UN. The TNT -owned FM radio station needs additional funds to develop and produce new programming for evangelism. More information on Pastor Nouh’s ministry can be found at www.partnersintl.org/partners/wa/mltn.
Africa Bible University – Kurt and Marlene Schimke: – This ministry located in Kampala, Uganda reaches out in the education of future Christian leaders in their own countries. Kurt and Marlene’s teaching helps to promote spreading God’s word to a very needy part of the world where strong Christian leadership is necessary. ABU is sending Christian leaders to churches, businesses, and governments. It also offers an accredited credential program for teachers. The students come from Botswana, Rwanda, Uganda, etc. that need educated Christian leaders. Watch a brief video of Kurt and Marlene at www.schimke.org/home_page and more information on the university at africanbiblecolleges.org/uganda/.
Plant with purpose, Floresta: – Founded by Tom Woodard in 1984, this Christian Non-Profit organization reverses deforestation and poverty in the world. By working with local community leaders within poor rural communities to plant trees, teach sustainable farming, provide micro-financing for small business owners and share the gospel. Thereby transforming the lives of more than 8,600 rural poor in 219 communities in six countries: the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Mexico, Thailand, Tanzania, and the United States. Floresta has averaged 31% annual growth over the last five years demonstrated by the over four million trees planted since 1984 of which 500,000 were planted in 2008. For $1 per tree you can make a difference. Floresta plants trees for a purpose while planting the word of God through action and discipleship so that both can flourish and be taught and passed on to neighboring communities throughout the world. 70% of time is devoted to service, 25% to discipleship and 5% to evangelism. Floresta is one of the many organizations already assisting rural Haitian communities with recovery from the 2010 earthquake. Additional information is available at www.plantwithpurpose.org/.
New Hope International: – Has been a vigorous and effective ministry for 40 years. Many Centerpointe members have has personal contact with the ministry and its founder and president, Hank Paulson. New Hope works in the countries of Eastern Europe-now seven or eight. Its chosen mode of service is to partner with local churches to help them build up their capabilities for effective Christian ministry and outreach. While in its early days New Hope was smuggling Bibles into Iron Curtain countries. It now supports a growing number of churches-more than 2000-with a range of activities including: training conferences for pastors and church leaders, Sunday school development, summer camps and VBS, family life training and counseling, Bible correspondence courses, distributing Christian books and devotionals, placing orphans in Christian families, and fostering tours and short-term mission trips. These activities are implemented by a national staff of nearly 80 and about 800 volunteers mainly from partner churches. In some countries New Hope and its secular organizations such as government-supported schools and social service organizations. www.newhopeinternational.org./ministry/ukraine.htm.
Streets of Hope: – This organization Streets of Hope rescues orphaned and homeless street children, providing housing, guidance, education, and Christian training until adulthood and they can support themselves. Currently Streets of Hope has six facilities in and around Nakuru, Kenya. They operate two satellite facilities which serve as entrance facilities to the other six. They have one dorm which houses 88 children, a high school that will eventually serve ninth through twelfth grades, a vocational school planned for the same location, another dormitory that can house up to 90 students attending high school. One clinic is located 40 miles outside Nakuru serving the people of Ime, Kenya, and a well for fresh water for this village.. The clinic helps on average 320 patients per month treating mainly typhoid, malaria, and snake bite, and assisting refugees from tribal clashes. (They also deliver on average 5 babies per month.) ReachOut! supports 5 orphan boys at Streets of Hope. Additional information is available at www.streetsofhope.org/.
Heart for Africa – The ministry mission consists of three elements: 1. Children’s homes in Kenya and Swaziland - for the past three years have partnered to help them move out of crisis and toward sustainability. Work has included raising money and hiring local contractors to build dorms and kitchens, dig bore holes, and build other sustainability structures (such as chicken house, zero-grazing cattle pen). 2. Project Canaan - purchased 2,500 acres in Swaziland in May 2009. Project will include for-profit agriculture (likely in greenhouses) plus a dairy and fish farms. Profits will go to support three Swaziland partner homes as well as Kenya homes. 3. American Service trips - the core competency since its founding is bringing large groups of Americans on 11-day service trips to work side-by-side with Africans in the children’s homes. The 2010 trips will focused on Celebrate Litesmba which will bring 15,000 orphaned children into the Swaziland national stadium to celebrate “hope”.
Continued objectives are to recruit and execute service trips, improve and refine partnerships, and finish capital commitments to existing homes. New objectives are to continue to develop Project Canaan as funds are available, complete business plan and budget for agriculture and fish farming, raise $4 million to move Project Canaan forward ($10 million over three years needed), and develop operational plan for home at Canaan. For more information refer to www.heartforafrica.org.
International Justice Mission – Headquartered in Washington, DC, IJM is dedicated to the prevention of human trafficking. IJM provides service by qualified professionals for victim rescue, perpetrator accountability, victim aftercare and training, and structural transformation. IJM helps people suffering injustice (i.e. forced prostitution, bonded slavery, land and property seizures, etc.) who cannot rely on their local authorities for relief. The Scriptures speak with unmistakable clarity about God’s hatred of injustice, His passion for justice and His call for each of us to use our skills, gifts and talents to seek justice and rescue the oppressed. We also know that God does not give us a ministry that He won’t empower, and that He will work miracles in response to our faithful obedience to His call to this work. More information can be found at www.ijm.org/.
Pakistan Christian Radio Ministries – (PCRM) reaches the community in Pakistan through Bible based programs and outreach activities. PCRM provides Bible teaching through audio visuals, i.e. radio, cassettes, and CD’s. In addition to electronic media, personal meetings, Bible study camps, rallies, and seminars are held regularly to build relationships. PCRM’s radio ministry is their primary line of communications. It includes friendly informative talk shows, tailored to meet listeners needs while respecting the local culture. They produce and broadcast programs primarily in the Urda language but also reach out to Siraiki and Punjabi language groups. The ministry is closely and historically tied with the Bible Correspondence Institute, Far East Broadcasting Asia (FEBA) Radio, like minded groups, and the local church. Joint projects are engaged in to achieve the ministry’s goals. The location of the ministry is Punjab province, Faisalabad, Pakistan. One of the co-workers in Pakistan for PCRM is Edgar Pace, brother of Oliver Pace who with his family attend Centerpointe. For more information go to www.pcrm.gospelpk.com/mail.html
The Ambassador Program (Ministry of Adventures in Mission): – See Glenalyn Hunt in Members in Mission for narrative.
