Missions - First Christian Church

17 of 22 Mission Team members prepare to head south to Nashville, TN.

MISSION AND COMPASSION - 2012

From Kokomo to Tuscaloosa to Kenya and beyond -

Mission in the name of Jesus.

Each year our outreach to the community and world grows. Our connection to Bon Air Elementary school is vital as many persons read with students each week as a part of a mentoring program and nearly 60 children and their families are fed each weekend through Building Blocks, a program that sends a backpack of food home each Friday with children in need. This is our fifth year of this vital program.

"Happy Teeth" is a ministry started five years ago that provides basic dental exams and sealants for 2nd grade students in the Kokomo public schools. Happy Teeth was honored in February of 2009 with an "Award for Excellence" by the Indiana Commission on Vocational and Technical Education. This year over 500 students will be served.

22 members of our mission team traveled to Nashville, Tennessee last summer. This summer, July 15-21, we will be working alongside the people of Tuscaloosa, Alabama as they recover from tornado damage.

With last year's earthquake in Haiti, we have a renewed connection to that area of the world. Our missionaries, Kim and Patrick Bentrott, lost their home and many students and friends in the earthquake. They and their two adopted Haitian children, Solomon and Valancia, survived and have returned to the U.S. but the work goes on. Nurse and church member, Lesley Connolly, joined a medical mission team in Haiti last November and is helping our congregation find a new mission of outreach and caring.

Another nurse and church member, Marsha Ward, along with Mary Young will travel to Kenya in March as part of a Kokomo led medical mission team.

For information on Disciples Disaster Relief and Week of Compassion go to www.disciples.org.

First Christian Church is committed to mission in our community and around the world. We work with and support:

Habitat for Humanity of Kokomo, which has its office at First Christian www.habitatkokomo.com
The Kokomo Rescue Mission www.kokomorescuemission.org
Kokomo Urban Outreach www.kokomourbanoutreach.org
Barbee Christian Camp (near Warsaw, Indiana) www.campbarbee.com
Disciple related colleges such as Transylvania College, Eureka College, Bethany College, and Hiram College
Disciple seminaries such as Christian Theological Seminary in Indianapolis www.cts.edu
Missionaries in countries around the world. www.globalministries.org
Samaritan Caregivers respite care program www.samaritancaregivers.org
CAM (Coordinated Area Ministry) sponsored by the Salvation Army
MUFF (Minister’s Utility & Fuel Fund) which helps cover the cost of fuel bills for the less fortunate)
Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts
NAMI (National Association for the Mentally Ill) www.nami.org
Selected seasonal projects sponsored by our youth, children and adult groups such as Bell Ringing for the Salvation Army, Heifer Project Walk, and more.
Clinical Pastoral Education and chaplaincy at Howard Regional Health Systems.