Ep. 585: Signs of Life at True Charity Conference

The True Charity Network held its annual conference last week in Jacksonville, Florida. The conference demonstrated once again that this group is on the forefront of reforming the way the church does charity in the United States.

James Whitford and his wife Marsha are the co-founders of True Charity. I will not belabor their story, as we have told it before here at MinistryWatch.

One of the highlights of last week’s conference was the presentation of the Waypoint Awards. Waypoint Award winners are ministries that have embraced the True Charity model of providing care that is not merely transactional, but truly transformational. This year’s winners are:

ANEW Ministries. This Indiana ministry helps mothers during crisis but continues to work with them through the tough times to get them to a place of true flourishing. It says it “prioritizes being with rather than doing for.” It believes true transformation comes in the context of relationships. (That is a common theme of the True Charity Network.)

Skylark Clinic is a pregnancy resource center in southeast Georgia with three locations and a mobile facility. Skylark offers ultrasound, pregnancy testing, and STD testing. It also has programs for fathers and an “Earn While You Learn” program that allows participants to complete learning modules that earn them points that will pay for maternity/baby items from the organization’s Boutique. Skylark says its goal is not just to help young families through a crisis, but to ask these families, “What does a flourishing future look like for you?”

Joshua’s Place started in the basement of a small house in South Lebanon, Ohio, in 2008. Originally a Free Store Food Pantry with a relational approach, 10 volunteers, and serving just 15 families, the organization has grown to 500 volunteers serving in five school districts. Joshua’s Place offers after school programs and a monthly “Serve Saturday” that brings local churches into a relationship with the people the ministry serves.

Also honored with True Charity’s Excellence in Charity Award was a ministry from Brunswick, Georgia, called Saved by Grace, a residential work program for men.

The producer for today’s program is Jeff McIntosh. I’m your host Warren Smith. Until next time, may God bless you.

Podcast: Play in new window | Download

Subscribe: RSS