BAKER — No one in the Baker, Milligan and Holt areas must go hungry. At least, not with Helping Hands Ministry around.
Jesse Jordan and his wife, Linda, lead the ministry that weekly prepares hot meals and groceries for needy residents. Volunteers from Shady Grove and Lebanon Missionary Baptist Church help.
On Wednesdays, volunteers prepare hot meals at Shady Grove; every other Friday, the ministry prepares boxes of groceries, Linda said. Volunteers deliver meals and groceries, upon request, on Wednesdays. Alternatively, residents can pick up food at the church.
“All this is just planting a seed and letting (residents) know that there is someone (who) cares enough to see that they got a meal to eat,” Jesse said. “The Lord laid it on my heart to do this since day one."
It all started four years ago when a girl asked to borrow money just to buy something to eat. Jesse wanted to know if there were more families in similar situations; when he got his answer, the couple began the ministry.
Baker area businesses' contributions, Shady Grove and Good Hope Congregational Church's financial support and Destin Harvest's food donations also fuel the ministry.
With such community support, “God has blessed us tremendously,” Linda said.
FAST FACTS
•Helping Hands Ministry delivered 3,700 hot meals last year and nearly 300 bags of groceries
•The ministry has already served nearly 3,000 meals this year.
HOW TO HELP
Call Linda Jordan, 758-1766, to learn more about the ministry
Email News Bulletin Staff Writer Matthew Brown, follow him on Twitter or call 850-682-6524.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Community support drives ministry serving food for the poor