MISSION OF THE MONTH
College can be an exciting season of growth, but it can also be a time of uncertainty, loneliness, financial stress, and big questions about life and faith.
At Ridgewater College, United Campus Ministry (UCM) and Lutheran Campus Ministry (LCM) work together to ensure that no student has to navigate those challenges alone.
Together, Chaplains Jeff Schmitz (UCM) and Doug Dockter (LCM) create a welcoming community where students find food, friendship, encouragement, spiritual care, and a place to belong. Whether students come for a free meal, a Bible study, a quiet conversation, or simply a safe place to gather, they are met with hospitality and reminded that they are loved by God.
This year is especially exciting as Campus Ministry prepares to break ground on a building expansion. The additional space will allow the ministry to more hospitably serve the growing number of students who gather each week for food, faith, fellowship, study, and community. It is an investment not only in a building, but in the lives of students who are seeking connection, support, and hope.
First Presbyterian Church has long been a partner in this ministry. During the school year, our congregation provides a meal every month, helping create a welcoming table where relationships are built and students know they are cared for.
Unlike many campus organizations, Campus Ministry receives no funding from Ridgewater College. Its facilities, programs, and chaplaincy are made possible entirely through the generosity of churches, individuals, volunteers, and faithful supporters.
Your gifts to this month's Mission of the Month will go directly to support the ongoing ministry and the upcoming building expansion. Together, we can ensure that students continue to find a place where they are welcomed, nourished, and encouraged as they grow in faith and discover God's love in a caring community.
Thank you for helping us extend Christ's welcome to the students of Ridgewater College.
Frontera de Cristo
The Mission Committee now sponsors Mark and Miriam Adams in their involvement in the mission called Frontera de Cristo. Based in the sister cities of Douglas, Arizona, and Agua Prieta, Sonora, Frontera de Cristo works to build relationships and understanding across borders. People often see borders as nothing more than division, but at Frontera de Cristo, borders are seen as a place of encounter. Discerning God’s will, Frontera de Cristo serves migrants and community members on both sides of the border.
By demonstrating gospel values in all that they do, Frontera de Cristo seeks to build relationships that demonstrate God’s will, and build bridges rather than walls. So many people are migrating, seeking refuge and fleeing extreme poverty and violence. Our Frontera de Cristo’s goal is not only to address their immediate needs, but also to address the root causes of mass migration, creating safe and prosperous opportunities that allow our sisters and brothers to stay in the land they call home, if they so choose.
Through the building of community-driven partnerships with ministries and secular organizations in DouglaPrieta, Frontera de Cristo offers shelter, resources, education, emotional support, medical care, and new solutions. The hope is that everyone they meet knows they are made in God’s image, they are worthy of respect, and they are welcome here.
Frontera de Cristo also partners in ministry with Café Justo. Café Justo and its sister organization, Café Justo y Mas, operate on a fair trade plus business model. By removing the middleman who purchases coffee from Mexican farmers and sells it to large American corporations, our fair trade plus system creates an opportunity for farmers to be in control of the process from start to finish. From harvesting, to roasting, to packaging, all the way to your doorstep, the cooperative’s partners are involved. This optimizes the farmers’ profits in a way that creates a just and livable income, eliminates their need to head north seeking work, and allows them to stay on their land with their families. Frontera de Cristo has been proud to serve as a partner with Café Justo since its establishment in 2003 and with Café Justo y Mas since its opening in 2016, watching one man’s dream become a reality that provides new life for many through both.
Frontera de Cristo website: http://fronteradecristo.org/
Café
Justo Ministry partner info: http://fronteradecristo.org/cafe-justo/
Family Promise of
Kandiyohi County
Family Promise of Kandiyohi County is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization which finds its origin from a national organization stemming from Summit, New Jersey. We are one of approximately 200 affiliates found in 43 states and Washington D.C. FPKC has partnered with 12 local congregations (and 13 support churches) to provide shelter, meals and hospitality to homeless families within the Willmar/Kandiyohi County area. Our goal is to do whatever we can to assist homeless families gain emergency shelter, daily meals, and partner with local agencies to equip families with the skills they need overcome homelessness. We believe that families need a “hand up,” not just a “hand out.”
Check out more of what Family Promise is and offers at their website:
Blessing Box
We, at the First Presbyterian Church, have placed a Blessing Box at the front of our church at 316 Sixth Street SW in downtown Willmar and we are seeking donations from you and others to help our brothers and sisters in need. The following is a list of suggested supplies: Food items (non-perishable) -- canned goods, soup mix, cake mix, rice, cereal, noodles, peanut butter, snacks, ramen/instant meals, Hamburger Helper, mac & cheese, fruit, vegetables, bread/buns, baking items, condiments, coffee, juice boxes, seasoning items, crackers. Personal hygiene -- toothbrush, toothpaste, deodorant, shampoo/conditioner, soap, lotion, toilet paper, feminine products, tissue, Q-tips. Baby/child items -- diapers, wipes, baby food, baby cereal, pacifier, powder, lotion, bottles, powder formula. Misc. items -- pens/pencils, paper, seasonal items, gloves,books, small toys, gift items. Prohibited items -- home-baked goods, expired opened goods, alcohol, tobacco, sharp objects.
Ministry Meals
Every Second Wednesday of the Month (during the school year) our Mission Committee donates, makes, and provides a meal during the lunch hours (11-1:30) for students at Ridgewater College in the Ministry Department of the college!! The Mission Commitee is always willing to have volunteers to help out each month if available!! If so, contact the church office for more details.