On Kelly’s first team with Food for the Hungry (FH), she felt God’s love for her in new ways and desired to learn more about His heart for justice. She was greatly impacted by the needs she saw and wanted to do more for the people than just serve on a team. Kelly learned about FH’s Community to Community program (C2C), and she encouraged her church to get involved. Kelly became the church advocate, and since then she has participated in four more trips. God has used Kelly in numerous and creative ways to bless the communities that FH serves. In particular, she has used her gift and passion for teaching and running to make a difference.
Kelly is a 4th grade teacher, and through her summer mission trips, her school has become aware of her heart for the poor. A parent approached her about getting the students involved. Kelly rallied the fourth-graders to do a penny drive to raise funds for school supplies in the form of Hope Packs. FH delivered the supplies to her classroom, and the students assembled the packs, including a note and class photo. Kelly then personally delivered the packs on her team’s visit to Njuruta, a community in Kenya. She was so happy to see the excitement in her students’ faces as they raised the funds and assembled the packs, and now, she gets to see the joy and hope in many Kenyan students as they received the school supplies.
Kelly also got a team of friends and family together to run a marathon to create awareness and support for FH. She originally thought about raising money for shoes, but FH staff suggested that purchasing goats would be a better gift as it could create a sustainable income-generating program for families in the community. The money derived from this program could then be used by parents to provide for the needs of their children, such as shoes. Each team member raised funds via e-mail, Facebook, letters and word of mouth. The team ran and raised about $5,000 for goats, and since goats reproduce quickly, the community will benefit for years to come!
Kelly always looks for ways she can share her experiences. She especially loves talking about her sponsored child and encouraging others to sponsor a child as well.
FH Teams 