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Keokuk has Thanksgiving God's Way
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| God’s Way Christian Center volunteers Earl Hoskins and Jody Sellers help load pumpkin pies into 100 Thanksgiving baskets Wednesday. More than 200 people had Thanksgiving dinner at the same tables Thursday. |
By Cindy Iutzi /Gate City Staff Writer
People from all walks of life broke bread together Thursday at the God's Way Christian Center Thanksgiving dinner.
“It was wonderful, it really was,” said Pastor Sylvia Tillman. “We served 260 including take-home and we had 35 volunteers from everywhere. The whole community helped, everybody. That's what the volunteers were saying, that it must be the way heaven is.”
Area businesses, churches and individuals contributed the ingredients, meat and the baked goods for a feast of turkey, ham, stuffing, mashed potatoes and gravy, three-bean salad, cucumber salad, corn, beans, cranberries, homemade rolls “and every sweet you can think of,” Tillman said.
God's Way Christian Center, 1629 Des Moines St., Keokuk, has prepared and served a community Thanksgiving dinner for 15 years.
“It gets bigger and bigger, especially since we've seen the economy as it is,” Tillman said. “There is a big need. Low and moderate income families are feeling it big-time. They are going to everyone they can to get help.”
In a sense, each annual Thanksgiving celebration is the culmination of a year of giving and counting blessings received at God's Way Christian Center.
The church has a strong outreach ministry that touches the poorest and the richest of people, building a coalition of community and caring that enriches everyone involved.
This year more than 400 people were helped with the clothing ministry and 490 households comprised of 1,325 people were assisted through the food pantry.
The soup kitchen served 5,172 meals this year and 100 Thanksgiving dinner food baskets were assembled and distributed Wednesday.
The homeless shelter housed 35 people over the year who would have been on the street, under bridges, with no other place to go. Each person must pass an extensive background check to stay at the homeless shelter. If they are not considered suitable, God's Way buys them a one-way bus ticket to a safe place.
“A lot of transients come,” Tillman said. “And many are transitional. Some stay and find jobs. A lot of people help make Tristan House (the shelter) a safe place.”
“Without the community, God's Way wouldn't be here,” Tillman said. “At every one of these tables I look at, I see you working at God's Way. Each of you has a position, each of you has a job. I can't do your job and you can't do mine. But each person who comes in with something, God has brought them here.”
God's Way Christian Center is devoted to helping people do what is necessary to help themselves and lends a hand during the transition.
In a letter of support to the U.S. Department of Labor's Employment and Training Administration for the Lee County Industrial Skills Training Program (proposed by Southeastern Community College), Tillman wrote, “Many who come to God's Way are unemployed. Southeast Iowa has lost more than 2,000 jobs in the past two years, so the center truly is a lifeline for many who need food, clothing or help finding a job.
“These people need an affordable training program that will help them gain the necessary skill for a good paying job, and the program would help them get back on their feet ... God's Way staff see first-hand the devastating effects that unemployment and company closures have had on Lee County.”
Tillman told Keokuk Rotary Club members Wednesday that she encounters many people who have only been to kindergarten “and that was it,” she said. “We are finding out what they can do.”
Outreach hours of operation are from 3 to 6 p.m. Monday and Wednesday; 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday; and 10 a.m. to noon Friday.
Outreach ministries include:
Soup suppers from 5 to 6:30 p.m. Monday and Wednesday.
Soup kitchen (lunch) from noon to 1 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday.
Clothing closet open during hours of operation from Monday through Friday.
A homeless shelter with a separate side for women and a separate side for men. A background check is conducted before people can stay at the homeless shelter.
Bread ministry (bread and a sweet) during hours of operation on Sunday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.
Hygiene ministry during hours of operation. Toothpaste, face soap, deodorant and shampoo are given out once a month to people who need it. Participants may reapply every four months.
Food pantry during hours of operation. A box is prepared with grocery items according to family size. People may apply once a month.
A computer room with 20 computers is open during hours of operation for people who need to do homework or type out resumes, etc.
Prison ministry during the Iowa State Penitentiary's hours of visitation.
One-time option of a one-day stay at the Super 8 Motel.
One-time option of a one-way bus ticket purchased for a person to make it to a safe destination.
Transportation is provided to the hospital in Iowa City for people who need assistance getting there.
Utility assistance is available during hours of operation if there is sufficient funds.
Counseling is available by appointment for people who are looking for housing and to learn job skills.
God's Way provides part-time odd jobs for people who are going through a transition period in their lives.
The church has been given seven cars and has in turn given away those seven cars to people in need.
God's Way helps with funeral expenses; services and food are examples.
“It was wonderful, it really was,” said Pastor Sylvia Tillman. “We served 260 including take-home and we had 35 volunteers from everywhere. The whole community helped, everybody. That's what the volunteers were saying, that it must be the way heaven is.”
Area businesses, churches and individuals contributed the ingredients, meat and the baked goods for a feast of turkey, ham, stuffing, mashed potatoes and gravy, three-bean salad, cucumber salad, corn, beans, cranberries, homemade rolls “and every sweet you can think of,” Tillman said.
God's Way Christian Center, 1629 Des Moines St., Keokuk, has prepared and served a community Thanksgiving dinner for 15 years.
“It gets bigger and bigger, especially since we've seen the economy as it is,” Tillman said. “There is a big need. Low and moderate income families are feeling it big-time. They are going to everyone they can to get help.”
In a sense, each annual Thanksgiving celebration is the culmination of a year of giving and counting blessings received at God's Way Christian Center.
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This year more than 400 people were helped with the clothing ministry and 490 households comprised of 1,325 people were assisted through the food pantry.
The soup kitchen served 5,172 meals this year and 100 Thanksgiving dinner food baskets were assembled and distributed Wednesday.
The homeless shelter housed 35 people over the year who would have been on the street, under bridges, with no other place to go. Each person must pass an extensive background check to stay at the homeless shelter. If they are not considered suitable, God's Way buys them a one-way bus ticket to a safe place.
“A lot of transients come,” Tillman said. “And many are transitional. Some stay and find jobs. A lot of people help make Tristan House (the shelter) a safe place.”
“Without the community, God's Way wouldn't be here,” Tillman said. “At every one of these tables I look at, I see you working at God's Way. Each of you has a position, each of you has a job. I can't do your job and you can't do mine. But each person who comes in with something, God has brought them here.”
God's Way Christian Center is devoted to helping people do what is necessary to help themselves and lends a hand during the transition.
In a letter of support to the U.S. Department of Labor's Employment and Training Administration for the Lee County Industrial Skills Training Program (proposed by Southeastern Community College), Tillman wrote, “Many who come to God's Way are unemployed. Southeast Iowa has lost more than 2,000 jobs in the past two years, so the center truly is a lifeline for many who need food, clothing or help finding a job.
“These people need an affordable training program that will help them gain the necessary skill for a good paying job, and the program would help them get back on their feet ... God's Way staff see first-hand the devastating effects that unemployment and company closures have had on Lee County.”
Tillman told Keokuk Rotary Club members Wednesday that she encounters many people who have only been to kindergarten “and that was it,” she said. “We are finding out what they can do.”
Outreach hours of operation are from 3 to 6 p.m. Monday and Wednesday; 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday; and 10 a.m. to noon Friday.
Outreach ministries include:
Soup suppers from 5 to 6:30 p.m. Monday and Wednesday.
Soup kitchen (lunch) from noon to 1 p.m. Tuesday and Thursday.
Clothing closet open during hours of operation from Monday through Friday.
A homeless shelter with a separate side for women and a separate side for men. A background check is conducted before people can stay at the homeless shelter.
Bread ministry (bread and a sweet) during hours of operation on Sunday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.
Hygiene ministry during hours of operation. Toothpaste, face soap, deodorant and shampoo are given out once a month to people who need it. Participants may reapply every four months.
Food pantry during hours of operation. A box is prepared with grocery items according to family size. People may apply once a month.
A computer room with 20 computers is open during hours of operation for people who need to do homework or type out resumes, etc.
Prison ministry during the Iowa State Penitentiary's hours of visitation.
One-time option of a one-day stay at the Super 8 Motel.
One-time option of a one-way bus ticket purchased for a person to make it to a safe destination.
Transportation is provided to the hospital in Iowa City for people who need assistance getting there.
Utility assistance is available during hours of operation if there is sufficient funds.
Counseling is available by appointment for people who are looking for housing and to learn job skills.
God's Way provides part-time odd jobs for people who are going through a transition period in their lives.
The church has been given seven cars and has in turn given away those seven cars to people in need.
God's Way helps with funeral expenses; services and food are examples.
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