EDITOR’S NOTE: It is a St. John Lutheran Church policy not to release names of participants in its work with Hill Country Daily Bread Ministries.
Every other week, a handful of Boerne family members drive up to St. John Lutheran Church, lower a tailgate or open a door, and drive away with about two weeks’ worth of meals.
“I’m so grateful for Growing Hope,” one recipient said of the Growing Hope Ministry, the church’s food-pantry- styled outreach to members of the community. “It’s not about just the food; they give me hope and support. My life has gotten so much better.” Growing Hope Ministry is in its fifth year, according to Sara Moldenhauer, a Growing Hope project volunteer and mentor.
“The purpose is not just to be a food bank,” Moldenhauer said. “We want to partner with these families, find out their needs, their wants, pray with them, and make sure their spiritual needs are met as well.”
Several years ago, a group of St. John members toured Hill Country Daily Bread Ministries.
“We became interested in working with the people there to distribute food and spread God’s word to others in need,” St. John Lutheran member Linda Bush said. “Since I had only fully retired a few months before and missed working with children and their families, I immediately felt that this is what I wanted to do.”
On the second and fourth Wednesdays of each month, Growing Hope members set up tables and sort food for about a dozen families.
“They (Hill Country Daily Bread Ministries) pull food from their cabinets and stock, and we split it as equally as we can among all the families here,” Moldenhauer said.
Church members mentor the families, whether the participants arrive at the church to pick up their allotment, or if church members deliver the food to their homes.
“We have mentors for eight of our families. We do have three or four families who come pick it up,” Moldenhauer added.
Another food recipient expressed appreciation not only for the food, but for the blessings received.
“ I look forward to talking with my mentor,” the recipient said. “The program is good for those in need to be supplied with what they really need. I would like to become a mentor and return what I can to others who are in need.”
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