Local Non-Profit Organizations Offer Great Ways to Give Back to the Community During the Holiday Season
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Double Duty- Big Brothers Big Sisters participants volunteer through the Salvation Army, making a difference through two local non-profit agencies. “We have several BBBS volunteers who ring our bells with their child,” Salvation Army Store Manager Jane Berg says. “It’s great that these mentors are teaching children about the importance of giving back to the community.” |
Winston Churchill once said, "We make a living by what we get, we make a life by what we give." There exists an idea that each Christmas holiday is rated by the amount of money we spend on our friends and family or the number of gifts we receive. There are, however, several other factors that play into the quality of the holiday season. These include the number of people we impact through our giving and how many memories are made in the process. This Christmas, consider alternative ways to give back through area non-profit organizations.
Family Crisis Center
One of the most specialized non-profit agencies that you can give back to this holiday season is the Family Crisis Center. Serving women and children who are victims of domestic violence, the Family Crisis Center’s mission is to provide advocacy and support for survivors of sexual and domestic violence while promoting change through education.
“We provide a wide variety of services during the holidays and all year round,” Executive Director Laura Patzner says. “Not only do we provide a free transitional shelter for women and children who have survived domestic violence, but we also provide education about the resources available to these women and how to develop coping skills.”
The Family Crisis Center serves a ten-county area in Central Kansas. “Last year we helped 63 families during the holidays,” Patzner said. “That’s a big thing, because when families are in transition, they sometimes can’t figure out how to pay for Christmas, and every child deserves a visit from Santa.”
The Family Crisis Center accepts many types of donations that are absolutely necessary during the holidays. Gifts for all ages of children and also for the mothers, grocery coupons, monetary donations, as well as Christmas tree ornaments, wrapping paper, etc. “We work with Farmers Bank & Trust through their Angel Tree program, but that outreach can only touch so many families. We can always use more help.”
Throughout the year, the Family Crisis Center distributes basic toiletries, household items, diapers and wipes, formula, school supplies, and much more. “We hear stories all the time about parents who take their kids to pick out a birthday gift for another child of their age and gender that has been affected by domestic violence,” Patzner says. “They all tell me how gratifying it is to be able to teach their kids about the spirit of giving while making a difference in our community.”
The Family Crisis Center has several ways to get involved with their organization during December and all year round. “We’d love for Great Bend residents to pitch in this time of year,” Patzner said. “Domestic violence affects everyone. These people are our friends and neighbors, and they need a helping hand.”
Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Kansas
At any one time, there are almost 60 children on a mentor waiting list through Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Kansas. “Most of the kids on our waiting list come from single-parent households,” Executive Director Dana Murphey says. “Being a mentor to one of these children can be as simple as playing a game, preparing dinner, or just taking a walk with a child once a week.”
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Big Difference- Big Brothers Big Sisters children and mentors stand with the Christmas float entered in Hoisington’s Labor Day Parade in September. “There are literally thousands of simple ways that individuals can make a difference in a child’s life,” Executive Director Dana Murphey says. “All it takes is one hour a week and a giving spirit.”
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There are several ways that Great Bend residents can give back through Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Kansas. Individuals over the age of 15 can sign up as a school-based mentor, and those over 16 can sign up as a community-based mentor. “The only difference between the two is where the activities take place,” Murphey says. “School-based mentors are restricted to activities that take place in the child’s school.”
Couples and families can also sign up as group mentors for a single child. The Big Grandparent program is also a great opportunity for retired individuals to get involved with young people. “Our oldest mentor right now is 86 years old,” Murphey says. “She really enjoys being able to mentor a little girl who wouldn’t otherwise have a grandparent figure in her life.”
Big Brothers Big Sisters is the only mentoring agency that is scientifically proven to positively affect the kids they serve, and their program is over 100 years old. “One of our programs allows mentors to make a difference in the life of a child has one or more incarcerated parents,” Murphey says. “It is said that seven out of ten such children will follow in their parents’ footsteps without a positive role model in their life.”
During the holidays, many of these children will not experience the Christmas that most children enjoy. Interested businesses, civic groups, or organizations can adopt a family in need at Christmas to provide them with food, gifts, and clothing. Other individuals can submit a tax-deductible donation to Big Brothers Big Sisters at any time. “We only have one fundraiser each year, which only provides for about 30% of our annual budget,” Murphey says. “The rest of our funding comes from a few grants and a lot of private donations.”
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Big Brothers Big Sisters
Dana Murphey
3420 Broadway
PO Box 505
Great Bend, KS 67530
620-793-5887
www.kansasbigs.org
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For those who can’t commit once a week, there are other ways you can support Big Brothers Big Sisters year-round. BBBS board members meet just once a month, and volunteers can assist with bulk mailings or with the annual Bowl for Kids Fundraiser in March. “We can use just about anyone,” Murphey says. “We can always find some way for volunteers to help out. The key is to remember that everything we do impacts the lives of the children we help.”
Prodigal Ministries
One of Great Bend’s growing needs that is often overlooked is the homeless population. Prodigal Ministries was founded over a year ago to reach out to men in this unfortunate situation. “People just don’t decide to grow up and become homeless,” Prodigal Ministries board member Laura Williams says. “They have goals and dreams just like the rest of us. Prodigal Ministries’ goal is to shelter and educate these men while they get back on their feet.”
Prodigal Ministries, a faith-based non-profit transitional living shelter, recently obtained their current facility, which now allows them to house up to 8 men at a time. “We allow the men to stay up to 6 months,” Williams says. “In that time, we see dramatic changes in their lives. We had one guy who came to us after just getting out of prison where he’d been for the last 17 years. By the time he left Prodigal, he had completed training with a local business and was a hard-working, dependable employee.”
During the holidays, Prodigal Ministries has a great need for donations and volunteer labor. “We could always use space heaters, fleece blankets, grocery certificates, toiletries, and those types of things,” Williams says. “However, our residents enjoy the company of other men in the community just as much. We have weekly cookouts and rib nights so that our residents can fellowship together. We also hold weekly Bible studies and prayer sessions that allow the men a chance to turn their problems over to a higher power.”
Because Prodigal’s residents usually have no family in the area, there are many ways that local families can adopt a resident to make a difference in their life. Preparing a casserole or dessert for the men to enjoy during meal time, purchasing a study Bible and Bible cover as a Christmas gift for one of the residents, or providing a small stock of supplies for the shelter’s pantry would all be greatly appreciated.
“There are so many ways for local families to get involved,” Williams says. “These men are looking for a hands-on example of what true Christians really look like. We are confident that Great Bend families will provide them with that example.”
Salvation Army
“When a local family needs coats for their children or help paying their heating bill, they usually turn to us,” Salvation Army Manager Jane Berg says. “One family who came in last year had just moved here from Florida and had no idea how cold it got during winter. Needless to say, they were looking for warm coats and blankets.”
Salvation Army is an international church ministry that provides numerous services to families and individuals in need. One of these services includes the thrift stores like the one here in Great Bend. “The thrift stores are just a small part of what Salvation Army is all about,” Berg says. “They also help out through youth camps, disaster relief, elderly services, drug and alcohol rehabilitation, and much more.”
During the holiday season, Great Bend’s local store is inundated with requests for help in the form of food, clothing, mattresses, etc. One way to give back to the community this holiday season would be to donate clothing and outerwear in good condition, toys, and mattresses. “Because of health code regulations, we are really the only organization in Great Bend who can provide families in need with used mattresses and box springs,” Berg says. “But we really just don’t see a whole lot of those come through here. We could definitely find good homes for your unwanted ones.”
Another way to help out would be to volunteer through Salvation Army as a bell-ringer. “Our biggest need during Christmas is for people to serve as bell-ringers,” Berg says. “We generate several times the revenue if the buckets are manned.” Salvation Army has five locations in Great Bend and one location in Ellinwood that need to be manned until the end of December. “Those interested in volunteering need only call us here at the store and choose a time,” Berg added. “We have a pretty open schedule until 8 p.m.”
Salvation Army also partners with the Men’s Motorcycle Club during December to distribute brand new toys to local families in need. New toys are being collected inside the Great Bend thrift store until mid-December.
“The important thing for people to remember is that what comes from Barton County stays in Barton County,” Berg says. “This is a chance for people to help out their friends and neighbors during a time of great need.”
As Winston Churchill once said, we make a life by what we give. Give generously this year by offering your time and your talents to area organizations. In return, you’ll receive the satisfaction of knowing you were able to make a difference in the lives of people around you and in our community.
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