Each year on the first Saturday in November, Iowa United Methodists "gather in" cash and other items for missions in Iowa and worldwide at the Ingathering events. A portion of the fund's collected returns to Iowa Hunger Relief agencies connected with our UMC churches.
In Iowa, 229,500 people face hunger daily - and of them, 80,160 are children, according to
Feeding America.
A colored dot on
this interactive map indicates each Hunger Grant awarded to Iowa UMC churches in 2023 and the size of each household served. The range of programs the grants support is broad, including community gardens, free meals, monthly food boxes for shut-ins, healthy food for kids during school breaks, and food pantries. Applications for 2024 will open in January.
Once churches receive the grants, they have the privilege and honor of passing on the money to the local program where assistance is needed. Additionally, to honor Dan and Jean Houston, the founders of Ingathering, the Bidwell Riverside Center receives $500 for their ongoing work.
Tim Shanahan, Executive Director of the Bidwell Riverside Center, receives their Hunger Grant check.
What a difference $20,500 will make across the conference!
Ingathering this year is on Saturday, November 4. The sites will be at UMCs in Greenfield, Cherokee, Cedar Falls, Mt Pleasant, and Ft Dodge (note changes of sites). All the info you need is available at www.iaumc.org/ingathering.
A summer mailing about Ingathering will be coming to every church in late June with specifics for the day. Any church, any size, can be a part of this experience. Questions? Contact Alaire Willits, Ingathering coordinator at [email protected].
