Have you heard of the good work being done by Kingdom Harvest Ministries? The ministry, which focuses on building community groups in the Mercer County area, has been selected as our Giving Mission donation recipient for the month of December. Read on to see why this special nonprofit deserves a spotlight.
What is Kingdom Harvest Ministries?
Kingdom Harvest Ministries, or KHM for short, is a 501(c)(3) comprised of volunteers, teachers and pastors who bring our community together by teaching groups about the importance of morality, character and ethics.
“KHM unites churches to work together and partner with public school systems to go teach classes to public school students on the fundamental principles of Christianity. The kids learn how to treat each other better and how to relate to one another and respect authority,” explains Justin Monfort, who serves as one of the executive directors of KHM.
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The Impact of Kingdom Harvest Ministries
“The value of KHM is actually invaluable because we’re teaching the bedrock of society the values that hold us all together and make society work,” says Monfort. He explained that KHM’s classes teach fundamental principles of relationships between peers and how they treat one another, along with authority figures such as teachers and law enforcement.
“We’re trying to instill these values into our students in hopes of them having a better chance of having a foundation of character and integrity,” Monfort says. “Hopefully, this will result in better work ethics, and along the line, better morale in the workplace. Our desire is to produce high quality, character-driven students who will result in a better community.”
One case of KHM’s impact on the community came through a student named Dakota.
“Originally, Dakota did not believe there was a God who loved people, that there was too much pain and disorder. She enrolled in our class, and week after week we just shared the basic principles of how to treat each other well,” explains Monfort. “By the end of the school year, she became very outspoken in her faith in God and her teachers could tell a difference in her as well as other students in how they were relating to one another.”
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How Does KHM Operate?
KHM’s classes are open to students of all ages in Rockford and Celina and is privately funded. Parental consent is required for these off-site lessons, and students cannot miss any core classes.
In Rockford, KHM offers high school and middle school classes for credit. In Celina, high school classes are available, though not currently for credit as a high school class. Kingdom Harvest Ministries relies on word-of-mouth efforts from its students to spread the word.
Rockford’s classes are held at a church within the community. There are volunteers responsible for walking students back and forth from class to their school along with eight volunteer teachers and one salary-based teacher, all responsible for distributing the curriculum to the students.
Monfort keeps a busy schedule with his work for KHM. “For me, my role is to coordinate the volunteers to get the students picked up and dropped off at the schools at the right time. I also coordinate our teachers and their curriculum and I make sure KHM is continuing a positive relationship with the schools,” he says. In addition to his role as Executive Director, Monfort also serves as a back-up teacher.
Mercer Savings Bank and Kingdom Harvest Ministries
The funds that KHM receives, including the $1,000 donation from Mercer Savings Bank, go directly toward supporting teachers with a salary and also allows the ministry to order the correct curriculum supplies for the students. As a community bank, Mercer Savings is more than proud to be able to provide funds to local nonprofits who work hard to make our community a better place.
To donate to Kingdom Harvest Ministries, visit their website’s donation page. To learn more about KHM and how to get your student involved, visit their website.