Keeping kids fed not just U.S. need

Dover Pastor Eloise Gray learned this summer that American children aren’t the only ones set adrift by coronavirus school closures.

Pastor Gray, her husband Tim and their congregation at Mt. Olive Church operate and support Touching the Heart of God Ministries to provide for the spiritual, physical and educational needs of hundreds of children in Kenya, Africa.

“One of our ministers in Homabay, Kenya, reached out to me about the conditions of children in their area,” Pastor Gray said.

The pandemic caused schools to close there in March, just as they did in Oklahoma. For many children in the area, school was the place where they were guaranteed to receive one hot meal per day.

“In addition to the schools being closed unexpectedly, families in the area were also dealing with flooding that caused lots of damage,” Pastor Gray said. “Consequently, families had lost their crops and businesses and were unable to feed their children.

The local minister asked the Grays if there was anything the Touching the Heart of God Ministries could do to provide children one hot meal a day during the week to replace the one that normally would have been served at school.

“By faith we started a feeding program,” Pastor Gray said.

Fueled by monetary donations from Kingfisher County and elsewhere, volunteers in Homabay, Kenya, woke up early each morning to begin the process of finding sticks to build a fire and then made huge pots of rice, stew, beans and bananas – enough to feed 130 to more than 170 children each day.

“What started out as a program we thought would last only the month of June has extended through the end of August,” Pastor Gray said. “God was truly faithful as donations for the feeding program came in from people near and far.

“We received almost $2,000 in donations and the majority came from my friends in Kingfisher County.”

As of the first week in August, the program had served over 5,050 meals to children, plus additional meals to the elderly in the community. While resources were available to continue until the end of August, a spike in COVID-19 numbers in the area shut the program down Aug. 21.

Even so, Pastor Gray expressed gratitude for being able to continue the feeding program nearly all summer.

“This program has not only blessed the people in Homabay but has blessed me as well,” Pastor Gray said. “This project is truly what Touching the Heart of God was created to do – touch the lives of children!”

The Grays and Mt. Olive Church also support other ministries serving Oklahoma children, including Positive Tomorrows, which operates a school for homeless children.

“Positive Tomorrows has not been able to close their doors due to the virus because the children who attend this school do not have a home,” she said. “So the ministry continues to feed and provide shelter during the day for school children.

“We thank you for your prayers for all the children around the world.”