Written by Ben Cox – A large check was donated to Good Samaritan Ministries of Brownwood by a local church, to make up for budget shortages announced earlier this year.
Northlake Community Church, pastored by Ron Keener, made it their mission to “be the hands and feet of Jesus in Brownwood” by raising funds for the local ministry after their budget was drastically reduced by the County.
Over $5,700 was raised by the small church through donations gathered by their members and projects designed to raise the funds.
Good Samaritan Executive Director Leesa Stephens reacts to the amount of the donation by NorthLake Community Church
Keener, presenting the check to the organization in their Brownwood offices, said “A little over a year ago we made a commit meant to Good Samaritan Ministries that we would raise five thousand dollars over the next year on the heels of a Brown County Commissioners decision to the direct aide program. So we pursued this with a positive attitude of ‘we could do this’, but WE couldn’t do this, only God could’ve pulled this off with the numbers you’re about to hear.”
A poster showing a purple cross and the amount raised was then presented to Executive Director Leesa Stephens and Associate Director Heather Thomas, along with a check for the balance of the raised funds. The church had presented two donations earlier in the year totaling just over $1,800. The church then raised over $3900 in five and a half months.
The cross is comprised of 10 ribbons, one placed every time the church raised another $500.
Keener said the church has sold hand made crosses in front of area stores and have even had donations from people across the country, “people have even come up to me and handed me contributions.”
Keener was quick to point out the church members who made this donation possible. “Russell and Linda Lamond have headed this project for the past year, they’ve been our coordinators. They’ve done a masterful job of bringing us to where we are.
Executive Director Leesa Stephens said through tears “Y’all know that our hearts were broken when the county cut our budget, but I don’t want to dwell on that. I want to focus on our belief that God would provide. This money goes directly to households, not salaries. These funds help people stay in their homes, help get antibiotics to sick children. I can’t help but think of the lyric “Little is much when God is in it. It’s like the boy with the loaves and fishes, it didn’t seem like it would feed a multitude. Well, you have helped a multitude of people today.”
Stephens says the poster with the cross will be framed and put on display at Good Samaritan.
