Handgun Seminar for the Private Citizen
We are hosting a handgun safety class in our sanctuary on Saturday, February 27 from 9 am to 1 pm.  This class will provide the necessary knowledge, skill sets and wisdom to safely carry, conceal and properly empty the pistol.  Practical hands-on exercises in safely loading and unloading revolvers and pistols and the use of laser indicating training pistols will be part of the class.  Please contact Conservation Officer (retired) Kevin Pensinger to learn how to enroll and pay the $50 per person fee at kevin@safedefenseconsulting.com or 360-302-2536

​Hundreds receive free food
Farmers to Families hands out 1,000 boxes
DAVE GONG | The Journal Gazette
Nine-year-old Trae Marquart hustled back and forth in the blistering cold outside St. Joe Community Church on Saturday morning, carrying box after box of food to a large line of cars that stretched for blocks from the parking lot down North Anthony Boulevard. 

“He likes to help – he'll do all of the boxes, the whole time,” Trae's mother, Denise Marquart, said as her son lugged a set of boxes to a nearby sedan. She added that Saturday was the second time her family had volunteered to help distribute food. 

The Marquarts, who have been part of the congregation since 2015, were part of a group of nearly 50 volunteers who answered the church's call for help distributing food boxes provided by the Farmers to Families Program, funded by the CARES Act passed by Congress last year. Volunteers included area families, students, as well as members of the church congregation. 

It was the church's second giveaway; the first happened in October. Fort Wayne Police Department officers also donated their time to help manage traffic, Senior Pastor Greg Byman said. 

In all, volunteers handed out about 1,000 boxes of food. Byman estimated that the church served about 700 vehicles, roughly the same as the October distribution. The church also sent some boxes to other groups, including Lifehouse Church and Waynedale Baptist Church, and worked with the local VA to ensure some of the supplies made it to veterans in need, Byman added.

St. Joe Community Church moved into the church at 2900 North Anthony Blvd. in 2015, Byman said. 

“We believe in the '05. We love the '05,” he said of the neighborhood ZIP code, 46805. “This our corridor. We just want to love people in Jesus' name.”

The past year has made neighborhood churches more important than ever, and Byman said St. Joe Community Church went to great lengths to continue its ministry amid the pandemic. The church ramped up its contact with congregants virtually, started an online worship service and added a second service, while following pandemic protocols, including limiting building capacity. 

Byman said it was heartwarming to see so much of the community gather to help families in need. Some of the volunteers, he said, were asked to just wave and say hello. It was worth braving the cold, he said, to see people smile and to let others know “there are people that care about you, in Jesus' name.”

“We are just one more in the network of so many people that are really there to support,” Byman said. 

dgong@jg.net

What: Free Food boxes for families
When: Saturday, February 6, 2021 at 11 AM
Contact Person:
Pastor Greg Byman
260-403-5255
gregbyman@gmail.com


Once again, ​St Joe has been given a semi-truck load of Food Boxes from the Farmers To Families USDA program, to distribute to area families!   We receive the food on Saturday, February 6, 2021 and plan to begin distributing these prepackaged food boxes at 11:00 am. 

We are asking for anyone who can volunteer to help in the following way:
Pray before, during and after for every family who receives food!

1. 11 AM volunteers to unload truck (strong backs and muscles)
2. 11:00 am - 3:00 pm sidewalk volunteers to distribute flyers, pray, label each vehicle according to how many boxes are needed (1 to 3 boxes depending on family size)
3. 1-3 PM volunteers to load Food Boxes into vehicles
4. 1-3 PM volunteers to receive guests in the building
5. 3 PM volunteers to help with clean-up.

Volunteers need to wear masks and gloves.  Safety vests will be available but bring your own if you have one.  Bundle up! 

Thanks in advance for showing God's love to our community in a practical way!

Greg Byman