Page 67 - South Mississippi Living - December, 2024

GIVING BACK
Feed My Sheep story by Lynn Lofton photo courtesy of Feed My Sheep
Feed My Sheep is a non-judgmental, faith-based program dedicated to providing nourishment to the homeless, homebound and needy in the Gulfport area.
“Even though there is no structured religious element of the Feed My Sheep program, the Christian Spirit is alive and well in everything we do,” says Ted Riemann, who’s been involved with the organization for many years. “When Jesus instructed his disciples to ‘feed my sheep,’ He not only meant physical nourishment, but also spiritual nourishment. We provide our service on a no-questions-asked basis.”
The organization serves 10,000-12,000 meals a month and gives away on average 8,000 pounds of food each month
to soup kitchens in Harrison and Hancock counties. It’s grown quite a lot since 1984 when it served approximately 20 homeless people hot meals daily out of a vacant Gulfport restaurant.
“We’re doing this by the grace of God and the blessings of a community that strongly supports our mission,” says Executive
Director David Lion. ”It takes approximately 150 volunteers each week to prepare and serve approximately 600 meals daily. This would not happen without the dedication and commitmentof our wonderful volunteers.”
In 1983, a small group of concerned Christians planted a seed of hope for hungry and needy persons in the Gulfport area when they came together and founded the Gulf Coast Christian Life Center, with Feed My Sheep as an outreach program. Serving the hungry began the next year.
When Hurricane Katrina destroyed their facility, Feed My Sheep was forced to halt operations for a while. In January 2009 their new, state-of-the-art facility was opened with 6,000 square feet of space.
Cooks, servers, delivery drivers and other volunteers, along with donations, are always welcome.
Feed My Sheep
2615 19th St., Gulfport • 228.864.2701 • www.feedmysheepgulfport.org
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December 2024 | 67