Mission Statement

The Lord’s Harvest is a food ministry dedicated to helping with hunger insecurity, especially among children, senior adults, veterans, and homebound individuals in Madison County, NC in response to our Lord’s command in Matthew 25:31-46 to feed the hungry.

2020 Year End Report

Dearest Friends and Family,

What an amazing year we have had at The Lord’s Harvest! Many, many people have donated time, talents and money to help us have another record-breaking year.  As innocently as the year began, we were making plans to start up a new initiative to help the 70% of children in our county who go hungry every night.  In early March we met with Madison County Superintendent, Will Hoffman, school guidance counselors and friends, Michelle and Chad Bradley who are also very concerned about childhood hunger, to begin formulating a plan.  A week later, the School Board contacted us to see how quickly we could get the program in place!  One week later, we were working with the schools to provide food to 80+ students and their families on a weekly basis.  Forty weeks later, this number has risen to 1,500 families per month.  This plan came together just as the pandemic began to break upon our country.  Because of relationships Director Bill Welsch was able to form, The Lord's Harvest has provided potatoes, pinto beans, black beans, rice, and onions along with a staple food box and a package of frozen meat weekly to 350 families (1500 families a month) in Madison County.  We continue to feed not only children and their families, who often go without food each evening, but also to Senior Adults and veterans who usually must choose between housing, utilities, medicine and food; with food being the clear loser.

 During 2020 we distributed:

- 150,000 pounds of potatoes
- 22,000 pounds of pinto beans
- 15,000 pounds of black beans
- 11,000 pounds of rice
- 5,000 pounds of cornmeal

-38,000 pounds of onions

-198,000 pounds of staple foods

-10,000 pounds of frozen meat

Totaling almost 450,000 pounds of food!!!!

To sixteen distribution points, monthly – namely:
-Bethel Baptist Church
-Center Community Center (a feeding site for Senior Adults)

-Ebbs Chapel Community Building 
-Forks of Ivy Missionary Baptist Church
-Hot Springs Salvation Army Point
-Hot Springs Community
-Keystone Federal Housing Ministries (Gray, TN)
-Laurel Branch Baptist Church

-Laurel Fire Department (serving Laurel, Chapel Hill and Spillcorn Communities)

-Madison County Transportation (delivering food to homebound senior adults throughout Madison County)
-Mars Hill Fire Department (Annex)

-Middle Fork Baptist Church

-ROAR (an organization working for social justice located in the Marshall Community)
-Spring Creek Fire Department 
-Spring Creek Nutritional Site
-Spring Creek United Methodist Church

Totaling 1,350 families monthly

We were blessed to receive two large grants this year specifically related to COVID relief from: 

·      The Community Foundation of Western North Carolina

·      The Conversation Fund.

·      We also received grants from: 

·      Aldi 

·      Community Foundation of Florida

·      Dattilo Family Foundation, Inc.

·      Fidelity Charitable

·      Food Lion

·      Joint Services Special Operations Fund, Inc.

·      Madison County High School FFA

·      Madison County Schools CFWNC Grant – (specifically to purchase food from MANNA Food Bank)

·      MANNA Food Bank COVID-19 Grant

·      McCaleb Family Foundation Fund

·      Patriot Military Family Foundation

·      Robin P. Bradbury Family Trust

·      Tim Tebow Foundation, Inc.

·      US Charitable Gift Trust

These grants totaled $110,000!  

We also held a matching grant fundraiser on Giving Tuesday which generated $8,000!  These grants, along with the many faithful friends who give on a monthly basis and those who made a one-time donation has been what has sustained this ministry through a very difficult year.  How thankful we are for every gift and every donor!! (No gift is too small!)

We are also very thankful for our praying friends and family without whose faithful prayer support The Lord’s Harvest would not exist.  Please do pray for us!   

Our 2020 milestones . . . 

• With the help of some generous donors, we now have access to a building that we are leasing where we can consolidate all of the operation.  We hope to move into the building in June of 2021 after a septic system is installed.

• Through the providence of God, and with the help of Bill's cousin Jimmie in Dundee Ohio, we met a man whose ministry is to provide the labor to transform spaces into working ministries.  He and his team of volunteers were here in October and transformed the building to exactly what we need for consolidated operations! Thank you to Walking by Faith Ministry, led by Gary and Peggy Williams and to Stepping Out Ministry, led by Dana Stoneking for putting together an awesome team who did amazing work!

• With the help of the superintendent of Madison County Schools, Dr. Will Hoffman, and input from School Board Members, principals, The Lord's Harvest Board Members and members from the community, helped school aged children and their families have more access to nutritious foods on the weekends and during extended breaks.

• 2021 marks our eleventh year of ministry!

Without the financial support of those who served in the military with Bill, personal friends and family, members of Mars Hill Baptist Church, and grants, The Lord's Harvest would not exist.  Our donations go towards feeding the hungry in Madison County and the surrounding area.  We wish to thank ALL who have given monetarily to help us continue to minister to those who are hungry in Madison and surrounding area.  How we appreciate your prayers and financial support of The Lord’s Harvest.  You are helping us provide these things in abundantly wonderful, compassionate ways! How thankful we are for you!

How can you become involved?   

• Our website gives you an opportunity to give ONLINE!  We invite you to take a look at www.lordsharvestforthehungry.org.  Please prayerfully consider making an online donation!

• The Lord’s Harvest is also proud to be a United Way partner.  If you would like to make a contribution to the United Way of Madison County, you can designate The Lord’s Harvest as a recipient.

• And we can always receive donations through the mail at The Lord’s Harvest, 911 Bailey St, Mars Hill, NC. 28754.

• Volunteers are also always welcome and appreciated as are your prayers, love and support.

• The Lord’s Harvest is a 501(c)3 non-profit organization.  If your company provides matching gifts for donations made to a non-profit - please let us know and we can provide a w-9 to increase your gift!

 
How thankful we are for each and every one of YOU!  As we continue to minister together, we would ask for your continued prayers and we thank those who share of your resources, once or again and again, to bless the “least of these” here in Madison County and beyond.  May God continue to bless each of you with "wonders His love!
                                     Serving Him,

Bill and Sharon Welsch
 
The hands of Jesus in the heart of the Blue Ridge

Approximately 10,000 pounds of food is offloaded at the church every other Monday. During the school year, Mars Hill University Football team Defensive Line and their coaching staff, led by defensive line coach, Chuck Phifer volunteer as a team community project to help unload the staple food and also help us pack the trailers for deliveries each week.  Members of the Mars Hill Baptist congregation also assist in offloading the items from MANNA and loading boxes.  Members of the Mars Hill University Softball team provide assistance on Thursdays as we prepare to make the rounds to deliver food to local fire stations, community organizations and churches, We are very grateful for this very generous giving of time and sweat equity!!

We are also grateful for our Bonner Scholar from Mars Hill University, Kristina Dixon, who volunteers with us as a part of her scholarship program. Kristina oversees much of the packing of staple food boxes.

During the summer months, we have a summer intern who helps with packing and coordinating youth groups who come to volunteer with us. 

Still the lion’s share of the work falls on Bill as he makes a delivery almost every day of the week (Monday through Friday) and two Saturdays a month.  He also picks up, on-loads, and off-loads all potatoes, pinto beans, cornmeal, onions, black bean, and rice by hand, as well as packing the trailer for daily deliveries. We appreciate your prayers for his continuing good health and stamina to continue this ministry.

Without the financial support of those who served in the military with Bill, personal friends and family, members of Mars Hill Baptist Church, and local churches, The Lord’s Harvest would not exist. Your donations go towards feeding the hungry in Madison County, NC. We wish to thank ALL who have given monetarily to help us continue to minister to those who are hungry in Madison County. If you would like to help, we would welcome your assistance; not only financially, but also physically and through your prayer support.

 For more information on how YOU might be involved, please contact Bill Welsch at 828-808-5002.

The hands of Jesus in the heart of the Blue Ridge

The Lord’s Harvest is a non-profit food ministry which began in 2011 in response to the immense need for food in Western North Carolina; specifically in Madison County, where 70% of children are food insecure.  From 2011-2013, The Lord’s Harvest grew potatoes and cabbage and distributed the fresh produce to MANNA Food Bank located in Asheville, North Carolina (which then distributed the food to 17 counties throughout Western North Carolina) as well as to three distribution points in Madison County. 

In 2013, Bill and Sharon made the decision to concentrate our efforts in Madison County which ranks second in overall hunger in the State of North Carolina (fifth in the nation).

After record breaking rainfall in 2013, Bill and Sharon prayed for discernment regarding the direction The Lord's Harvest should take in 2014.  They made the prayerful decision to concentrate efforts on providing potatoes, pinto beans, black beans, rice, onions and corn meal to the hungry year round (rather than only during the growing season).  A grist mill was purchased and certified corn is being purchased from a milling company in North Carolina.  Bill grinds the corn into meal;  pinto beans, black beans, rice, onions and potatoes are purchased.  Bill and Sharon and volunteers package the cornmeal, pintos, black beans, rice, onion and potatoes and deliver them to sixteen distribution points in Madison, North Carolina and one in Washington County, Tennessee.  

Beginning in 2015, the Lord’s Harvest took on a established staple food ministry which could no longer be maintained by volunteers. This allowed them to provide not only the produce boxes but additionally allowed them to provide staple foods and frozen meats to individuals and families who are food insecure.

During COVID, the Lord’s Harvest reached out even farther to communities that were underserved by localized food pantries and began working with fire stations, community organizations and churches to reach people who live in small pocket communities with no food presence for more than an hours drive. (Food deserts).

In 2011, the reach will now extend to the Madison County homebound population, as a group of volunteers will begin delivering food to the homes of those who have no transportation and little access to food. This will allow us to touch many more people who are in need of food and would otherwise go to bed hungry each night.

Through Bill and Sharon’s personal donations to the ministry and with the help of the donations of friends and others who support this ministry, over 1,350 families are served each month. A total of 6,750 pounds of potatoes, 1350 pounds of cornmeal, 3375 pounds of onions, 1350 pounds of pinto beans, and 1350 pounds of black beans are distributed monthly along with staple food boxes and frozen meat.