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 Dr.
Darrow Perkins, Jr.
pastor of Mesa View Baptist Church, Rancho Penasquitos:
Jesus
said, “The poor you will have with you always.”
The Mesa View Baptist Church has embraced several different
opportunities to help or aid the poor or less fortunate during
the holiday seasons.
Our
first project begins during Thanksgiving in which we put together
food baskets for people in and around our community. The next
project takes place during the Christmas holidays in which
the same process takes place.
Simultaneously
with this, we work in conjunction with Bright Hope International,
a Christian relief ministry committed to helping those living
in extreme poverty, and put together “Hope Packs”
for the children. These packs includes T-shirts, toys, letters
with a message of eternal hope from our youth, and the hope
that these few items will bring joy to the recipients. This
year we will be providing 100 Hope Packs to some of the less
fortunate children in Thailand. To God Be the Glory!
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 Capt.
Bill Welch,
Oceanside Corps, The Salvation Army:
The
Salvation Army in the North County Coastal area starts its
holiday season by providing an annual “Turkey Dinner”
on Thanksgiving Day. We open our doors to anyone who does
not have the means to provide a meal for themselves or do
not have anyone to celebrate it with. Approximately 250-275
individuals, including many families, are able to sit down
to a wonderful meal and give thanks to God for their blessings.
Music
is an important avenue of worship in our church. Our Singing
Company or youth choir performs a Christmas musical every
year. Our small group grows in numbers during this time as
we reach out to the young people in our neighborhood to help
us in song and with drama to bring the Christmas message.
We
assist approximately 600 families annually to celebrate Christmas.
We help them with clothing and toys for their children and
a food box for the families. We also, help family members
of adults who are in recovery facilities or in the prison
system. These adults are unable to provide clothing and toys
for their children during this time. All in all, we help around
2,300 to 2,500 per year. If that were not enough, we also
visit 12 nursing homes during this time spreading Christmas
cheer and leaving a small Christmas gift with each person.
The
Christmas season is only a small part of our efforts. We are
at work all year trying to reach out to our community in this
way because we know that “Need Knows No Season.”
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