So blessed in 2007

KOKOMO URBAN OUTREACH
2007 Annual Report
By: Jeff Newton, Ex. Director

FINANCES

· 2007 General Giving was about $68,000, up $22,000 from 2006
· Designated giving was about $10,000.
· Giving entities increased from 90 in 2006 to 105 in 2007
· Giving entities included 27 churches or Sunday School Groups and 10 organizations and businesses
· Financial assistance was also received from the North Indiana Conference of the United Methodist Church and the Bishop’s Christmas Children’s Offering

VOLUNTEERS

· Leadership Kokomo Team provided numerous hours of volunteer service as well as:
A trailer equipped with a table, sound system, gas grill, coolers, etc.; Shelves in the food pantry; Paper products
· A team of volunteers from Kohl’s provided service
· KUO was been blessed with a Summer Intern and a student volunteer
· Hosted numerous Adult and Church youth groups from Howard County and throughout Indiana
· First-time volunteers this year included 468 youth and adults for a total of over 800 volunteers
· Regular email newsletters are sent to 400 individuals

OFFICE and ADMINISTRATION

· Attended Community Foundation sponsored classes
· Have been working with a Consultant provided as a result of those classes
· Have made changes in the detail of the donations received
· 501(c)3 Application has been filed and accepted
· An Administrative Assistant has been working 10+ hours a week
· The Ministry of KUO has been shared at 5 church mission fairs and denominational
· Pastor Jeff and Staff has been the main speaker at 33 functions throughout the year (23 Churches, 10 Organizations)
· Sponsored the Call To Action, which has resulted in a working relationship between KUO, Bridges and the Kokomo Center School District
· Met one-on-one with 9 Pastors to discuss KUO

CRISIS CHILD CARE CENTER
· Opened the Crisis Child Care Center in July, with gifts from Grace UMC and St. Andrew’s Church
· Hired a Child Care Director
· Hours have been extended and Referral Forms revised in hopes of attracting more users

MEALS (over 15,000 meals served in 2007)
· Served an average of 215 at GS and 125 at PV at Summer Cookouts
· Served an average of 100 at GS and 80 at PV with inside Sunday evening meals
· Served Thanksgiving Dinner to appx. 185 at GS and 140 at PV
· Served Spring Break lunches to an average of 83 at GS (5 days)
· Served Summer lunches to an average of 95 at GS (17 days)

· Began serving Breakfast on the last Sat of the Month in July, to an average of 55 each month
· 400 Sack lunches were delivered on Christmas Day
· Served Christmas Break lunches to an average of 60 at PV (8 days)
· Alto UMC has assumed the responsibility for preparing the Sunday evening meals at PV

FOOD PANTRY
· Provided bags of food to all children attending Sunday evening SWSS & Cookouts each week
· Delivered 500 bags of food and 40 loaves of bread as an Outreach project
· Provided 43 breakfast bags and 25 snack bags to children during the summer
· Collected tons of food during a 4th of July food drive
· Distributed 25 lbs of green beans and 20 doz. ears of corn plus other fresh vegetables from the Community Garden
· Served an average of 35 families per month with food from the pantry (Sept—Dec)
· Distributed 600 lbs of potatoes from the Society of St. Andrews

OUTREACH

· Secret Santa Shop for children of GS and PV
· Easter Basket Workshop provided 600 baskets
· Valentines provided to all children at GS (80)
· Valentine gifts to mothers at GS (80)
· Backpacks provided to all children at GS and PV (180)
· Held a clothing give away at GS and PV
· Began weekly sewing classes
· Volunteers distributed 100's of children's books in the summer and fall
· Gave away about 60 bikes to those needing transportation to job
· Bike Repair
· Held a community concert and meal at the conclusion of VBS (325)
· Smoking Cessation classes had 10 individuals participating
· Socks were given to all who attended the Thanksgiving Meals at GS and PV
· Assisted many new families moving into GS from homelessness
· Numerous families at GS and PV were adopted at Christmas by individuals, church and scout groups
· Partnered with Kokomo Auto World who hosted a Christmas party for appx. 30 children, with each receiving a toy from their “wish list”
· Provided games to each child attending SWSS at PV
· Christmas Eve service held at the PV Community Room blessed 60 individuals

SIDEWALK SUNDAY SCHOOL

· Conducted weekly programs for an average of 40 children at GS and 20 children at PV; teaching about the Fruits of the Spirit, Easter and Advent, reaching a total of 180 children
· Held a mid-week summer class for an average of 10 children from GS and 15 from PV; teaching the Beatitudes
· Held Easter Egg Hunts, a Fall Party, Winter Carnival, and a Birthday Party for Jesus
· Partnered with Grace UMC in order to provide a week long VBS program to the children of Grace UMC and GS

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

· 3 new Directors were appointed with a Board of ten members