Issaquah church buys the homeless holiday meals
November 18, 2008
By Makenzie Greenblatt
On any night in King County, more than 8,000 people are homeless, according to Homelessinfo.org. That’s why Jim Rockstad and his wife, Mo, started the One Meal…One Hope Challenge fundraiser with Union Gospel Mission.
Six years ago, an anonymous donor gave numerous cash donations to Issaquah Christian Church, where the Rockstads are members. The donor wanted the money to be handed out to different church members to put toward something positive for the needy.
Jim Rockstad was among those who received $100. He saw an ad for Union Gospel Mission saying it needed donations for Thanksgiving meals.
He decided to see how many of his friends and neighbors would be willing to contribute. After distributing letters in their neighborhood and at church, they ended up with over $3,000.
“I had no idea if we’d get $150 or $175,” Rockstad said. “But all these people wanted to help. They just needed some direction or leadership.”
“Jim really had the brainstorm,” said Peggy Martin, director of community relations for the mission. “He came in and told me about it, and it just grew and grew.”
Originally called the Feed the Hungry Challenge, only a few churches were involved in 2004. By 2007, there were 12 participating. The church had 24 new donors last year alone, Martin said.
The initial “challenge” was to raise $2,500, which would buy all 1,300 meals for the mission on Thanksgiving. Since more churches and individuals have become involved, the One Meal…One Hope Challenge now aims at providing food for each day from Thanksgiving to Christmas.
Last year, the church raised about $7,300, bringing its total to $30,000 from Rockstad’s first $100. By early November, members had raised more than $8,000.
“It’s great to know when you sit down for a Thanksgiving meal that there’s a group of people down there in Seattle that are getting a hot meal,” Rockstad said, “and that you are involved with a group of people that are caring enough to want to help.”
Makenzie Greenblatt is a student in the University of Washington Department of Communication News Laboratory.
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