Program Links
ASAP Haiti
Community development project that includes the help of volunteers who travel together on a “work and medical mission trip”
Campaign To End Childhood Hunger (CTECH) and the Kansas Benefit Bank
Improves food security for Kansas low-income children through advocacy, education and outreach.
Faith In Action
Compassionate assistance for frail elderly living alone. You could help someone…
GoZones!
Over 1,000 youth spent time at one of our GoZones! sites
Operation Holiday
Food assistance during the holidays.
Permanent Supportive Housing
When homeless persons have stabilized…
Shelter for the Homeless
Inter-Faith Ministries provides emergency shelter for Wichita’s homeless individuals and families…
Programs
Inter-Faith Ministries assisted over 35,000 individuals last year through our various programs. Our mission is to call people of all faiths together to build interreligious understanding, promote justice, relieve misery and reconcile the estranged.
Congregations, individuals, civic organizations and foundations are a major influence in our success to accomplish our mission of bringing all faiths together to build a strong community and reach out to help those in need. We call on all faiths in the community to help us. We all need to understand and think about what we have in common rather than looking at the things we do differently. Inter-Faith Ministries opens dialogue to help us all learn to celebrate the differences in each of us.
Inter-Faith Ministries also provides a variety of critical services to all populations in the Wichita community:
ASAP Haiti
In 1993, Inter-Faith Ministries hired a young Haitian-born researcher to study the extent of childhood hunger in Kansas. This young man, Daniel Louis, not only researched hunger in Kansas, he touched us with stories of people dying of starvation and schools closing in Haiti due to extreme poverty. Daniel’s distress over the condition of his people in Haiti was so profound that Rev. Sam Muyskens, Executive Director of Inter-Faith Ministries, and Harold Millard, of the Kansas West Conference United Methodist Volunteer in Mission program, went on a fact finding trip.
Campaign To End Childhood Hunger (CTECH)
The Campaign To End Childhood Hunger (CTECH) program improves food security for Kansas low-income children through advocacy, education and outreach. CTECH has developed a network of organizations, congregations, and community activitists to fight childhood hunger. CTECH is an effective voice for the hungry and malnourished living in Kansas. The Kansas Benefit Bank (a new program to CTECH) is working to provide assistance to low-income individuals and families by offering multiple benefit applications for food stamps, Medicaid, HealthWave, low income energy assistance, child care subsidies, as well as refunds and credits from federal and state tax filing. This year, The Kansas Benefit Bank has brought over $500,000 worth of economic development income into Kansas communities.
Faith In Action
Compassionate assistance for frail elderly living alone. Over 130 Elderly and disabled citizens who live independently were paired with congregational and other volunteers, providing 2,900 hours of service to IFM’s Faith In Action Program.
GoZones!
Over 1,900 youth spent time at out of school functions at one of our GoZones! sites. The youth and their families participate in mentoring, character education, learning community responsibilities and positive activities from our AmeriCorp members and community volunteers. There are currently 7 sites located throughout the community to offer youth services.
Operation Holiday
Operation Holiday assists thousands of low-income individuals, families and children needing food assistance during the holidays. It is a volunteer-based program that is in its 48th year, and serves an average of 12,000 people a year.
Permanent Supportive Housing
When homeless persons have stabilized, with the help of caring and resourceful case managers, it remains difficult to locate affordable and safe permanent housing in Wichita. Inter-Faith Ministries offers that safe, affordable housing as well as case managers to help formerly homeless individuals and families remain stable with a caring case manager to help them through the rough spots of adjusting back into society.
Shelter for the Homeless
Inter-Faith Ministries provides emergency shelter for Wichita’s homeless individuals and families. Last year, 640 unduplicated men, women and children were accommodated at our shelters, serving 73,821 meals, distributing over 1,086 Emergency Food Boxes and providing 25,191 bednights at the Inter-Faith Inn (serving individuals and families on an emergency basis) and Ti’Wiconi Safe Haven (serving chronically mentally ill homeless - the only Safe Haven program in the state).
Wichita Area Interfaith Disaster Response
WAIDR functions primarily to train leaders in desaster response and to establish recovery centers that address unmet needs in the event of a disaster.
Film Preview: Diane's Journey
Click the link below to see the Inter-Faith Ministries video about a woman's journey from homelessness to permanent housing.
Watch the Video…