Angel Tree Year Round Ministry

Conference September 11 & 12, 2009

By Jim Day

Are you looking for a way to help fulfill the Great Commission year round? Is the love of Christ for families and children in need at the center of your church’s heart? If you said “Yes” to either of those questions then you need to attend the upcoming Angel Tree Year Round Ministry Conference. At this vital conference (on September 11th and 12th at The Rock Church of St. Louis, 9125 Manchester Rd. in Brentwood, MO 63144) you and your church family will learn how to become part of this important outreach and meet the “Angel behind the Angel Tree” of Prison Fellowship’s Angel Tree Ministry – Mary Kay Beard.

As a young woman, Mary Kay let the pain and anger from an abusive childhood drive her into a life of crime and danger. By the time she was 27 she was wanted by both federal and state authorities and was the target of a mafia contract. Finally captured, convicted of armed robbery, sentenced to 21 years, and thrown into solitary confinement in an Alabama prison, Mary took stock of her life. She started reading the Bible. Before long, she began God's amazing transformation of a broken, bitter criminal into a mighty woman of faith and service. She became the ‘Angel behind the Angel Tree.’

Angel Tree is best known as a Christmas ministry which allows prisoners to connect to their children. The Angel Tree Ministry has now expanded, making it the only nationwide, year round effort that reaches out exclusively to the 1.5 million children in America with a father or mother behind bars.

By mobilizing churches and organizations throughout the United States, Prison Fellowship's Angel Tree works to provide prisoners' children with Christmas gifts and much more by encouraging local churches to get involved year round in the lives of a prisoner’s family.

Prison Fellowship's Angel Tree begins with a gift at Christmas but extends to a year round effort-including camping and mentoring opportunities that links the children of prisoners to a local church congregation to help break the intergenerational cycle of crime thus bringing reconciliation and hope to families split by incarceration. Thousands of families from churches across the nation sponsor prisoner's children to provide much needed love and assistance that is given on behalf of their incarcerated parent.

During the past 27 years, Prison Fellowship's Angel Tree volunteers have delivered more than 16.5 million gifts to more than 8 million children of prisoners nationwide. These gifts are presented to the children on behalf of their incarcerated parent.

Since 2001, some 40,000 children of prisoner's have participated in summer camping and some 5,000 children of prisoners have been mentored through Prison Fellowship's Angel Tree. The average age of children with an incarcerated parent is eight years old; 22 percent of the children are under the age of five. The need is great as some 10 million young people in the United States today have parents spending time behind bars.

So, why minister to Angel Tree children and their parents? In addition to lowering the likelihood of a parent returning to a life of crime after being released from prison, there is evidence that maintaining a child-parent relationship while a parent is serving time improves a child's emotional response to the incarceration and strengthens the parent-child relationship. Rest assured, if Jesus were on Earth today, you can be sure we would find Him in ministry to prisoners and their families. Jesus came “to seek and save the lost.” And now as Jesus' representatives on Earth, we need to minister to Angel Tree children.

As mentioned at the beginning of this article, Angel Tree Year Round Ministries will be holding a two-day conference at The Rock Church of St. Louis, which is located at 9125 Manchester Rd. in Brentwood, MO on September 11th and 12th. The following is the conference schedule:

Friday, Sept. 11

6 p.m. - Open House for Angel Tree Year Round Ministry.

7 p.m. - Dinner with Mary Kay Beard.

Saturday, Sept. 12

8:30 a.m. - Angel Tree Coordinators will have breakfast with Mary Kay Beard.

9 a.m. - Session One: What You Need to Know to Start an Angel Tree Ministry in Your Church.

10:30 a.m. – Break.

10:45 a.m. - Session Two: Establishing an Angel Tree Year Round Ministry.

12 Noon – Lunch.

1 p.m. - Session Three: Three Ingredients for a Successful Angel Tree Year Round Ministry.

2 p.m. - Reviewing Your Ministry Plan.

3 p.m. – Conference concludes.

Mark your calendar now to attend and learn how you and your church can become a vital part of this much needed ministry and meet in person the ‘Angel behind the Angel Tree’ – Mary Kay Beard.

To register for this Christ centered conference and receive additional information E-mail your contact information to angeltree.rockstl@gmail.com or contact David Nowell at (314) 258-5446.