Lifechurch - Home of the Extraordinary

International Justice Mission

International Justice Mission is a human  rights agency that secures justice for victims of slavery, sexual exploitation  and other forms of violent oppression. IJM lawyers, investigators and  aftercare professionals work with local officials to ensure immediate victim  rescue and aftercare, to prosecute perpetrators and to promote functioning  public justice systems.

Four-Fold Purpose

» Victim  Relief
» Perpetrator Accountability
» Victim Aftercare
» Structural  Transformation

Lifechurch  is a proud sponsor of the International Justice Mission. Upon  Pastor Randy’s return from an IJM Global Prayer Gathering in Washington, DC he  became incredibly burdened by the injustices inflicted upon thousands of young  girls sold into the sex slave trade. Lifechurch began to support IJM on a  monthly basis by becoming a Justice Church.

For more information on IJM  visit: http://www.ijm.org/

For more  information on the Lifechurch Volunteer Justice Team, contact Shannon Hackett, our  team leader at sgrau33@ptd.net

Restavek

We are a group of people who want to end child slavery, in our lifetimes.We are child advocates, community leaders, doctors, social workers, volunteers, marketers, students and parents. Most of all, we are people that love Haiti and the children of Haiti.

Joan and Ray Conn have been working in Haiti for over nine years. They decided in 2006 to start a foundation to change the cultural practice of restavek and in January of 2007 our organization became official. For the past four years, Joan and Ray have lead the strategy and daily operations of both offices and all our initiatives.

Our mission is simple, accomplishing it will require much effort and many people.The restavek system is supported by a web of interconnected social issues from poverty to parenting, healthcare to education, family planning to child protection. In order to fully eradicate this harmful practice, we believe it is necessary to take a holistic approach, addressing both the immediate needs of children currently in restavek and determining how to prevent additional children from falling into restavek.

We also partner with other organizations in Haiti who are working on the issue of restavek, marginalized children, education and root causes of poverty. If you are interested in partnering with us, please email Joan at

joan@restavekfreedom.org. Or visit http://www.restavekfreedom.org

Rice Bowls

IMPACT THE ORPHAN CRISIS!

Lifechurch would like to introduce you to Rice Bowls.

Rice Bowls TM is one of the easiest and most effective ways for your organization – church, school, business, or community group – to have an impact on the escalating orphan crisis around the world.

These small bowls are provided at no cost to you. When filled with change, the funds from Rice Bowls supply much needed food to a strong network of loving, Christian Orphanages. Rice Bowls is a faith-based non-profit, they work directly with orphanages, which are currently in India, Haiti, Rwanda and South Africa, where malnutrition and the HIV/AIDS crisis, as well as other factors, have greatly marginalized the lives of children.

To learn more about Rice Bowls visit www.ricebowls.org

Feed the Hungry

Lifechurch was introduced to Feed the Hungry after the devastating 7.0 earthquake that struck the impoverished nation of Haiti.  We were privileged to work with Feed the Hungry as they fed thousands of displaced people.

Local church partnership has been a cornerstone of Feed The Hungry since it’s beginning in 1987.

This strategy has been tried and tested in over 90 nations and has proven to be effective, efficient, and reliable.  Aid and relief supplies bypass government bureaucracy and are put directly into the hands of local church leaders who intimately know the needs of their communities’ best.

Feed The Hungry has focused on bringing help to those in need both physically and spiritually. Because we work exclusively through local churches and ministries, each distribution provides an opportunity to touch the spirit and soul of those in need through prayer, encouragement, and sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Wherever and whenever possible we also distribute Bibles to those receiving aid.  The blessing of food to a hungry soul is temporary, but the Bread of Life can change someone for eternity.

” To learn more about feed the Hungry and it’s programs visit: http://www.feedthehungry.org/index.cfm

Kids Around the World

Kids Around the World, Inc. is a faith-based 501 (c) (3) non-profit organization dedicated to helping children and families who have been affected by war, poverty, illness, and natural disasters. Our home office is in Rockford, Illinois and our goal is to reach children around the world with the message of God’s love for them.

We, like you, understand the power of play and the impact it can have in a community, but more importantly in the life of a chiild. However, not everyone can experience this, so they need our help. Recently we have been recycling playgrounds that have been donated to us for children in underprivileged areas. We remove the equipment and refurbish it, if necessary. Then we ship it overseas to other countries where children are waiting, but we need your help.

If you are aware of a playground that is being replaced, removed or just demolished please let us know. We may be able to use it. We are a fully insured organization. We guarantee these playgrounds will not be installed in the United States. Once we have reinstalled the equipment we will send you a picture of the children enjoying your gift of play!On one of our playground builds we had a businessman who asked the question, “Why playgrounds?”. We asked him to wait until the end of the build, and then ask the same question.
For more information call us at 815.229.8731 or visit www.kidsaroundtheworld.com

Lemonade International

Lemonade International was established to partner with an established NGO led by Guatemalan nationals dedicated to educating and providing gang prevention programs for street children in La Limonada – the largest urban slum in Central America and home to more than 60,000 people.

Lemonade International’s  community development work includes two schools in La Limonada, impacting the lives of more than 350 children every year, along with a scholarship program, a thriving church community, a vocational training program, a micro-enterprise program, and a safe home, providing a refuge for abandoned, abused and neglected children.  For more information visit www.lemonadeinternational.org

Power in Learning

There is Power in Learning (Hay Poder en Aprender),

Manoguayabo, Dominican Republic

In an effort to provide more extracurricular opportunities to Dominican youth, Carolina Cruz and her husband Pedro Martinez have partnered up with the Major League Baseball Dominican Development Alliance to establish the There is Power in Learning (Hay Poder en Aprender) Foundation.  With recently built classrooms and computer center, the foundation offers computer courses, art classes, and non formal education courses to the children of Manoguayabo, Pedro Martinez’s hometown.

Hay Poder en Aprender is an excellent example of how baseball and its players are giving back to a country that has given so much to the sport. In the community center built with MLB-DDA project funding, the project now provides after school classes from Monday to Friday in two shifts to approximately 200 youth (145 girls and 55 boys).  The classes in math, reading and writing, science, and human values offered at the center reinforce the materials the students learn during regular school hours and increase the total number of learning hours in a day.
Please contact Carolina Cruz de Martinez at carolinacruzdemartinez@yahoo.com to learn more about the There is Power in Learning Foundation and how to get involved.

A21 Campaign

The A21 Campaign exists to abolish injustice in the 21st century through a comprehensive system of preventative measures, victim protection, prosecution of violators, and strategic partnerships. They prevent trafficking through awareness and education. In schools, orphanages, and universities, they have created presentations and curriculum to educate potential victims of trafficking. Young people are equipped with strategies to avoid becoming a victim.they also believe prevention occurs by educating those not necessarily as victims, but as suppliers in the human slave trade. Whether it’s through  street teams or university awareness, churches or community groups, their prevention presentations in six different countries aim to prevent trafficking through awareness before it begins.

They protect those who have been trafficked by building shelters and transition homes. Their restoration facilities are safe places for survivors to feel empowered to live in freedom. They want to move trafficking survivors past crisis to stabilization, equip them with skills they can use in the future, and assist them with making the next step after leaving our care.
They partner with local law enforcement, service providers, and community members to meet a comprehensive set of needs for those rescued from bondage. They aim to strengthen every aspect of anti-trafficking efforts so together they can see injustice abolished.

“We cannot do everything but everyone can do something” 
Lifechurch  is a proud sponsor of the A21 Campaign. Upon Bianca  Olthoff’s  visit to Lifechurch last year and the dramatic effect her words had on our congregation Pastor Randy  felt strongly led to add A21 to our list of partners.