The
OUTREACH WORKER
BY ALISHA McDARRIS
As families in need of groceries
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line up beside Jensen
Beach Bowl to fill their boxes
and bags with much needed
sustenance, Jerry Harold smiles at,
prays with and loves on all of the
familiar faces.
“God bless you,” Harold, a Lutheran
pastor, says again and again
to people of all ages, races and walks
of life.
As the founder of The Bridge
Outreach Project, Harold fulfills his
calling week after week, ministering
to “the least of these,” filling pantries
and sharing the love of God. Much
more than a food ministry, the organization
seeks not just to fill bellies
but to minister with the Gospel.
“It’s all about Christ. It’s not about
me,” the pastor says. It’s a phrase
he’s fond of repeating.
The Bridge Outreach Project blossomed
six years ago, less than a year
after Harold and his wife, Evelyn,
moved to Florida from Michigan,
when they struck up a conversation
with a few fishermen at the Jensen
Beach Causeway. It occurred to Harold
that these people could probably
use a meal. He invited them to join
him at the causeway the next morning
for breakfast.
At the time, no one had any
intention of turning one morning’s
meal into a full-time endeavor, but
Harold will be the first to tell you
that God works in mysterious ways.
“It was an opportunity to do what
we believed the Lord was calling us
to do,” he says says.
Eight people showed up that
morning, and the numbers multiplied
week by week. Now The
Bridge Outreach Project serves more
than 16,000 meals and distributes
more than 28,000 pounds of food for
the food pantry every year.
“Our purpose is to act as a bridge
between local churches and the least
ALISHA McDARRIS
PEOPLE OF INTEREST
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