On Wednesday, April 30th, just 48 hours before the Children’s Hunger Fund (CHF) groundbreaking ceremony in the Town of Prosper, TX was scheduled, I wasn’t sure if it would happen.
At 10 a.m., CHF Co-founders Dave and Lynn Phillips were en route back to LAX after their plane was turned around mid-flight to Dallas. Our Media Production Coordinator, Allison, and I (hi, I am Kaitlyn, by the way) were stuck in the Las Vegas airport watching our departure time tick later. On the ground, our San Antonio team was driving through wind, hail, and rain to the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex.
Meanwhile, in the Town of Prosper, the site of our event and future building, was pelted with over an inch of rain. The beautiful dirt field quickly became a swamp.
By Thursday afternoon, the weather had cleared up, the sun worked to dry the rock laid for the event, the forecast looked promising, and our staff had finally made it—we were having an event!
I think the promised 2/10ths of an inch fell in the 15-minute drive from our hotel. When Allison and I arrived, the setup team was wet but smiling as they wrestled balloon towers into place and found sheltered spots for microphones and lighting equipment.
For the next hour, we worked as thunder boomed to the north, and we prayed the storm stayed away.
“What a glorious day! I can’t believe this is happening, and rain or shine, God is in it, and I am just glad we are in God’s will today,” said our Volunteer Program Coordinator, Thomas, as he stacked cans to prepare for our guests to pack the first set of Food Paks from the Town of Prosper.
Just as guests began arriving, the storm intensified. Our signs became wind sails, and balloons snapped against rocks.
As I stood wrestling a six-foot banner, wondering if we needed to call things off, I looked toward the buses and saw umbrellas dotting the hill. Dozens of guests were still walking toward the tent—smiling, chatting, soaked but unfazed. That’s when I realized how small my faith had been.
I worried about little things like wind and rain, when all along God planned to overfill our tent with people who care about this project and, most importantly, care about children in need.
“Today marks the beginning of something truly transformational in our region. With each shovel of dirt that we turn today. We’re not just starting construction on another new facility,” said emcee, Mark Rylander. “We are laying the foundation for the changing of lives, world-impacting opportunities, all types of new connections, and a support system that will provide food and gospel-centered ministry to children and families in need locally throughout the region of North Texas, all around our state, across our country, and yes, around the world.”
I wound my way through the news cameras covered in waterproof bags as David Bristol, mayor of the Town of Prosper got up to speak.
“This future building will serve as a source of hope during some of our neighbors’ darkest times and provide essential resources to our families in need. It stands as a testament to our collective effort to uplift those who need it most,” said Mayor Bristol.
Beyond the tent the rain turned the property into a lake, but we watched as the vision for this land came to life on the screen.
It’s hard to picture these piles of dirt turning into this beautiful space, but as we watched, my mind went to the evening before, when our media team had the privilege to join one of our church partners to visit a family they were serving.
I thought about the little girl who had clung to her mother’s leg and the 13-year-old I chatted with in the corner, who loves gymnastics and going to youth group. As I played with those kids, their mom told her story: her husband had lost his job, and one morning they woke up to find the cupboards bare. She cried, saying how afraid she was about not being able to feed her six children.
When things were at their worst, there was a knock on the door. Pastor Martin had heard about their situation and brought a gift of Food Paks: the very Food Paks that members of the community around me had filled. As Dave got up to address our guests at the groundbreaking, I imagined how many more children would receive that same gift—that same hope—because of this facility.
“I want to leave you today with a hopeful heart, and with an understanding that God has put us in this world not to be consumers,” encouraged Dave Phillips. “But to be givers and extenders of hope to so many people in this world.”
Finally, it was time to move dirt! As Dave, Lynn, and representatives of the North Texas Community plunged their golden shovels into the red Texas dirt, a project years in the making was finally underway—but there was one more thing to do.
It was time to pack the first of thousands (and eventually millions) of Food Paks that, God-willing, will flow from this property to North Texas, surrounding states, and the world! Each guest filled a Food Pak with canned goods, spaghetti, tuna, peanut butter, and (my favorite) snacks for the kids on the very top. Each box represented not only food for a hungry belly, but hope for hungry souls.
As Pastor Brad Wilkerson from Rock Creek Church prayed to close us:
“Lord, we seek Your continued blessings for CHF and the vision that brings us here today to uplift, to heal, and to bring hope to those in need. Bless this groundbreaking, oh Lord, as a symbol of our commitment to Your mercy and Your love. May the foundation that’s laid here be rooted in Your wisdom, strengthened by Your grace, and guided by Your compassion.”
You can be part of the story. Click here to learn how you can help bring hope to children through this new facility.
