Community Agency

Christmas Ministry

• Christmas Clearing House – Wesley House operates the “Christmas Clearing House” through the Community Agency. Its purpose is to avoid duplication of services during the holiday season by working closely with individuals, churches, schools, civic organizations and other non-profit agencies in order to clear their various lists through the Christmas Clearing House. This cooperative effort serves thousands of people each year and saves the community thousands of dollars by preventing duplication of services. Originally a program of the Meridian Junior Auxiliary, the Clearing House was passed on to Wesley House many years ago in a testimony to our credibility in the community.

 

• Foster Care Children – The Community Agency provides new Christmas toys for foster care children in 13 counties. These children have been placed in Child Protective Services because of abuse or neglect, and are not with their families at Christmas. They always wonder how Santa will find them, since they are away from home. Here is how it is done:
  • Applications are sent out to social workers in each of the counties in which we serve
  • The Department of Human Services workers fill them out and send them back to us
  • The Community Agency is responsible for “adopting” the children (buying toys for them) and getting the donations back to Wesley House by the pre-determined date for pick up.
  • DHS workers make appointments to pick up the toys and deliver them to their children

  This is done in compliance with the strictest of confidentiality protocol and the best part of the process is that the magic of Christmas is often restored as they wake Christmas morning and learn that Santa did come!

• Underprivileged Children – Applications for Christmas assistance are taken from the first of October through the second Friday in December. Over half of our applicants have never had to ask for assistance before and one third of those have college degrees. Families are required to show proof of income and expenses. During the third week of December, volunteers come to Wesley House and fill gift bags for each family. The Wesley Conference Room becomes Santa’s Toy Shop and the excitement is contagious! The frenzy continues for a week…filling gift bags at night, and giving them out during the next day. The last week before Christmas late arising emergency situations such as burn-outs, home thefts, and shut-ins, are taken care of by our staff.

Scouting Programs

We have both a Boy Scout and a Girl Scout troop. Wesley House pays dues and other expenses for each.

The Community Clearing House

This program was established in 2008 at the request of several churches and organizations. Like the Christmas Clearing House, the purpose is to avoid duplication of services by having individuals, churches, civic clubs, and other non-profit organizations work with us in “clearing” names for assistance, thus stretching funds and sparing the expense of duplication. All names are cleared through our in-house database and notes are made on each client that we might better track and chart their progress toward productivity. Community Clearing House is a wonderful opportunity to work closely with our community to ensure top notch services for applicants.

The Community Closet

The Community Closet accepts donations of clean, sized items on hangers for quick and efficient processing, and clothing is given away every day to those in need. Once a month, on the Friday following the 15th, we have a clothing sale at nominal prices with all income going to assist clients with special clothing needs (larger sizes, babies and small children, etc.). The sale is open to the public and is available for those who are too proud to ask for help.

Food Pantry

We distribute food to those in need on a daily basis through our Food Pantry and Storage Center. We are finding that food is a commodity that is difficult to keep. We see so many situations where people literally cannot afford food for their families…forced to choose to pay bills or eat, or to pay medical expenditures or feed their family. Wesley House is there to supply food for them. We depend upon food donations and food drives in order to meet the needs of families and individual that come our way. No one should be hungry in America.

12 Week Parenting Course

Parenting Classes are court mandated for those who have neglected or abused their children. The classes are focused on developing productive parenting skills by teaching new discipline techniques, child development, identifying stressors and how to deal with them, and other topics relevant to becoming caring and more loving parents and functioning families. Classes are held each Monday evening from 6:00 – 8:00 p.m.

Conference and Meeting Rooms

Wesley House has a beautiful facility housing numerous, spacious rooms equipped for conferences and training, or just for a staff luncheon. Call: 601.485.4736 and reserve your room.

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