An Insider’s Look at Hope Ministries

David Burrier

...with Chief Development and Community Relations Officer David Burrier

Recently I was asked, “What is your ministry’s most urgent need?” I responded by saying, “Our most urgent need is an undesignated cash gift.” You see, it’s my responsibility to secure the financial resources to fund our enormous scope of outreach to the homeless and hungry. This year, those services will require over two and a half million dollars in undesignated cash gifts.

Where does that money come from?
People are often surprised to learn we do not seek nor accept any government funds (local, state or federal) that would compromise our Christ-centered mission. We cherish the freedom to share the life-changing Gospel of Jesus Christ without government intrusion. This is what makes Hope Ministries different. Instead, we rely on private donations to sustain our ministry to the homeless from year to year. The majority—nearly 75 percent—of our financial support comes from individuals who send contributions to us through the mail, mostly in response to our bi-monthly newsletters like this one and periodic appeal letters. The balance of our annual support comes from churches, businesses and grants.

How does Hope Ministries manage the funds it receives?
One of Hope Ministries’ three core values states we are stewards of God’s resources. Stewardship is something we take seriously. We believe financial integrity and accountability are paramount, and we want our donors to be confident in our use of their funds, including our accounting practices. Expenditures are managed by making sure we are within the acceptable standards of all national major charity watchdog groups, including the American Institute of Philanthropy, the Better Business Bureau standards for charities, and the Evangelical Council on Financial Accountability.

How have economic conditions affected Hope Ministries and its financial support?
Have we been challenged this past year with the level of financial donations? Yes. Has the number of people we are sheltering and feeding gone up? Yes. Yet one constant we can count on is this: Our donors have sustained this ministry since 1915. We trust God’s faithfulness even through the toughest of economic times.

We are entering one of the most important times of the year for Hope Ministries. We call it the giving season, when well over 50 percent of our entire annual support comes to us in the last three months of the year. It’s also a time when people are in the giving spirit, and they think more about those less fortunate. We wish our financial support would reflect more of a year-round balance since homelessness has no season. This is why we send our newsletters and appeal letters throughout the year asking for your support. It is my job to ask people to support our ministry to the poor, the hopeless and the hurting. I know not everyone can respond every time we ask, but we are so grateful when you do.

So in the coming months, when you think of Hope Ministries and our work with the homeless and wonder what might be our most urgent need, you can safely assume that it would be an undesignated cash gift. Thank you for coming alongside us as, together, we reach out to homeless men, women and children in the mission field of central Iowa. God bless you.

Each year Hope Ministries prepares an annual report that is available to the public. You can access this publication here or request a copy by calling (515) 265-7272 or sending an e-mail to info@hopeiowa.org.