Eloise Van Heest, Hope Church Kids Hope Prayer Partner
The Co-Directors of the Hope Church Kids Hope Program make sure that each mentor and child are supported by a prayer partner who promises to pray faithfully for them. Prayer partners are not alone. To become acquainted with the child and to pray effectively, the prayer partner regularly talks with the mentor to discover the child’s academic strengths and weakness, and his/her joys and concerns. Additionally, Hope Church’s Co-Directors, Barb Joldersma and Anne Duinkerken send a weekly memo each Sunday with general updates and specific suggestions for prayers.
Many of the children and prayer partners write notes and letters to each other with the mentor being the ‘courier’ of the book. The prayer partner asks the child about their favorite games, ‘chores’ at home, studies at school etc. The child learns about their prayer partner too as the letters go back and forth.
In mid-winter all the mentors and prayer partners are invited to a dinner at church where encouragement and experiences are shared. Then early in May the child and their whole family come to Hope Church for a year-end celebration. The mentor and the prayer partner meet and eat with the students and their families and join in the celebration with balloons, fun conversations, loud cheers and certificates as the child completes the school year. It is a privilege and joy as a prayer partner to ask God’s help and blessing on a Kids Hope child.
Pictured on right: Eloise (Prayer Partner) and Anne Duinkerken (Program Co-Director and Mentor) with their student at last year’s year-end celebration.