Porch Angels meet needs in Kingman

Toward the end of March, in the midst of adjusting to Stay At Home orders, some individuals in Kingman, KS got together to brainstorm how they could help with needs that would possibly arise due to COVID-19. One among them was Kendra Harnden, who regularly gathers with the fellowship at Kingman Mennonite Church. Shortly after this meeting, Kingman County’s Director of Emergency Management, Rich Schott, contacted Harnden to see if she would help coordinate a volunteer effort with the aforementioned goal.

As the group began to grow, Schott encouraged them to come up with a name. Brad Kirk, pastor of the United Methodist Church in Kingman, presented the idea of Porch Angels and the group unanimously agreed. Within a few weeks, they had quickly grown to over 60 plus volunteers.

The plan was to have a Facilitator and Helper for all 23 townships in the county. Porch Angel volunteers would work directly with two local grocers, White’s Foodliner of Kingman and Eagle Grocers of Norwich, to make weekly grocery deliveries. The following mission statement, compiled by Schott and adopted by the group, more clearly expresses their vision and target audience…

Porch Angels is a local volunteer group formed to meet the needs of our elderly and at-risk community members who are isolating due to the COVID-19 virus. We provide store to porch deliveries of groceries and other essential services necessary to maintain our fellow citizens’ health, strength, and stability in these uncertain times.

Although the group has done very few deliveries since forming, they have been called on to help with other volunteer opportunities. This past summer they helped deliver meals to local daycares in Kingman for USD 331’s free summer lunch program. Most recently, they have been asked to help with the KAMI Food Bank. Schott’s hope is to eventually train interested volunteers from within the group to serve on a Certified Emergency Response Team (CERT).

-Kendra Harnden