Pomona Hope Ministry Group

The city of Pomona has a dubious distinction. It was listed by the U.S. Census Bureau as one of the poorest small cities in the United States. First Presbyterian Church of Pomona is right in the heart of that poverty.

In a one-mile radius of First Presbyterian, there are 2,266 households. Fifty two percent of those households live at or below the poverty level ($18,100). Eighty percent are Latino and eight percent are black. Seventy three percent rent their homes. Forty eight percent are below twenty-one years of age, and 39 percent of those over twenty-one have less than a ninth-grade education. Forty two percent work in hourly-rate industrial jobs and an additional twenty two percent work in service jobs. These statistics, taken together, describe a community that is extremely poor with families ill equipped to compete in the American economy, poorly educated, relatively powerless and marginalized. What can God's people do about such human need?

Pomona Hope was created by First Presbyterian Church and has been joined by La Verne Heights Presbyterian Church and several other churches to work for the empowering of the people who live in the community surrounding First Presbyterian.

Pomona Hope strives to empower community members in four ways:

1. Community organizing: Organizing people through One L.A. to address their issues;
2. Community Education: Building people's capacities and abilities for life;
3. Community Economics: Working with businesses to create decent paying jobs:
4. Community Spirituality: Sharing of the gospel in word, deed and life.

The mission of the Pomona Hope Ministry Group is to coordinate our church's involvement in the work of Pomona Hope. We do this by involving our church members in the work of community education through the Pomona Hope Community Center, through building relationships between the people of the community and our church members, by working with ONE L.A. in Pomona, and by sharing the gospel. Our members tutor children, teach computer skills to all ages, play sports and do arts and crafts with the children, spend time with families, and teach adults how to speak and read English.

You can participate in Pomona Hope. Here's how:

• Join Pomona Hope and work to build our church's ministry there.
• Volunteer to tutor children, teach computer skills, play sports and games, do arts and crafts, visit with families, converse with adults in English to improve their language skills or share your faith in Christ.
• Participate in the PH Funding Task Force to continue to build the financial foundation under Pomona Hope.
• Join the Community Economics team to create and help implement proposals for creating businesses and jobs in Pomona.
• Roll up your sleeves and help to paint, hammer, saw buff floors, or scrub walls to help care for the Pomona Hope facilities at First Presbyterian.

How can you get started? Talk to a Pomona Hope Ministry Group member or attend the next group meeting, and ask "How can I help?"