Do you need an idea about what to do with your children to pass away the lazy days of summer? Just like the modern-day treasure hunt, “geocaching,” that was popular a few years ago, there is a new activity being sponsored by Haven Ministries that families can do this summer while also spreading hope in Queen Anne’s County.
With the help of Queen Anne’s County residents and Kent Island Rocks, Haven Ministries is expanding their #FoundHope Campaign to include “hope rocks” to raise awareness about their ministries in Queen Anne’s County. In the month of June, Haven Ministries Hope Warehouse shoppers and volunteers, along with Kent Island Rocks, the Grasonville Senior Center, and Centreville United Methodist Church Vacation Bible School, painted hundreds of rocks with messages of hope which are hidden throughout the county to be discovered by the public this summer. From July 1 through July 31, anyone who finds one of the painted rocks can photograph it with a cell phone and post it on Haven Ministries Facebook page: havenministriesshelter with #foundhope and the location where they found it. People can also bring the photo of the rock they found to Hope Warehouse in Queenstown for a prize. Finders should then re-hide the painted rock for others to find it. Hope Warehouse is open Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
According to Susan Phillips, Manager of Hope Warehouse, “Hope is what Haven Ministries provides. It’s great for the community to come to share their hope through this campaign.”
Karla Horton, owner of Dragonfly Paddle and Fitness in Stevensville and founder of Kent Island Rocks, started painting “kindness rocks” three years ago. The project initially was as a kid’s project but grew as adults enjoyed painting the rocks as well. The rocks had encouraging messages on them. Once people found the rocks, they could either keep them for encouragement or hide them again for someone else to find. Horton has joined forces with Haven Ministries to help with its campaign.
Horton comments, “Haven Ministries does a ton of good work in the community and is one of the few groups serving people who are homeless in the county. It is great to partner with them on this project.”
According to Horton, the Grasonville Senior Center, which supports several social projects in Queen Anne’s County, was excited to also help with the project and clients painted nearly 100 rocks for the campaign.
For further information on the #FoundHope Campaign or Haven Ministries, call 410-739-4363 or visit Haven-minsitries.org or the Facebook page: havenministriesshelter.
Love shapes the ministry, love transforms people, and hope prevails at Haven Ministries. Haven Ministries operates a seasonal Homeless Shelter located at the Kent Island United Methodist Church in Stevensville, a Resource Center at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church in Centreville, the Haven Ministries Food Pantries at Safe Harbor Presbyterian Church in Stevensville and Centreville United Methodist Church in Centreville, Our Daily Thread Thrift Store in Stevensville and Hope Warehouse in Queenstown.