Just imagine if you had no safe, warm place to sleep. Picture yourself sleeping outside when the temperature is near zero and the wind is howling and the only noise you hear that's any louder is the chattering of your teeth. Your hands are cold. Your feet feel like two blocks of ice. You are hungry and thirsty and you're all by yourself. Maybe you're homeless by choice or maybe it's because of circumstances you couldn't control, but you are scared, alone and cold. You have no hope and you are worried about what tomorrow will bring. And so you huddle behind a dumpster or under a bridge and try to tune out the sounds of a world that doesn't seem to care.
Christ's Cocoons is a Christian ministry whose mission is to surround the homeless with the warmth of Christ's love and a bit of encouragement through the gift of a new sleeping bag and a pocket-sized version of the New Testament.
Currently we serve the homeless community of Central Ohio. Both new and gently used sleeping bags are collected and redistributed through several Columbus ministries: the Open Shelter, and Shiloh -- Bridging the Gap. We have also donated to the Foundation Shelters in Lancaster, Ohio.
The ministry began in November 2015 and to date we have been able to provide 160 cocoons to the homeless. I buy cold weather sleeping bags and so far have been able to find some that are warm down to zero degrees for about $30 each plus tax. In addition as a 'Friend of the Gideons' I am able to buy pocket-sized New Testaments with the Psalms for about $2 each.
The ministry is based on Matthew 11:28 in which Jesus says, "Come to me all you who are worried and
burdened and I will give you rest". The money raised by this funding campaign will allow me to form a 501(c)3 non-profit corporation but most importantly to buy more sleeping bags for the homeless. With the cost of incorporating at about $500 it has seemed to me that using past donations to buy sleeping bags was a far better use of donated funds than forming a non-profit business and being able to accept tax deductible gifts. However looking long range I see the advantage obtaining non-profit status since I will become eligible for larger donations like grants. This will be a plus as long as I don't lose site of my mission to provide sleeping bags for the homeless.