Nearly 10 years ago, Keystone Church Compassion Ministry member Beth Ranck met in a local coffee shop with Shira Zimmerman, senior director of adult services with The Factory Ministries. "(Members of the Compassion Ministry) had been reading 'When Helping Hurts: (How to Alleviate Poverty Without Hurting the Poor ... and Yourself),'" recalled Ranck, who noted a section of the book laid out ideas for doing a match program with struggling community members. "We had this idea to see if we could work better (at alleviating poverty by working) with The Factory," said Ranck, who noted that the discussion with Zimmerman preceded a number of meetings, conversations, and proposals about the subject.

Before 2020, a program known as Keys to Savings had kicked off, partnering Keystone with The Factory. Keystone helps provide funds for local residents who need to save for a specific purpose through a match program. Adult advocates at The Factory work with savings participants through one of two goal tracks. The client must take part in certain meetings and complete a budgeting class among other requirements. The three entities - Keystone, The Factory, and the client - work together to achieve a savings goal for the program. Keys to Savings has now graduated at least a dozen participants, with some clients returning to successfully complete the program a second time.

Bethany Miller, adult advocate with The Factory Ministries, explained that Factory clients who are working to achieve goals by participating in specific Factory programs are given the opportunity to take part in Keys to Savings when they meet certain criteria. She explained that the client's need might involve an item they must save toward, such as a vehicle. "(Items that are needed generally) fall into a two-to-one or one-to-one (funding) match," Miller explained. "Two-to-one (savings matches are for) poverty-related barriers, which could be related to education or purchasing or repairing a car," said Miller, who noted that career certifications, licensing, or related equipment might also qualify, as would home repairs or projects up to $2,000. "(Other) projects are a one-to-one match up to $1,000," explained Miller, who noted that these needs are often related to the six resources - emotional, relational, physical, spiritual, intellectual, or financial - that The Factory has deemed are necessary. "Spiritual would be saving to go on a ladies' retreat, or emotional (resources) would include saving for copays for counseling (services)," said Miller. "These resources are important."

In his role as the Keys to Savings coordinator with the Keystone Church Compassion Ministry team, Jared Stoltzfus acts as a bridge between the church and The Factory. "I facilitate receiving applications and then review them with the Compassion team," said Stoltzfus, who noted the team keeps track of an applicant's progress as he or she is saving funds and takes part in rewarding the participant for reaching a goal. Often that means building relationships with the participant by meeting for lunch.

Ranck noted that one of the Compassion Ministry's challenges is to remove barriers between participants and churches. "(We know) that these people (may) see church as an intimidating and scary place," she said. "We have decided to have a meeting at the church and show participants around when no one is there so that maybe it's not so scary and you can come back."

Keystone pastor Brandon Fisher said that Keys to Savings represents a change from the way the church handled benevolence previously. "Keystone was involved in various benevolence programs, but mostly with people who were passing through," he said, noting that the church offered a food pantry and help with certain types of bills. "When The Factory came on the scene, we were glad to have someone with the social services wherewithal to know how to help without hurting," explained Fisher. "The Factory is able to provide the relational connection that is helpful to move people from where they're at to where they can be while eliminating the dependence cycle and looking toward development rather than just emergency response."

Ranck said that she hopes other Paradise-area churches will consider taking part in such a program. "Maybe there are other churches that would like to be mentored by Keystone to cause this program to spread," she said. "There's a lot more need than resources, and if other people could join in, this could be an even more beautiful thing."

Fisher agreed and noted that the program offers aid in working toward an accomplishment rather than a handout. "(Keys to Savings) helps people progress from where they are (by helping them with) setting goals while recognizing that God has given them dignity and abilities," he said. "We want to come alongside and give them reasons to celebrate (their accomplishments)."

Readers who wish to learn more about The Factory and its programs may visit https://thefactoryministries.com.

More information about Keystone Church may be found at http://www.keystonechurch.org.