Over the summer, pastor Taurus Montgomery of Harbor of Hope Church in Benton Harbor began to see a rise in violence. The violence hit home for him.
“I had two young men who attend my church who I had baptized recently,” he said. “Both of their brothers were killed here in Benton Harbor due to gun violence. Then one of them ended up killing someone in retaliation. That just hit hard so we said we had to do something.”
Pastor Montgomery and his church hit the ground running and decided to come up with an idea, which they titled “The Stop The Violence Tour.”
“Essentially what we did was identify at least ten communities – apartment complexes, housing projects,” he said. “We really focused on areas that had a high concentration of young people so we could get our message out.”
Saturdays at 4 p.m., the church and community volunteers gather for prayer and a short meeting, then disperse to a newly chosen location. The church members went out and ministered through music, food, resources, prayer, games, and sermons, with a focus on coming together and putting an end to violence.
Harbor of Hope visited Blossom Acres, Buss, Country View, Berrien Homes, Baric Village, River Terrace, Thurgood Marshall, and several other neighborhoods throughout Benton Harbor to spread change and instill hope.
Recently, Harbor of Hope has been able to give out 1,000 door hangers with information on how citizens can help address gun violence. 200 yard signs have been passed out, with positive messages. Some reading “Prison is not for me,” “My life has a purpose,” “Save our youth,” “Together we can end gun violence,” “Think twice, don’t take a life” and other positive affirmations.
Many people in the community have expressed their support and thoughts on how they’ve enjoyed the church’s response to the violence.
“I really enjoyed serving the community and want to see an end to the violence,” said student volunteer from Andrews University, Chauntanique Briggs. “I would love to see God’s love reach the heart of every individual and see a true change.”
This past Saturday, Harbor of Hope reached the conclusion of this year’s Stop The Violence Tour. With over 50 volunteers and members, the church split into groups and revisited many neighbors they reached during the tour. The goal was for each group to go out and pray for as many people as they could. At the end of the night, they had composed over 420 prayers throughout the community in about 2 hours.
Pastor Montgomery of Harbor of Hope sums it up.
“Ultimately, if a community is going to end gun violence, it is not just going to be up to the police or only up to the local government,” he said. “It’s going to take the people in that community and everyone doing their part to truly make a difference.”
To find out more about what Harbor of Hope is doing in the community or how you can volunteer and serve with them, visit www.harborofhopepmc.org.
Photo credit: Harbor of Hope Church
By MOTM Contributor Nicholas Gunn
