He had a job!

The homeless man camping somewhere in the woods just had to share his good news with someone. So he stopped by a familiar place, the food pantry where he has been a regular for a long time. The volunteers celebrated with him, giving him a large bag of food. Without it, he’d have nothing to eat for his first day on the job.

Five people living in a tiny home with dirt floors had no money for propane, so they cooked in a fire pit in their yard. But that didn’t matter anyway. They had no food to cook.

The second story of extreme poverty is a common one in Belize.

The first one took place in Titusville.

Hunger, poverty and COVID all act as great levelers of humanity.

And that’s where a retired executive chef with an entrepreneurial spirit and a remarkable willingness to follow where God leads comes in. The Rev. Johnny Clark leads the 501(c)(3) nonprofit called No One Hungry.

Clark, who prefers to be called “Deacon Johnny,” keeps feeding people because God said, “Feed my children.”

He went to Belize because God said, “Go to Belize.” He did so despite the fact that at the time, he didn’t know where the country was.

Titusville Ministry

In the Titusville area, No One Hungry partners with the Second Harvest Food Bank to provide food for pantries in both a middle school and a high school. They also supply weekend food packs for students at two elementary schools.

No One Hungry works with the Parish Medical Center to send food home with patients discharged from the hospital to make sure those in need have adequate nutrition at home.

They also provide bags of food, blankets and personal hygiene products every week for about a hundred homeless people.

Clark said two things stand out in this age of COVID. People who have never been in this position before find themselves at a loss. These are people who have lost their jobs or had their hours cut. They’ve been middle-class people all of their lives, but now, they don’t know how to survive.

They’re also proud. They don’t want to ask for help.

Belize Outreach

Belize is a tiny Central American-Caribbean nation, only 180 by 68 miles, bordered by Mexico, Guatemala and the Caribbean Sea.

An average income there is $185 a week, and gas costs $7-$8/gallon U.S.

Tourism is the biggest industry in the country, which produces little food or other products. When the country closed its borders as the pandemic struck last March, the crisis accelerated rapidly. Tourist revenue stopped, and imports slowed or ground to a halt.

No One Hungry sponsors a soup kitchen in St. John’s Cathedral Church in Belize City and helps the Anglican schools there with food, Bibles, school supplies and computers. The nonprofit also provides hundreds of food baskets and personal protective equipment.

Thinking proactively, No One Hungry has also assisted with a community garden and secured seed corn and fertilizer for 20 small family farms.

When it was discovered that one of the school’s wells had been overly chlorinated to make the water drinkable, Clark partnered with a friend who invented a water purification system and supplied needed equipment to produce potable water.

Students in Belize also fell behind from a full year of not being in the classroom. Half have no Internet-connected device, so Clark is now working to secure donations for 2,300 Internet-connected tablets for students at some 20 Anglican schools. The tablets will facilitate remote learning for all. They will also enable the implementation of the new, electronic Hearts Alive children’s Bible study curriculum authored by The Rev. Charlie Holt, which follows the Anglican lectionary. Bible Study Media and No One Hungry have funded the first three years of the curriculum for all 20 Anglican schools.

There are a multitude of ways to show Christ’s love to those we encounter in our daily lives. But truly great things can be accomplished when we come together and support creative efforts like those undertaken by No One Hungry.

Clark hopes those who read about his ministry understand one critical point: “Everyone is a missionary.”

To find out how you can join in the journey of No One Hungry, contact Clark by email at deaconjohnny@deaconjohnny.com.