About Us
Church Community Services is a faith-based agency helping people of Elkhart County weather life’s storms and build more secure futures through emergency assistance and intensive job and life-skills training.
Note from the Executive Director
Church Community Services (CCS) was created 55 years ago by a caring collaboration of area churches to serve the immediate needs of our neighbors with food and financial challenges. Today, that mission continues along with our expanding mission of helping families break the cycle of poverty through intensive training and counseling. Our Soup of Success program is an example of that kind of life-changing program.
CCS is at “ground-zero” in the fight against generational and situational poverty. Our food pantry is the largest in Elkhart County. The financial services team helps folks with sorely needed rent, utility, and prescription assistance.
Across Elkhart County there are 23 Seed to Feed gardens. Many of the gardens are production gardens, providing fresh vegetables to families coming through our pantry. Seed to Feed gardens also provide a hub for communities to come together and share in the planting and harvesting of food.
The backbone of our organization is committed volunteers, 100’s of people pitching in and helping out.
Join us as we serve the immediate needs of families and the long-term needs as they learn to break out of the cycle of poverty. Call for a tour 574-295-3673 or click the donate button to help immediately.
Peace,
Keith Sarber, Executive Director
Programs
History
1968: Church Community Services was incorporated by local church leaders to pool resources and more effectively address issues faced by Elkhart County people in need. The first services were children’s clubs and camping, emergency loans and gifts, help finding jobs, and home repairs.
1969: CCS was located at 1703 Benham.
1971: CCS food pantry was first set up at Faith Mission. Supporting churches provided board members, food and other resources. CCS coordinated the publicity and showing of the Martin L. King film at AMBS, an event being held in various locations across town.
1975: Food pantry moved to the office on Benham.
1989: CCS created an “Odd Jobs” program for 23 youth to work jobs for minimum wage during the summer.
1997: Soup of Success, a job and life skills training program for women, was created.
1998: CCS moved to 629 S Third Street.
2003: The process of distributing food was changed when the food pantry became a Client Choice Food Pantry, meaning clients get to shop for the food items they want.
2009: CCS moved to its current location on Oakland Ave. CCS began its Homebound Program of delivering groceries once a month to those who are homebound.
2011: Seed to Feed was created with the purpose of providing homegrown solutions to local hunger.
2013: CCS became a Partner Distributing Organization with the Food Bank of Northern Indiana, and opened the Food Bank of Elkhart County (FBEC), procuring food and distributing it to over 30 other food pantries and hot meal sites serving local food insecure families. FBEC ended operations after two years.
2014: Men Alive was created as a holistic life skills and work readiness program for men who want to grow stronger and change the community.
2019: Teen Growers, a paid internship that offers high school students (ages 15-18) the opportunity to grow food for their community and gain job experience, was created.
Today: CCS has 23 paid staff and utilizes over 900 volunteers. We are supported by over 50 churches and served over 5,500 families last year.