Every first and third Monday and Saturday, a handful of students drive to Ventura to volunteer at the Kingdom Center, a family transitional living center for the homeless.
The students help by taking care of the residents’ children on Mondays and participating in Adopt-a-Block on Saturdays, said junior Anna Kennedy, the student program coordinator for the Kingdom Center.
Kennedy works with Tammy and Ken Duff, husband and wife and founders of The Kingdom Center Ventura (TKC Ventura). The Duffs leased a vacant motel three years ago and turned it into a safe haven for Ventura County’s struggling families.
Currently, however, due to financial problems, the property owners of the Kingdom Center are looking to sell. The Duffs said they are looking to God in faith to take care of the number of people who live on the center’s campus.
Kennedy said she believes the students provide a great service to the center’s residents.
Babysitting children on Mondays, volunteers the parents free time to study, apply to jobs and work.
“It’s a rough life here,” Ken said. “We had one woman who would stay up until 2 in the morning studying after she took care of her kids. But she’s now doing very well.”
On Saturdays, the center participates in the Adopt-a-Block program. They describe the effort as any task to spread random acts of kindness. Students have the opportunity to build relationships with people in the community and serve them simultaneously.
“There have been people who have tried getting rid of us because they were afraid we would increase the homeless people in the area,” Tammy said. “But we just began to love and serve them. That’s how we ended up with Adopt-a-Block. People started to realize that it wasn’t just a stopping place for homeless people but for struggling families. They eventually came to us with a check for $1,000 and said they believed in what we’re doing.”
The center was the second recipient of the Channel 7 “Pay It Forward” award. The $7,000 award recognizes groups that benefit the Ventura area. Because of the Kingdom Center, eight families have been reunited and all of the residents are encouraged to give back to their community.
“Part of restoration and recovery is learning to give yourself back to those who have been assisting and helping you,” Mr. Duff said. “That’s why we’re here. And we have about a 30 percent success rate because of all the love, giving and support.”
The center currently has about 25 rooms that are individually sponsored by churches of various denominations for about $5,000, Mrs. Duff said. Currently, 20 rooms are active, housing 40 parents and children who would otherwise be homeless.
Residents only stay at the center for about a year or two — just enough time to get back on their feet again.
“Some of them go back to college,” Ken said. “Some of them get a job. We connect them with the whole community.”
