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changing lives IN<br />
montgomery county<br />
coat of many colors ministries<br />
By Amanda Hensley<br />
While serving as a pastor in the small community<br />
of Dobbin, TX in 1995, Dr. Michael Hayes realized<br />
a burning desire to broaden his impact on the community.<br />
As he visited with volunteers and program participants at<br />
the church’s food pantry, he encountered an overwhelming<br />
common sentiment to also provide education and<br />
employment assistance. In 2001, with much hard work and<br />
thorough planning, Coat of Many Colors Ministries was<br />
founded.<br />
For the next nine years, Coat of Many Colors Ministries<br />
operated out of the church. As the ministry grew, so did<br />
Dr. Hayes’ desire to help more people. Making the difficult<br />
decision to step down from his position as pastor, he began<br />
to focus solely on Coat of Many Colors Ministries and in 2011,<br />
they were blessed with an opportunity to move into their<br />
current location in the Lonestar Community Building.<br />
Today, the Coat of Many Colors Ministries supports the<br />
community in numerous areas. On the second and fourth<br />
Wednesday of each month, January through October, their<br />
food bank is open from 10am-5pm to serve those in need. In<br />
November and December, they operate only on the second<br />
Wednesday of the month. They have steadily seen an increase<br />
in response and served 73 families this past November, which<br />
equates to over 410 people who were helped.<br />
“I’m a firm believer that you have a passion in life, and my<br />
passion is helping people. When I can see the impact I’ve been<br />
able to make in people’s lives through services we provide, it’s<br />
the motivation that keeps me going.”<br />
-Dr. Micheal Hayes<br />
Working with the Montgomery County Homeless<br />
Coalition, Coat of Many Color Ministries works to reduce<br />
homelessness in our community. “One of the most<br />
memorable clients I’ve worked with was a gentleman two<br />
years ago who came to us homeless,” says Hayes. “After<br />
going through our program, we were able to help him gain<br />
employment through the City of Conroe Parks Department,<br />
and he is no longer homeless.”<br />
The Coat of Many Colors Ministries strives to help people<br />
gain independence by reducing or eliminating their need for<br />
government assistance while empowering them to become<br />
productive citizens in the community once again. “We try to<br />
route people in a direction where they have a passion and<br />
interest,”<br />
commented<br />
Hayes. “For<br />
example, the<br />
gentleman I<br />
mentioned<br />
before had<br />
experience in<br />
the trucking industry, but he expressed that he wanted to do<br />
something where he could be outside, so we started training<br />
in that direction.”<br />
Along with assistance in searching for employment, the<br />
ministry offers vocational training, business, employment and<br />
computer basics workshops, resume and interviewing skills<br />
and even personalized business counseling to help some of<br />
their clients start businesses of their own. They have helped<br />
50-60 people in each class to date. Chase bank has even<br />
begun providing financial training and assistance for those<br />
who have developed poor financial habits in the past; a way<br />
to help get people reestablished with a bank account and<br />
begin building credit once again.<br />
Hayes commented, “I’m a firm believer that you have<br />
a passion in life, and my passion is helping people. When<br />
I can see the impact I’ve been able to make in people’s lives<br />
through services we provide, it’s the motivation that keeps<br />
me going.”<br />
While the Coat of Many Colors Ministries is growing,<br />
with growth comes needs. Hayes mentioned that their needs<br />
are mostly with funding and non-perishable food donations<br />
for their pantry. There are even volunteer opportunities<br />
for anyone willing to donate their time or services to help<br />
their neighbors in Montgomery County. April Sound Church<br />
and Lonestar Cowboy Church have been key proponents in<br />
donating funds, food items and sending volunteers, but there<br />
are always new needs to be met. “We hope to have land<br />
and a free standing building of our own one day, and would<br />
love to be able to compensate some of our full-time service<br />
people for their time and talents,” says Hayes. “These are all<br />
the visions we see for the future so we can do more for those<br />
in need.”<br />
i<br />
FOR MORE INFORMATION:<br />
On the Coat of Many Colors Ministries and how to<br />
donate and volunteer visit www.cmcmi.org<br />
Be seen. Be heard.<br />
onthetown 19<br />
OTT Texas JanFeb Issue.indd 19<br />
1/28/2014 1:23:50 PM
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