I’m in Panera this morning, catching up on blog-related things and that’s how I learned about Family-to-Family.

It sounds pretty simple: a group of at least five families in one U.S. community (usually suburban) come together and “sponsor” families in a destitute community somewhere else in the country. Each month a participating family sends food, toiletries, etc. to the same family in need.

It sounds like a good idea, but I’d like to hear from folks who’ve checked it out more (I’ve just read the web site) or who are currently working with them. Specifically, I’m curious how far a new “chapter” can go in selecting the community they’ll sponsor. (I know if I were to do this, I’d want to at least have the possibility of being able to meet the folks we’re serving. It’s not necessary, but it would certainly be a “selling point” for me.)

Because of the relational focus, I think this is the sort of thing that would work well on a Care Group level rather than being a “top-down” ministry (that is, congregation-wide with a centralized administration).