JoinHands Stories

​Back in July at Follow Jesus 2025 in Greensboro, I had the pleasure of meeting Michael Martin, a Mennonite man from Colorado Springs, CO. He was staffing an exhibit hall table for RAWTools, an organization he founded in 2013. Walking up to the table, I saw a display of incredible tools and pieces of art…

​ One afternoon back in 2021, I crossed paths unexpectedly with a guy from church when we both pulled into the church parking lot about the same time, arriving before a gathering started. He was alone in his vehicle, head tilted back and looking exhausted. I went over to his van and we started catching…

​ In recent years, Mennonite men have become directly involved in Indigenous solidarity work. Some of this has come to Mennonite Men as an organization through staff and board members; in other cases, individual men have initiated involvement on their own. In both cases, Mennonite men are being invited to show up, listen, and bear…

In the spring of 2025, Mennonite Men was contacted by Matthew Krabill of Mennonite Mission Network, who is serving in Ghana, inquiring about JoinHands grants for a Ghanaian congregation seeking to build a place of worship. After receiving a JoinHands grant application for the Santramozorh Mennonite Church, Mennonite Men’s JoinHands committee engaged via email and…

​When I arrived at the Indonesian Community Bazaar in South Philadelphia, I was greeted with warm smiles, a cold Thai tea, and a plate of delicious food. Members of Indonesian Light Church ushered me with excitement into the tent where they were selling home cooked food. I was there to present a grant check on…

Our Influences We both grew up with deep connections to the land. Both of us grew up on farms, where woods, fields, streams, and animals were a part of our daily lives. We watched our parents care for the land in the best ways that they knew how. We also both watched our parents struggle…

​ The Mennonite Men Board has approved a $40,000 grant through the JoinHands program to support Indonesian Light Church of Mosaic Mennonite Conference in purchasing the building they currently occupy. This grant will help the church secure a permanent home for its growing congregation, allowing them to continue serving their community and expanding their outreach…

​Over the past year, parents have approached Mennonite Men about what we might offer for boys coming of age. Parents recognize that current activities—such as sports, clubs, and Scouts—are not the only ways to support their sons’ development. As an organization and through our JoinMen committee, we are considering how we can best serve parents,…

​While we provide support to churches, we also receive much in return. As I listened to stories of the suffering these Chin people have endured due to ethnic and religious persecution in Myanmar, I was deeply moved by their remarkable resilience. God’s Spirit has clearly shaped in them a character of long-suffering. As they stay…

​ Men can dismantle patriarchy with actions that support women in leadership Three years ago, when I started my practice as a process consultant, I wondered if I could ever shake free of the Anabaptist World article that potential clients often found when they googled my name. The article reported on my resignation as superintendent…

​ In 1956, Walnut Mennonite Church in Goshen, Indiana was a brand-new church plant born from North Goshen Mennonite Church. 33 years later, after a fire destroyed part of its building, North Goshen welcomed Walnut Hill back into their space, for free, for two years until reconstruction was complete. Area congregations with Indiana-Michigan Mennonite Conference…

​ There had long been a desire for a Hispanic Mennonite Church in Newton, Kansas. Finally, in March 2008, four Hispanic Mennonite women started leading services, while Western District Conference (WDC) helped search for a church planter. In June, Jaime Cazares arrived in Newton with his wife Suhelen. Several WDC Newton churches helped with financial…

​ In March, 2024, the board of Mennonite Men approved a $40,000 JoinHands grant for the Chin Emmanuel congregation in Houston, Texas. The congregation recently shared this background and note of thanks to JoinHands supporters. ‘Chin Emmanuel Baptist Church was founded in February 12, 2012 in Houston, Texas by refugees from the Chin community in…

​After years of waiting, seeking, and praying, members of the Grace Community Mennonite church in Cradock, South Africa are finally able to begin working and meeting on the land that will hold their first church building. The congregation received a JoinHands grant from Mennonite Men in 2018 and has since struggled to find a suitable…

​ Mennonite Men—as the men’s organization of Mennonite Church USA and Mennonite Church Canada—includes all persons who identify as men in these church bodies. Our mission is engaging men to grow, give, and serve as followers of Jesus for God’s shalom. We promote an Anabaptist way for men that focuses on following Jesus, forming community,…

​In late September, Mennonite Men board members Jon Zirkle, Doug Amstutz, and US Coordinator Steve Thomas participated in accompaniment training at Shalom Mennonite Fellowship in Tucson, Arizona, at the invitation of the Coalition to Dismantle the Doctrine of Discovery. The training, provided by Community Peacemaker Teams, prepared participants to to join the Coalition’s work at…

​ Excerpted from Living That Matters: Honest Conversations for Men of Faith by Steve Thomas and Don Neufeld. Used by permission of Herald Press. All rights reserved. The beliefs, values, and behaviors we associate with being a man—collectively known as masculinity—vary widely. Sometimes they support us in developing healthy emotions and relationships, and other times…

​ Our last JoinHands grant helped Ripple Church, a new Mennonite congregation of Mosiac Mennonite Conference, to purchase an existing church building for their meeting place and community center in Allentown, Pennsylvania. This dynamic congregation is active in their neighborhood as they provide ministries for children and youth, meal service, and a place of belonging.…

​ Throughout 2020 and 2021, when the effects of COVID were hitting the US and exposing glaring inequality across the country, many churches were stepping in to meet needs in their communities. Centro de Albanza, a small Latino congregation of Mosaic Mennonite Conference, offered its facilities in South Philadelphia to meet the new needs of…

​ In late December Mennonite Men completed its fundraising for a $40,000 grant for Omaha Chin Christian Church in Omaha, Nebraska. With the release of these funds, the congregation will be able to move forward with their church building project on the outskirts of the city. A member of Central Plains Mennonite Conference of MC…

​ Since its beginning as refuge for those distanced by the church, the group that turned into Ripple Church has kept its focus on caring for its neighborhood and the vulnerable living there. Its community- focused approach means Ripple provides a community of support and place of worship for our neighbors of whom many struggle…

​ Construction work on a new Angolan Mennonite-Brethren church building was recently finished, giving the congregation a permanant meeting space for the first time. The Galilee Parish of Calunga, part of the Igreja Evangélica Irmãos Mennonitas em Angola (Evangelical Church of Mennonite Brethren in Angola) had been meeting in an airport hanger while during construction.…

​In 2019, Assembly Mennonite Church in Goshen, IN completed a building expansion project to meet the needs of their growing congregation. Early in the project, the congregation decided to tithe a portion of the funds being spent on the project to JoinHands, a program of Mennonite Men that assists congregations build or buy their first…

At its March meeting the board of Mennonite Men approved two international grants for applicants to the JoinHands program, which assists new congregations aquire their first church building. The two grants were awarded to congregations in Angola and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Fundraising for the two projects, with a combined cost of $14,000, will…

​Grace and peace to all beloved brothers and sisters, God bless you mightily. The Mennonite Church of Vila Virginia – Ribeirão Preto SP – Brazil is completing 56 years and seeking to serve the Lord in what we understand is the mission of the Church, PREACH THE GOSPEL. In 2019, after praying and understanding that…

A three-part series of events in October and November 2021 provided an opportunity for 26 men to learn and unpack narratives around masculinity, faith, and equity. Sponsored by Mennonite Men and Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary, including the Church Leadership Center and the Institute of Mennonite Studies. Events were facilitated by Ben Tapper of the Kindred…

​The church-building project in Samogohiri, Bukina Faso that began in 2016 with prayer, some small savings, and the collection of sand and gravel and other materials, is nearing completion following much hard work on the part of the congregation. Samogohiri Mennonite Church received a JoinHands grant from Mennonite Men in 2021 to help aid the…

​In March, 2021, a Brazilian congregation, Igreja Evangélica Vida Nova (New Life) was awarded a JoinHands grant from Mennonite Men to aid construction of a new church building. Since acquiring the property, the congregation has been making improvements to the space, first meeting on the sidewalk bordering the property and then purchasing a spacious tent…

Mennonite Men are assisting five new congregations across three continents with over $107,400 through JoinHands, Mennonite Men’s program to provide grants to help new congregations acquire their first church building. The board of directors of Mennonite Men approved grants at their board meeting on March 27 that will benefit Mennonite churches in Colorado, Virginia, Brazil,…

On Sunday, March 14, 2021, Calgary Chin Christian Church celebrated the grand opening of their new church building, as well as marking their 10 year anniversary as a congregation. Because of the pandemic, the church held a celebratory worship service with a hybrid format, in which some members were present at the new building, while…

​ This past fall, Mennonite Men presented a grant of $40,000 to African Community Church of Lancaster (ACCL) for their new church building in Manheim, Pennsylvania through JoinHands, Mennonite Men’s program to provide grants to help new congregations acquire their first church building. After renting space from other churches for several years, the congregation recognized…

​When the Mennonite Church Manitoba congregation, Riverton Fellowship Circle, decided to close this summer, they decided to ‘pay it forward’ in a number of unique ways. 1. They gave their building to the Riverton Friendship Centre, the drop-in organization they were born out of. 2. They gave $30,000 back to JoinHands (formerly Tenth Man), a…

​ At the beginning of this year our director, Steve Thomas, was able to present in person a grant of $40,000 to Centro de Alabanza de Filadelfia congregation in Philadelphia, PA. Centro de Alabanza, a member of Franconia Conference, is a community of faith in South Philadelphia, made up of mostly migrant families. With a…

​ At the beginning of this year our director, Steve Thomas, was able to present in person a grant of $40,000 to Centro de Alabanza de Filadelfia congregation in Philadelphia, PA. Centro de Alabanza, a member of Franconia Conference, is a community of faith in South Philadelphia, made up of mostly migrant families. With a…

​ At the beginning of this year our board chair, Lonnie Bartel, presented in person a grant to Unity God of Church in Homestead, Florida. Our last grant for $40,000 went to a Haitian Mennonite church in Homestead, Florida. Unity church is an active congregation of 45 members, many of whom are newcomers from Haiti.…

Growth at Assembly Mennonite Church in Goshen, Indiana, is benefiting a congregation 650 miles away. When Assembly Mennonite enlarged its facilities, it tithed a portion of the project expenses to aid others. A program called JoinHands, operated by Mennonite Men, helps churches that have the resources for major capital improvements share money with churches in…

Here’s a book by men for men seeking healthy masculinity. This book comes at a time when men and masculinity are in the spotlight. We see many men behaving badly on the news—abusing power, violating women, and mistreating others. But most men I know aren’t like this. In my work as a pastor and with…