Since 1976, Beth-El Farmworker Ministry, Inc. :
Feeding Mind, Spirit, and Body of farmworkers and our neighbors in need through opportunities for hunger relief, education, healthcare, and spiritual development with a number of partnerships provides encouragement and assistance to farm workers and their extended family members through open opportunities to worship with a Hispanic community, participation in Christian educational programs, and programs fulfilling basic needs. Services for basic needs are offered in Spanish from our staff, as those Beth-El serves know little if any English. Beth-El Farmworker Ministry, Inc. offers worship in the Reformed traditions and fellowship opportunities, and pastoral care in Spanish for this largely Hispanic, disenfranchised, and extremely poor migrant community. We encourage the farm workers and their families by giving them opportunity to worship, as well as find assistance with respect and dignity. Historically, our ministry was founded by the Cumberland Presbyterian Church (CPC). After numerous years renting a home in a neighborhood in Ruskin, the worshiping community needed to move to a larger facilities and purchase property. The CPC realized that they were not properly funded to purchase land for a campus ministry. They reached out to the two arms of the Presbyterian Church which was during the time of reunion the Southwest Florida Union Presbytery, became the Presbytery of Southwest Florida and later became the Presbyteries of Tampa Bay and Peace River within the PC (USA). Throughout every day of its history, Presbyterian support has been at the center of the ministry. The current property was purchased on Hwy 301 in southern Hillsborough County in the mid 1980’s. Purchase had to be approved by all three presbyteries. We are a union ministry, governed by our Board of Directors, representing three presbyteries and two denominations. Church Women United, the United Nations office, presented Beth-El Farmworker Ministry, Inc. with its Human Rights Award in Sept 2006 for our leadership as mentor and social activist on human rights and human development an advocate for peace with justice with no boundaries of political system, country cultural background or religion. The National Council of Churches of Christ, representing forty-three million Christians, presented their Award of Excellence to Beth-El at their General Assembly in Orlando, Florida November 2006. It was one of only five Awards of Excellence presented for global organizations that year. The major emphasis for which we are called is to provide that which is not provided in the community by other organizations. We work in partnership. Currently, three partnerships exist on our campus in Wimauma. Redlands Christian Migrant Association (RCMA) operates a K-8 Charter School and a Migrant Head Start. The Charter School has over 270 students. Bay Area Legal Services and their three full time attorneys offer pro bono assistance to the community in the areas of civil issues and fair housing. The School District of Hillsborough County offers and Adult Education Program classes in English for GED and ESOL. These important partners offer services to the local migrant farm worker community that dramatically impacts their lives in a positive way. We welcome visitors to tour our campus in Wimauma to see first-hand how the lives of the marginalized migrant farm worker and their families are being changed.
