Serve Moses Lake concert brings community together

MOSES LAKE - Community members from different churches, and different walks of life, came together Saturday for Serve Moses Lake's annual benefit concert at Wallenstein Theater.

The diversity of the people gathered that night was sort of a reflection of the Serve Moses Lake organization itself.

Director Tim Cloyd said the reason Serve Moses Lake has been successful in helping the community is because of the fact that so many individuals, churches, businesses and other organizations pitch in each year.

The organization has about 22 active church partners, he said. They provide services such as community meals, ministry and non-food pantry distributions in addition to volunteering at Serve Moses Lake community events.

Cloyd also said 24 volunteers from about 10 churches routinely help staff the Serve Moses Lake office.

Together, he said, they have helped serve close to 3,500 individuals and families since Serve Moses Lake began in 2008.

"We really couldn't have done it without our church partners," said Cloyd.

Serve Moses Lake provides advocacy, agency referrals, back to school supplies, bus passes, financial assistance and meals to those in need in the area, along with prayer and encouragement, according to the organization.

The annual concert is the organization's major fundraiser for the year, said Cloyd. However, fundraising wasn't their only goal of the night.

They were also their to celebrate the one person who has truly made Serve Moses Lake a success, he said.

"We have not gone without, and that's because God has provided for us," said Cloyd.

Serve Moses Lake board member, the Rev. Doug Sherman, of Grace Harvest Church, said the organization exists to remind people in need that with God, they can turn darkness into light.

The theme of this year's concert was "Light."

"We're celebrating how God's light overcomes darkness every single time," he said during the concert. "We're honored you chose to be here and celebrate that."