About People Helping People
Mission
Showing the hope found in a relationship with Jesus through helping people with their daily needs and equipping them to reach their potential.
Vision
People Helping People desires to be a safe, welcoming, and Christ-centered resource destination where:
- People are valued and needs are met
- There are quality opportunities to worship, live, work, learn, play and flourish
- Connections with the broader Pullman community are enhanced
Our Values
PHP honors and integrates the following core values in all we do:
- Christ-centered (2 Corinthians 5:20)
- Missional (1 Peter 4:10)
- Relational (John 13:34-35)
- Servant-hearted (Galatians 5:13)
Statement of Faith
- The Bible is the inspired, infallible Word of God, and it serves as our rule for faith and life.
- God is one God in three persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. God the Son, while remaining fully God, took on our human nature and became one of us, though without sin.
- God created the heavens and the earth, and humankind was created in the image and likeness of God. Because of Adam’s sin humankind is separated from God and unable on its own to be reconciled to God.
- The sacrificial death and bodily resurrection of Jesus Christ has provided the only means of reconciliation with God, which is why we call Him Savior.
- Jesus Christ was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary, lived a sinless life, and now reigns at God’s right hand, which is why we call him Lord.
- Through Jesus’ redemption, all of creation can be claimed and restored through the Spirit. Therefore, we are ambassadors of Christ’s Kingdom in all aspects of society.
- Salvation is God’s free gift based upon the work of Christ, and this gift is affected by the regenerating work of the Holy Spirit in the hearts of people and received by faith in the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
- Jesus Christ will come again to judge the living and the dead. The righteous–those who are justified by faith in Christ–will inherit eternal life and the wicked–those who remain in their wickedness because they reject Christ–will be condemned eternally.
- We believe that the local church plays the central role in the fulfillment of the Great Commission and that the spiritual unity of believers comprises the one body of our Lord Jesus Christ.
- People who are apart from God matter to God, and therefore matter to the church. For this reason, it is the Christian’s and the church’s responsibility to proclaim the gospel in word and deed, by every means possible, through a life of holiness, service and love.
Serving Pullman
Pullman is a rural Michigan town about 20 miles south of Holland. The town falls largely below the poverty rate, with 24% of the families raising children as single parents (Lee Township Master Plan 2017). Education rates are also lower, and 64% of the population have a high school diploma while only 7% have a bachelor’s degree or higher (US Census 2020).
Due to its rural location and high poverty rate, many of the Pullman residents we serve struggle with losing heat and electricity. These families live with little to no internet and many rely on SNAP benefits or food stamps to feed their families. For youth attending People Helping People programs, stability and a warm, safe environment with regular meals makes all the difference in their lives. Children who feel safe and have their basic needs regularly met can move beyond survival to grow and thrive in life.
Our History
In 2005, Ken and Judi Draisma bought land in Pullman and discovered the community’s need. In 2010, they worked with a group to form a nonprofit called People Helping People of Pullman, Inc. (PHP). That same year, PHP invited Love In the Name of Christ (Love INC) to Pullman to meet a need for a community food pantry.
At the same time, members from Ridge Point Community Church started a Thursday evening Bible study in Pullman. They later added a free community dinner and began calling the program Pullman Ministry.
In 2021 and 2022, all the activities to serve the community were enfolded into the People Helping People ministry.
Executive Director
Jeff Kruithof
Jeff has spent thirty years working in the non-profit sector for Youth for Christ, Youth Unlimited and now at People Helping People of Pullman.
Along the way, he discovered a passion for sharing the love of Jesus, developing leaders, and building healthy organizations.
Jeff has been married to his high-school sweetheart, Lisa for over 30 years and together they have three daughters, two son-in-laws and a grandchild.
Jeff enjoys spending his falls in the woods and summers around the water.
Board of Directors
Daris DeGroot, Steve Nienhuis, Brenda Molendyk, Hank Vugteveen, Ken Vermeulen, Lloyd Siebelink, Ken Draisma, and Lou Sternberg
The Linking Center
Youth programming serves Pullman children ages preschool through senior year of high school. From after-school drop-in hours to partnerships with community agencies, to weekly Bible study nights, Pullman youth have the opportunity to engage with caring volunteers who provide a positive influence on their lives.
With the Bible Study rapidly growing, a dream emerged for a dedicated ministry space. What began as an idea for a two-stall garage became the Linking Center. Funds poured in and the Linking Center was built with a two-stall garage, four classrooms, a full-sized gymnasium, a licensed commercial kitchen and a dining room. Since its opening in 2018, the Linking Center has stretched to meet the needs of our growing programs.
Pantry
Starting as a small building on the property, our pantry is now ready to expand its services to the community. In 2021, donors encouraged PHP to consider building a new food pantry for the community. With much prayer and discernment, the PHP Board of Directors agreed to build a new facility to house the food pantry and add new hygiene services such as showers and laundry facilities, with additional warehouse and administrative office space for the growing PHP team. In May of 2023 we celebrated the opening of our new pantry and warehouse.
Worship Center
In 2021, the Lee Township Board of Directors agreed to sell their Community Center, a little white church adjacent to the PHP Linking Center. The township sold the building to PHP with a directive to continue using the space to serve the community. PHP now offers Sunday morning worship in the Worship Center and also partners with a Spanish speaking congregation to offer a Sunday worship experience in this facility.
Annual Report
People Helping People continues to grow and thrive in our service to the Pullman community.
Check out our annual report to learn more details about our programs and how we lived our Christ-centered mission and vision throughout 2024 and into 2025.
Come for a Tour
The best way to understand what PHP does is to see us in action—to walk the halls where daily needs are met, to see the rooms where people are equipped to meet their full God-given potential, to ride around the community our ministry is impacting, and to hear the stories of God’s work in Pullman by someone who’s been there first-hand.
Schedule a personal tour, line up a group of friends, or bring your church group. Giving tours and sharing God’s story is one of our favorite things to do!
To schedule a tour, please complete the form below and a member of our team will reach out to you.
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