ASSEMBLIES OF GOD
Kansas Ministry Network Illuminates New Missions Fundraising Department
The Kansas Ministry Network (AGK) has taken a unique approach to fundraising for district and national missions ministries. This year, its Illuminate Fireworks and Associates generated nearly $80,000 for BGMC projects, Freedom Challenge, Church Mobilization, and Project Rescue as well as ongoing monthly support of district missionaries and AGK ministries.
Led by CFO Marc Marcelo, the three-year-old ministry was created with the goal of enhancing AGK ministries and growing the kingdom of God.
While serving in his prior role as a children’s director with his wife, Aimee, Marcelo was presented with the opportunity to run a fireworks sales tent as a fundraiser for his kids ministry. With the help of three other Kansas missionaries, Don Starnes, Dayton Poe, and Sarah Geeskea, Marcelo and his team successfully ran the operations of the tent, raising $27,000 dollars in sales commission.
During its flagship year, Illuminate’s efforts were “able to make Faith Promises to all KS Chi Alpha Missionaries” and gift donations to several U.S. missions accounts, according to a 2024 publication from the AGK.
The following year, Marcelo, who became the ministry network’s CFO, and his team added two additional tents, raising enough money to fulfill and continue all faith promises, make additional gift donations, and support national ministry project such as BGMC and Project Rescue. Additionally, district scholarship funds were set aside to help pastors’ kids (PK’s) and missionary kids (MK’s) go on missions trips.
Its third year boasted the addition of three more tents and opportunities for churches to join Illuminate in its sale of fireworks during the days leading up to the Fourth of July for the purposes of fundraising.
Another area of growth from this ministry is the diversity of ministries now involved. In Haysville, for example, a tent was managed by Church Mobilization with the help of volunteers from Bethel Life Center in Wichita. The tent in Hutchinson was run by Freedom Challenge, an affiliate of Adult & Teen Challenge that works with the local correctional facility. Hope Fostered, which supports those involved with the foster care system, manages three tents in East Wichita. Volunteers recruited have been from local churches, college students, the network office, Junior Bible Quiz teams, and Teen Challenge Wichita.
New Life Assembly of God, the first church to manage a tent, took advantage of the district’s offering this year.
New Life’s senior pastor, Cy Ricker, states that they were able to reach hundreds of people in their community through the opportunity provided by Illuminate.
“Our presence in Newton is becoming more and more noticeable,” he states in an email to the district. “[Our church] wasn’t on the radar with too many people in the community when I arrived. But through opportunities like this we are now being watched,” he says.
The Newton church was able to use the funds to host the first Convoy of Hope mission in the county, supplying 1,000 backpacks filled with school supplies for local children.
Marcelo states that he hopes the district will be able to onboard additional churches in the coming years.
“It doesn’t take too many people to run one of these tents,” he says. He explains that each tent takes between three to five people to operate and only opens for a maximum of 10 days leading up to the 4th of July.
Aside from fundraising, Marcelo also states that the Illuminate team was afforded many opportunities for person-to-person ministry as individuals came in to shop for fireworks.
“It became more than the fundraising, it has become yet another way of reaching out to the community,” remarks Marcelo. “It has also given us the opportunity to give to existing ministries and develop new ministries, as well as providing churches with fundraising opportunities.”
Another outflow of the Illuminate department is supporting district PK’s and MK’s who are raising funds for missions or ministry trips.
“We want kids to have the experience of writing the letter and making the ask,” he says. “Then we want to give them that experience, that feeling, when someone says yes.”
So far, AGK has been able to help traveling students go to El Salvador, Brazil, Ethiopia, and Chicago.
Each year, Marcelo states that watching church youth, missionary kids, district employees, and local church staff come together to work in the tents for the purpose of ministry has been encouraging.
Illuminate works with Bellino Fireworks, a company that has graciously allowed them the opportunity to advertise their ministry work. The fireworks company provides all materials, including the tents, the fireworks, the insurance, lights, and all of the set up and display furniture. The commission earned is a guaranteed $5,000.00 minimum, making the venture a minimal risk to both churches and the district.
“We are really seeing the Lord’s favor on this, and I truly believe it is because, as a district, we are making missions giving a priority,” Marcelo states.
As Illuminate enters into its fourth year, Marcelo and his team are looking at expanding the district fundraising model, hoping to add things such as popcorn machines for popcorn sales, bake sales and other events that would lend themselves to opportunities outside of the Independence Day season.
What started as simple fireworks fundraising has developed into an entire department that is growing steadily within the Kansas Ministry Network. “The churches, ministries, and missionaries we are able to support is something we are blessed to have the opportunity to do as a district,” says Marcelo. “Doing fireworks as a district is something we are doing that’s a little different but is allowing us to see a bigger picture beyond just fundraising for our network churches, ministries, and missions projects.”
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