If you are new to our community, you might not know much about us. Or, perhaps you’ve intersected with us at some point, like dropping off donations, but didn’t realize that we had a whole range of services. Sometimes, it is hard to explain the work which happens here to others in a concise way.

We are basically a group of people who love the Lord and want to share God’s love and to meet needs in our community in any way that we possibly can.  We’ve written these distinctives as a brief way to describe the distinctiveness of who we are and what we do.  We hope this is supportive to you, and we also hope you always know how much your support means to us, and to the work here.  Join us, won’t you?

Here are some of the distinctives of Mission Arlington^®

1. Mission Arlington^® is faith-based. People matter to God and to us.
2. We are open 364 days a year, closed only on Christmas Day. Emergency services are open 6-days a week.
3. We have longevity. We are in our 38th-year of serving this community.
4. Our administrative overhead is low – at 1.47 percent. More than 98.5% of every dollar you give ministers directly to people in need.
5. We are accountable. In addition to a local & respected board, we are audited each year. We partner with multiple charity watchdogs, in good standing with all.
6. We are holistic, caring for the physical, spiritual, emotional & educational needs of people – a kind of one-stop shop to help.
7. We are truly grateful – aware that provisions come from the Lord through a generous community.

We are so grateful for your constant support!

Importance of Oral Health for Students

According to a CDC report, the number of children through age 17 who receive regular dental care has been on the decline for the past few years. The National Library of Medicine reports that “oral health is one of the most unmet needs of adolescents.”  They also point out that unmet oral health needs can lead to serious problems for those under 18, including “pain, missed school, heart disease, and even death.” There are many reasons that teens don’t get good oral care, and one of them is cost.  We are so pleased to be able to provide these healthcare services free of charge, and it does make a difference.

On Saturday, August 19th, eight (8) volunteer dentists working through the Allan Saxe Dental Clinic was able to provide dental (oral health) care for   twenty-one (21) patients underneath the age of eighteen .  We were so honored and blessed to help.

Historic Partnerships

Since at least 2005, United Concordia Dental & the Texas Rangers have been partnering with Mission Arlington^® to care for the oral health needs of youth.  We can do so much more together than any of us can on our own, and these beautiful partners have proved that time and time again.  It was so much fun to watch Texas Rangers Alumni pitchers Jovani Gallardo (#49) and Jose Guzman (#23) autograph baseballs for the young people.  The smiles and the laughter of these children & youth lit up the room, as these two professional ballplayers took pictures, signed autographs, and personally invested in each student, and the student’s family, who came through.

Quality, Dedicated Medical Professionals

On this particular day. August 19th, eight (8) dentists gave their Saturday morning – when they could have been doing almost anything else – to use their personal gifts and medical skills to make a difference in the lives of children.  Other medical professionals volunteered that morning as well, and it was so much fun to watch.

We are grateful for you!

Mission Arlington has been serving families in need throughout our community for 37 years.  We can be here, by God’s grace, because of the faithful support of a generous community who makes what we do possible.  You provide the food, the clothes, the household items, and the furniture, day-by-day, all year long.   We are so truly grateful.

Come see us when you can!

Meet Jade! Jade, a college student at Southern Miss, spent her summer serving as a summer missionary here at Mission Arlington. Jade heard about Mission Arlington through the Baptist Student Union at her college.

“The reason I came is because I told the Lord that my summers were for Him,” Jade said. “I wanted to take two months out of the year to solely focus on God by serving him and his people.”

When Jade arrived at Mission Arlington, she did not know what her work at Mission Arlington would hold.  Jade said, she grew in reliance on God and daily learned to release each day to God’s will. Amidst the unknown, every day guaranteed new opportunities to serve and love God’s people.

While at Mission Arlington, Jade taught bible studies and served in the free store where those in need came to shop for their families.

“Seeing him meet people’s needs is really amazing,” Jade said.

Jade said, she grew in leadership and prayed for God to guide each step and decision. While at her apartment bible study, Jade developed relationships with the children and began teaching them. After much prayer, Jade and a fellow missionary decided to walk through the book of John with the kids. In chapter 8, Jesus said,

“I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness.”

Jade said the day they read this verse at bible study two children raised their hands and said they wanted to know The Light. That day, they accepted Jesus Christ as their Savior. Since then, the children started bringing their Bibles and growing in Christ.

“Some days I would struggle and I would say, God where are you?” Jade said. “But this summer I have seen that he is here and he does provide.”

Jade said as challenging as it was at times, it is all worth it to see people coming to know Jesus.

Jade who plans to study biblical counseling, has grown in patience with others and practiced understanding where each person is coming from. Jade said her capacity to love and show compassion has grown this summer. She has a new perspective and has personally seen God moving in her life and the lives of those around her.

“Mission Arlington is my new family,” Jade said. “I’ll be back soon.”

Happy Birthday, Mission Arlington

Mission Arlington^® began 37-years-ago today.  Launched by God through First Baptist Church Arlington, and led by Tillie Burgin from the beginning, Mission Arlington^® began on Friday, August 1st, 1986. Tillie and her family had served for over a decade in South Korea.  When they returned home in 1978, the persistent question in her heart was, “If you can do missions in Korea, why can’t we do it in Arlington?  For seven years, Tillie, and a small, but strong group of laypeople prayed in homes all across the city, asking the Lord to show them what to do. In August of 1986, God launched.

Out of one family’s need to have a bill paid, the first apartment ministry began. On the first Sunday morning, at 11:00 a.m., seventeen (17) people gathered to study God’s word in an apartment.  Soon, one outreach Bible study turned to six, and hundreds of people were attending.  Today, Mission Arlington hosts Bible studies and congregations in more than 360 locations each week.  We love “taking church to the people.”

In those days, we discovered anew that people were struggling with a variety of needs.  The Lord began to allow us to meet those needs “one life at a time.”  Food, clothes, household items, furniture, and emergency financial assistance became part of what the Lord provided every day.  Health clinics (medical, dental, and counseling) grew to meet the physical and emotional needs too.  Today, over 600 people a day come through our front doors for help.  Every life matters to God, and also to us.

Through the years, we have grown to be supported by a vast array of congregations in our community and across denominational lines.  We have been so blessed by individuals, families, and so many teams of people in our community who also “put their shoulder to the wheel” to make a difference in the lives of people in need. We are extraordinarily grateful too for all this support.

We want to express our gratitude to each of you for your support through all these years.  Thank you so much.

Taking Extra Care

In the thick of an intense Texas summer, you don’t have to be a native Texan to know that extra care is needed to stay safe & cool.  Where possible, we check the freon levels in our home and business air conditioner units.  We prepare for higher utility bills with our students at home and the temperatures on the rise. We drag our summer wardrobes out of the closets, and we use high end sunscreen if we have to be out and about.

Summer Ministry Broadens its Reach

At Mission Arlington^®, Summertime calls for extra care of people as well. With schools out, there are adjustments in the availability of food and other resources for people in need.  As the heat rises, so do the electricity bills.  With the kids home for the summer, and with parents needing to work, schedules have to be adjusted, and families are looking for safe, productive things that kids can be involved in.

During the summer, our front room fills to the brim, with the extra need families have for food, utilities, and other resources.  As you can see from the picture for this article, one thing we also get to do during the summer is to take extra food out to where people live.  The young girl pictured here got to participate in this food giveaway, along with so many of her neighbors.  During the summer months, we host summer programs in apartment complexes and neighborhoods across our community, with creative and fun ways to engage the young people, while also sharing God’s love in authentic, wholesome ways. We host summer camps, back to school events, Rainbow Express, and so much more.

Extra Care Provided Here First

We can provide this extra care, because you provided it here first.  We have clothes to give away, funds for bills, food for hungry families, all because you constantly and so generously provide.  Day after day, individuals and groups of people find their way to us, with gifts of love for people in need.  When the summer surge does happen, we are ready, because you constantly stand with us.

We are so Grateful.

We are truly, humbly grateful for you.  We are able to stand on the front lines of care, because you first provided the resources here.  We want to say “Thank you” in as many ways as we possibly can, because it’s right, but also because we hear it from people constantly – who receive what you provide.  That care multiplies out too, because when you care for others, and they get better, they too begin to demonstrate care for others as it was provided to them. And on it goes.

Yet, we are now and always be most thankful to God for His great love, and for the joy we have serving Him in this wonderful community.  We hope that your Summer is going well.

 Come see us! 

Patient receiving a hearing aid, free of charge, through the ministry of Mission Arlington’s Medical Clinic, and our partners and friends.

What would it be like to experience hearing loss, but not have the means to get help?

In partnership with our Medical Clinic, and “Hearing the Call,” audiologists, ENT doctors, and other helping professionals screened hearing-impaired adults in our community during the month of April.

Fifty-Five (55) people were able to receive hearing aids.

It was such a blessing to watch people receive the help they needed to begin hearing again.

We are so appreciative of the many health professionals who volunteer in our Medical Clinic to provide assistance to people experiencing health concerns.

The Medical Clinic team experienced over 11,000 office visits in 2022. What a blessing it is to be able to serve our community together.

We are so grateful for you, and for the constant support of this community.

The Saturday before Easter, April 8th, was such a beautiful day for an Easter Egg Hunt.  Three thousand, three hundred thirty (3,330) children came with their families to enjoy the fun.

What a great day!

Mission Arlington^® Bible study leaders arrive early to get in buses, so that they can pick up children all over town to bring them to the egg hunt.  Families from across our community found their way to this FREE & FUN way to spend time with the kids, grandkids, neices & nephews.  Families were laughing, walking & talking, enjoying the free food, and yes, the giant Easter Egg Hunt (with over 120,000 eggs prepared). It was truly a wonderful day!

How did it work?

Teams of people arrived early last Saturday morning to begin cooking over 4,000 hotdogs.  Stop 1: Everyone who attended was treated to the “Easter Story.”  The second stop was lunch, with hotdogs, chips, drinks, and other snacks, all free of charge. Station #3 was a row of bouncy houses, which children of all ages seemed to enjoy.  The final stop of the day was the giant Easter Egg hunt.  Volunteers placed brightly colored eggs, filled with candy onto six lanes of open land.  Eggs were everywhere, and the children could pick up the eggs to their hearts delight.  As people exited for the day, they were treated to one more stop – a firetruck, which the children thoroughly enjoyed. It was a special day.

We are Grateful for You

We love what we get to do every day, and big events like this are so much fun to do.  We can do a larger event like this, because you make it possible. Our community donates the eggs, the candy, and then shows up in big numbers to volunteer for the day.  We are truly so grateful for you.

Children enjoy the row of bouncy houses which are part of our “World’s Largest” Easter Egg Hunt.

Holy Week is special for Christians across the globe, and it is an especially meaningful time at Mission Arlington^®.

Rainbow Express – Several thousand children have attended Rainbow Express^® through the month of March.  Student groups from across the country and around the state have come here to share God’s love with the young people of our community.  We still have one team here doing Rainbow Express^® this week. Please keep these important events in your prayers.

Easter Store – Like its Christmas counterpart, our Easter Store is free of charge. Instead of Christmas toys, families will receive new Spring clothes, and Easter baskets.  Through the years, the Easter Store has operated from a central location in our downtown offices.  Taking a more decentralized approach, this year, however, the Store will happen in multiple locations across our community. Already, hundreds of families have received the new clothes and baskets.

Maundy Thursday Youth Service – On Thursday of Holy Week, at 7:00 p.m. youth who attend Mission Arlington^® Bible studies will gather in a service designed just for them. Hundreds of youth from across the community will worship, observe the Lord’s Supper, then hear a biblical message designed to encourage and challenge them as they live for Christ at their schools and in their communities.

Good Friday Services – Several of Mission Arlington’s Bible studies will observe Good Friday services, special remembrances of the day that Jesus was crucified.

Easter Egg Hunt – Affectionately called the “World’s Largest,” our giant Easter Egg Hunt happens Saturday, April 8th, from 10 a.m. to 3:00 p.m.  120,000 eggs, filled with candy, are being prepared for this big day. Bouncy houses and free food, plus the telling of the Easter Story to all who attend, are big parts of this beautiful day too.  Thousands of children will attend the egg hunt for a great day of family fun.  We are excited.

Easter Sunday Morning – Thousands will gather across our community into one of more than 360 Bible studies and congregations sponsored & hosted by Mission Arlington.^® Special music will be par for the course, smaller Easter egg hunts, and one or two Easter Sunrise services.

Holy Week is such a special time in the life of Christ followers around the world.  It is an especially meaningful time for the Mission Arlington family.^®

Join us, won’t you?

Student groups from across the nation and around Texas sitting together prior to morning worship on the first morning of Spring Break Rainbow Express^® 2023.

Student Groups have arrived.

Student groups from across the country – Alabama, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri and Oklahoma – have arrived in Arlington this week to lead Rainbow Express^®, sharing God’s love across our community.

Student teams have also come from multiple locations from across the state – starting at home (Arlington) to Beaumont, Frisco, Lewisville, Rockwall, Seminole, and Tyler.

What’s beautiful and extraordinary about these teams is that the students are taking coming during Spring Break, when they are out of school, and could be investing their time and energy in more personal ways.  The gift of these hearts and lives in our midst is truly something special.

Worship

Each morning, and afternoon, these student groups gather together to worship, to pray, and to share their experiences in Arlington’s mission field with each other.  It is so beautiful to see how God makes this diverse group of people one, as they praise His name.

Rainbow Express^®

Rainbow Express^® is Mission Arlington’s version of a “back-yard bible club,” with crafts, snacks, games, music, and Bible stories. Rainbow Express^® is happening in the morning, afternoon, and evening in more than 50 locations across our community this week.  Hundreds of children & youth will attend these 4-day events, and it is so much fun.

Work Projects

In addition to Rainbow Express^®, these student groups are also assisting in much-needed work around the Mission.  Receiving & sorting incoming food & clothes, organizing household items, and loading furniture onto trucks to be delivered to homes throughout our community is just part of the fun.

Your support

So many ask, “How can we provide support during this important week?”  Our consistent answer is, “Please pray!”  Pray for the student as they serve. Pray for safety as the groups travel across our city, and to & from their homes.  Pray that the gospel message will be clear, as they share God’s love across our community.

Our Gratitude

The Mission Arlington^® family is grateful for your constant support.  Thank you so much.

The Burgin Elementary School family, in Arlington, delivers food to Mission Arlington. We love serving the Lord in this wonderful community.

More than 180,000 People Received Food Last Year

It is hard to believe, but it is true.  Many people in our own community don’t have enough food to feed their families. “Food insecurity across the country is something that professionals track, and which we see in real time six days each week.  In 2022, Mission Arlington^® provided food to 48,385 families, representing 180,696 people.  Each family was provided a supply of food designed to last them from 3-5 days.  That’s a lot of food. So, where does the food come from?

You Provide the Food. 

Mission Arlington^® does not purchase food.  In 36-years of ministry, the Lord has always supplied the food through you. Individuals, families, and teams of all kinds – from civic groups, churches, schools, and businesses – bring the food to us, and we give it away to families who need it.  We are constantly amazed by your generosity, and the way you faithfully care for people in our community who are experiencing a moment of need.  We are truly grateful, and your gifts do make a difference.

When People Need it

Mission Arlington’s food pantry is open six days a week (Monday-Saturday), from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. during the week, and from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturdays. We work hard to be accessible, so that people can receive what they need for their families.

With a Heart to Help

We wish you could see the results of the beautiful care you provide for people through the provision of food. Sometimes we see tears of gratitude, and at others, we experience smiles of relief.  The hugs of appreciation we receive daily are truly meant for you.  Our hope is that the food truly lifts a burden from families working so hard to get by.  Beyond the food, however, our heart is to treat every family, every person, with dignity and respect.  We want people who are walking through difficult moments to know that someone cares for them.  Listen to one testimony recently published online:

A Personal Testimony

At the end of 2022, a lady named Kelley posted this review:  “Thankful for these wonderful people, and this wonderful place. Food, prayer, furniture, home goods, toys for the kids, clothes, got a pair of crocks, paintings… they even helped with my utilities! I’m so thankful they’re here! They really “pay it forward.” We are truly grateful.

For more information about other ministry results in 2022, click here!