HISTORY

Harbour Lights Ministries was founded by the Jake Penner family in 2002 when they invited widows to their home for a Christmas banquet. They never expected this simple act of kindness to blossom into a full-time ministry reaching people all across North America.

In 2010 the doors opened for the Penner family to join Gospel Express Ministries as the Harbour Lights singing team. Through the connections made in prisons across Canada, United States, and Belize, they realized that they were singing to the fatherless. Unintentionally they found themselves ministering to both of the groups mentioned in James 1:27. “Pure religion and undefiled before God and the Father is this, to visit the fatherless and widows in their affliction, and to keep himself unspotted from the world.”

Today Harbour Lights Ministries has an office in Arborg, MB, as well as a board of directors. They still work under the legal umbrella of Gospel Express Canada, but are independently funded and directed. They have one traveling team (the Jake Penner family) and dozens of volunteers across Manitoba. They minister through music, chalk art, seminars, and preaching in a variety of venues (churches, community centers, prisons, senior homes, etc.). The Penners also participate in special events like ladies’ retreats, men’s breakfasts, and family camps.

WAYS YOU CAN BE INVOLVED:

- Pray

To receive updates and to be better informed in how to pray for us, please subscribe to our monthly e-newsletter and follow us on Facebook.

- Volunteer

Contact us if you are available to help at a widows banquet or prison service in your area.

- Host a widows banquet

If you have a burden for the widows in your community, we would love to help you get started. Visit [widows banquet page] for more details.

- Assist financially

This ministry is dependent on the Lord for finances through gifts from businesses and individuals. You can donate a 1-time gift or set up an automatic monthly withdrawal here [donate page].