About Us
WORKING TOGETHER TO FEED JESUS
Gerald and Barbara Krosnowski started their lay missionary work in 1968 developing a program to meet basic needs and provide various long-term solutions for the homeless in downtown Detroit, Michigan. After moving to Minnesota, they continued supporting work in the mission fields. For over 50 years they have partnered with domestic and foreign missions in countries like New Guinea, South Africa, Tanzania, Haiti, Zimbabwe, Costa Rica, and the Philippines.
In 2000, Gerald and Barbara created the Sonshine Foundation to help support these efforts. Then in 2006, Gerald Krosnowski traveled to the Philippines and discovered first-hand the depths of poverty experienced by orphans and starving families. Seeing that children were dying and very few families were receiving any help at all, Gerald knew he had to do something.
Here’s Gerald’s story:
“My visit to the Philippines was eye-opening. I saw terrible suffering in so many places: mountain villages, swamp villages, garbage dump villages. The poor children living there don’t just die, they suffer painfully for a decade or more first and then they die. It was heart-wrenching, and the need was so overwhelming. How do you help children who are living in such horrific conditions? They’re suffering with tuberculosis and typhoid fever. They’re dying from asthma. Parents are committing suicide. How do you fix that?
“So, my trip to the Philippines ended with a dinner. Bishop Joe Advincula invited me to dine with him and a few other clergy. They were trying to show me hospitality, but I just couldn’t stop thinking about all the poor children. Their situation was too much for me to tackle, and I didn’t even want to try.
“I thought, ‘Someone else would be better equipped to help them.’ So, I asked the Bishop if any American charities have been helping the starving children during the last year, and he replied, ‘No, Jerry.’
“I was astounded. I then asked if any had been here helping in the last three years, and he said, ‘No, Jerry.’
“I thought, ‘How could that be?’ Finally, I asked, ‘Bishop Joe, has anyone come in the last five years to help your children?’ He answered, ‘No, Jerry, but we’ve been praying for someone like you to come.’
“I realized then that I was being called to try. I knew in my heart that I had to create a charity to save the starving children. Risen Savior Missions was born, because so many lives were at stake.”
It was then that the Krosnowski family started mission work that would reach today over a million children and families in need, changing lives forever. They formed Risen Savior Missions, an interfaith non-profit 501(c)(3) public charity that reaches out to the poorest of the poor.
Risen Savior Missions (RSM) takes a holistic approach towards the problems of poverty. RSM addresses the basic needs of the poor first and foremost by implementing a practical program designed to reverse malnutrition. Food is the platform upon which to build livelihood. Once healthy nutrition is in place, RSM and its partners then feed the mind and evangelize the soul. We teach the poor about hygiene, sanitation, nutritious cooking, farming, manufacturing, microfinance and faith formation, and we participate in medical missions to address special health concerns and offer free solutions.
RSM is staffed completely by volunteers. That means 100% of each donation goes to helping the poor.
Over the years, RSM’s impact has expanded to thousands of different feeding sites, which have put over 95 million meals into the hands of more than 1 million starving children since 2006. This was accomplished by the grace of God, our fantastic volunteers and partners, and the amazing people, donors, and organizations who support Risen Savior Missions.
Learn more about how you can support the work of RSM here.
MISSION
To glorify God and His churches through helping and saving starving children.
SERVICE FOCUS AREAS
- Food for starving and malnourished children and families
- Christian spiritual development through evangelization
- Educational classes in healthy living
- Livelihood skills for a sustainable future
- Support for RSM medical mission teams
DONATIONS
100% of all charitable donations we receive go directly to benefitting poor, starving children and families.
100% of all charitable donations are tax deductible. RSM’s tax ID is 41-1990570.
AWARDS AND RECOGNITION
FMSC RECOGNITION AWARD
An award was presented to Risen Savior Missions on October 20, 2018, by Feed My Starving Children, honoring our work of 13 years as food missionaries and our commitment to feeding all of God’s children, hungry in body and spirit.
Franciscan International Award
On May 10, 2018, Fr. Richard Kaley presented Risen Savior Missions with The Franciscan International Award at The Wilds Golf Course in Prior Lake, MN.
Each year since 1959, the Order of Friars Minor Conventual presents an award to an individual or an organization which is committed to serving the Ideals of Christ as they were proclaimed by St. Francis of Assisi. The Franciscan International Award has honored men, women and organizations who symbolize the spirit and the apostolic zeal of St. Francis of Assisi in an outstanding way. Previous recipients of the award include Dr. Billy Graham for true ecumenism (1972), Sesame Street for excellence in education (1987), and Habitat for Humanity for making housing for the poor available (1999).
St. Francis Award
Risen Savior Missions received the prestigious St. Francis Award on February 3, 2012, from the Assisi Development Foundation. Ambassador Howard Dee presented the award to RSM for reaching the milestone of distributing 20 million meals in the Philippines.
Other Awards
Letters of Endorsement