Philippians 4:13 Ministries outlines shelter, meals, youth and anti‑abortion outreach during public comment

Jay Wagner, president of Philippians 4:13 Ministries, used a public‑comment slot at a meeting to describe the nonprofit’s work on homelessness, abortion outreach, gang prevention and evangelism, saying the group provides “four meals in the park” each weekend at McCormick Park and is trying to build shelter and program facilities.

The presentation, which Jay Wagner and his wife Jan Wagner, vice president of Philippians 4:13 Ministries, delivered, sketched several program goals and current activities. “What we need to do, is to Philippians 4 13 is we're trying to build a shelter, trying to build facilities here to teach them how to overcome their problems,” Jay Wagner said. Jan Wagner described homelessness and poverty as “more of an emotional factor” and said people need help with paperwork, job applications and other barriers to employment.

Why it matters: the remarks outlined local direct‑service activities aimed at people experiencing poverty and homelessness, youth at risk of joining gangs, and outreach to people the speakers described as involved in “cults.” The comments were informational; the meeting record shows no motion or formal action tied to the presentation.

On homelessness and basic services, the Wagners described hands‑on efforts and planned facilities. Jan Wagner said the ministry teaches practical skills such as completing applications and making resumes and that the group currently serves meals in McCormick Park each weekend. Jay Wagner said the ministry also plans to address substance abuse and mental‑health needs so program participants “can get out and get a job, and then hold the job.”

On youth and gangs, Jan Wagner said gang membership can stem from “peer pressure” and “hopelessness” and described the organization’s plans for youth programming. “What we are trying to do about that is, we're trying to help them to overcome this by building a ranch or a bridal camp,” she said, describing a residential program the ministry hopes to develop.

On abortion, Jay Wagner framed the ministry’s efforts as life‑preserving outreach. “The law of the land right now is that a woman has a right to abort her baby,” he said, adding that changing the law would not be “an overnight thing” and that his group instead seeks to “reach out to the woman who's considering abortion” to persuade her not to terminate a pregnancy. Wagner also stated a statistic during his remarks: “In that 2 and a half minutes, 7 babies will be aborted,” and later said “there is an unborn child killed in this country every 20 seconds.” Those figures were stated by the speaker during the presentation.

On so‑called cults and evangelism, Jay Wagner listed several religious movements he characterized as problematic and said the ministry aims to reach people “through evangelism” and “in the media, responding in love, but responding with truth.” He said the group’s broader media and evangelism work complements its direct services to people in need.

No formal actions followed the presentation. The remarks were delivered as public comment; meeting materials do not show any referral, vote or staff assignment tied to the Wagners’ presentation. The speakers described program goals and ongoing volunteer activities but did not provide details about funding sources, site approvals, or implementation timetables during the comment.

For follow‑up: the speakers identified McCormick Park as the location for their weekend meals and described program ambitions including a shelter and a residential youth site; the meeting record does not specify funding, permits or implementation timelines for those projects.