“Pastor” Jonathan Barker at Grace Lutheran Church on 60th st called Kenosha Police just after 6pm tonight to report that a “former employee” stole $82,000 from the church’s bank account. Barker, who has two convictions for disorderly conduct, didn’t respond to a request for comment.

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Barker has come under fire recently for “firing” all of the employees at the Grace Welcome Center food pantry. According to the executive director, Denise Russell:

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“The activities currently underway at Grace Lutheran Church as regards the food pantry and community services are not the work of Grace Welcome Center™. Kenosha’s Grace Welcome Center food pantry and community services organization is in the process of establishing a new nonprofit corporation to operate under, as required by a letter from the Grace Lutheran Church Council President and Secretary dated July 27, 2024 (See Grace Lutheran Church’s announcement to the Congregation). After the agreement was made to peacefully part ways, Grace Welcome Center has proceeded in accordance with Wisconsin State Statute 181 and Section 501(c)(3) of the United States Internal Revenue Code. To date, Grace Welcome Center has:

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Assembled a board of directors

Filed articles of incorporation with the State of Wisconsin; incorporating as Kenosha Welcome Center, Inc. (KWC)

Registered Grace Welcome Center as a trademark of Kenosha Welcome Center, Inc

Applied for and received an employer identification number (EIN) from the IRS

Almost completed the application for 501(c)(3) recognition

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Also to date, KWC hasn’t received any cooperation from the Church Council regarding our agreements with them to rent space or to transfer assets. Our latest effort to get information regarding the tasks that fall within their duty was ignored, and the Church Council has since locked out Kenosha Welcome Center employees and seized our inventory and assets.

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Pastor Jonathan Barker crossed an ethical line when he had two uniformed Kenosha police officers dispatched to the Church to interfere in a routine corporate spin-off that, until that point, had been proceeding amicably and with the intention of establishing a mutually beneficial agreement that would have allowed Grace Welcome Center to continue serving the community in the same way that it has for seven years. Pastor Barker and the Church Council’s questionable behavior throughout this process has resulted in the resignation of the Church Council’s President and Secretary. Grace Lutheran Church also appears to have taken over the Grace Welcome Center Facebook page in violation of KWC’s trademark.

The inventory and assets that were seized were donated to Grace Welcome Center, not Grace Lutheran Church. There are strict state and federal regulations as to what charitable organizations can and cannot do with items that have been donated to them—including but not limited to inventory to be distributed to the public and kitchen equipment. The Church Council made no effort to adhere to those regulations. Kenosha Welcome Center is in the process of retaining the services of an attorney who specializes in nonprofit law for advice and guidance regarding these matters, and to determine if any civil or criminal lines have been crossed.

While we remain locked out of Grace Lutheran Church, Grace welcome Center/Kenosha Welcome Center is working to find a new location in Kenosha’s Uptown neighborhood or immediate surrounding areas to continue our food pantry and our breakfast, shower, and emergency clothing and hygiene programs.

We are proud and humbled to have the support and encouragement of our large food distributors Feeding America and the Kenosha County Food Bank, as well as senior management at other charitable and community-based nonprofit organizations throughout Kenosha County. That support along with Kenosha residents and businesses’ habit of rising to the occasion when a community is in need gives us great confidence that we will be up and running again in short order. Grace Welcome Center’s Executive Director Denise Russell not only built the food pantry from scratch, but added the hot breakfast, shower, and emergency clothing and hygiene programs as well. She did it once and she can do it again. And this time she already has a management team in place and an army of volunteers assembled and ready for action.

We’ll see you soon.”

Several members of the Church’s Council have recently resigned.