Our Fellowship began its Internet journey on 9/11/98, through the generous donations from a local chapter in Jacksonville Fl. and personal finances from its founders. The Jacksonville chapter no longer exists but its labor of love does and is touching lives everywhere. We were also launched the ministry as guests on TBN, the Christian television network, through the local Jacksonville station.

Volunteers have come and gone, leaving their mark and helping FOCP to grow and strengthen in numbers. Some names from the past include: Elsie Cuevas, our 1st poetry editor. She single handedly reviewed, edited and entered thousands of poems. She also wrote articles for our edification. Don Berry is another, who helped to set up the counseling on line format and spent hours upon hours surfing the net, reporting "Cool Sites" for your review. He now is involved in searching out grants for our future growth. Jackie Hand is yet another who contributed by sharing with us how poetry can become a song. Christian Eskelund also helped in the initial stages of the on-line effort. Then there was Peggy Woody, and too many others to mention, who reviewed and entered poetry. John Evans, however started with us as part of the Jacksonville chapter and is still going strong with articles, reviews and poetry. We thank them all for their efforts and appreciate their time and talents.

Chapters sprung up in the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia, only to be shut down due to death, business difficulties and more pressing ministry obligations. Many requests for information to start a local chapter brought hope but never materialized. Our current growth seems to be in the individuals who find us on the "Net" and like what we do.

Our source of funding began with a personal investment and monthly commitments from the founders and a small monthly donation from the original local chapter in Jacksonville. There was no membership fee. Thousands of poets flocked to us willing and waiting to share their poetry. They could see the value of a site like this but only a few sent in a contribution to help us keep on keeping on. Membership fees became necessary to secure the financial stability and protect the vision. Many of those original poets, whose Poems still remain in our library, never joined or caught the vision of ministering through poetry. They are still surfing the net, looking for a way to gain self-recognition, which is not our primary focus.

We tried different outreaches. Some worked…some didn't. We did a CD for Christmas and another called "Timeless". The production company, who at 1st was very cooperative, turned away from its original ethical practices, forcing us to sever relationships and halt all CD productions. It is now on our "Scam" Alert.

We are still looking into ways to create another CD. Other outreaches included donations to ministries that helped the homeless, a Christian pregnancy center, a "Dial-A-Poem" call line, mass faxing to churches, and mass e-mailing to Christian radio stations. We conducted a workshop under the leadership of James Tate.

The biggest and most costly was the Holy Land USA project. It was funded primarily by contributions from the founders and Holy Land USA. See the click button on the home page for pictures. We have produced and placed nineteen 3' X 4' poetry signs in the natural sanctuary. We have also produced a 20+-page booklet or "Keepsake" and a 28-minute CD that will be used for fund raising for Holy Land USA. We will offer them to our Fellowship, once they are completed.

We have presented five "Poet of the Year" award certificates; Joyce Griffin 1998, Jill Lemming 1999, John Evans 2000, Juanita DeHart 2001 and Linda J. Stevenson 2002. Plus, we have awarded over 50 "Poem of the Month" awards that included 36 Contest winners.

We've come a long way since 1998 but have a long way to go. Fortunately we have all the time in the world, or at least until Jesus comes back.

Our concentration is currently on memberships to further strengthen our financial base and volunteer recruitment to expand our ministry efforts. Our vision has never blurred. We are still a Fellowship of Christian Poets who desire to share the gospel message through poetry.

However, poetry is more than just words. It's an expression of the heart through special endowments given by the Holy Spirit. Therefore, our fellowship does not exist for poets to glory in their flesh. It is rather, a tool of God to work against the powers of darkness.

Poetry without God's anointing expresses the dreams & aspirations of those who have yet to realize the joys of a walk of faith & a life in relationship with God. Poetry with inspiration, offers hope, life, joy, peace & encouragement to both the poet & the reader.

Our mission is to use our poetic expression in a ministry of encouragement & reconciliation to Christians & Non-Christians alike. We are called to preach the gospel to every creature everywhere. As poets, we are joined together by a common gifting with a mandate from heaven to bless those around us with God's love. To this end do we dedicate our gifting, our lives & our energy.

We will still rely on the expertise of such talented individuals as John Evans, our "In The Spotlight" columnist, James Tate, our "Editorial Comments" writer, Larry Howland, our "Marketing Tips" columnists, Marilyn Marinelli, "Ministry To The Poet's Soul" editor and Juanita DeHart, our newly appointed Assistant Editor. They are working hard to make FOCP a place of distinction and value to all who visit.

We will be seeking grants for ministry projects, even though it's a long shot. I heard on the news a few weeks ago that Ms Lilly of the Lilly foundation gave 30 million to "Poetry Magazine", even though they rejected her poems…. you never know who will help. We will also be looking for other projects to get involved in such as another Anthology. We may even publish a "Keepsake" Booklet like the one we did for Holy Land USA. Our future is really up to us. Wouldn't it be great to publish a CD and send it to prison Chaplin's all over the US? How about sending another anthology to homes or schools for the blind? How about creating a national "Dial-A-Poem" line that is toll free?

What about a direct mail project like Val-pack where we mail out a salvation poem? How about doing a T, V. Public Service Announcement that is power packed with poetry? Or a paid radio show on thousands of Christian radio stations?

How big can you dream?

1. To communicate with pastors, teachers and ministry leaders, informing them of our free poetic resource,
2. To provide free programming through public service announcements on Christian radio and in print media,
3. To develop and distribute video Public Service announcements to Christian TV stations that promote our website and ministries,
4. To supply free audio books of Christian poetry to residential facilities for the blind and elderly,
5. To actively form local chapters where Christian poets can meet face to face for fellowship and local ministry,
6. To enhance our current Internet outreach ministries with special workshops and other educational encounters, and
7. To produce, publish, and distribute Musical Poetry anthologies around the world.

I was once told that you cannot entrust a big vision to a small-minded person. There just isn't enough brainpower to accommodate and process it. Marilyn and I have a big vision and a lot of FAITH that God will sustain this ministry and use its poets to bless others. We have only just begun and yet have a long way to go. Thank you for seeing the potential and being a part of FOCP.

Until next time
God Bless
Rev John Marinelli
cpoets@adelphia.net