Roger Babik believes the best way to respond to a gift is to give something to someone else. His response to a gift of healing has evolved into a charitable ministry called Master Provisions that distributes 160,000 pounds of food to non-profits each week.
“Master Provisions is all about what we can do to help other people,” Babik said. “The Bible says it is better to give than to receive.”
Babik spoke on the ministries supported by Master Provisions at the Florence Rotary Club Christmas program on Monday, Dec. 16. His non-profit organization provides food, clothing, orphan care and medical assistance in Northern Kentucky and around the world, including Honduras, Russia and Ghana.
A former employee of Cincinnati Bell, Babik said he started Master Provisions at the urging of a friend who kept pestering him for a couple of years. A personal incident in his life now provides the inspiration for his work with the organization.
Four years after his wife was diagnosed with Stage 4 lung cancer, “the cancer was totally gone,” he said. “I praise God for that gift. The way to respond to a gift is to give something to others.”
Master Provisions’ warehouse in Florence has grown into the largest food distribution center in Northern Kentucky, Babik said. The center supplies food at no cost to 150 schools, soup kitchens, church pantries, homeless shelters and senior citizens facilities.
The food comes from donations from large corporations such as Wal-Mart, Kroger, PepsiCo, Castellini and Crosset. A local bakery, Flower Foods, supplies bread. Babik estimates purchasing the 80 tons of food distributed each week would cost more than $650,000.
Babik said 17 percent of local residents – one in every six – suffer from food insecurity. That means they have “to make a choice between feeding their children, paying for insurance or paying the mortgage on the house,” he said.
The food distributed by Master Provisions reaches 15,000 people a month, according to Babik.
Master Provisions also distributes clothing in Northern Kentucky and globally in Central America and Africa. What began as a local clothing drive has mushroomed into another global ministry at Master Provisions, and it impacts more than 500,000 people, Babik noted.
“God just keeps filling up our storehouse,” he said.
