Delaware
Deaf pastor leads effort to serve and bring people together in Kenton and Hartly
Community programs and worship services at Kenton and Hartly churches
Pastor Rick Kelly is leading efforts at Kenton and Hartly churches to bring the communities together and help people in need.
Rick Kelly said he might not know the pain or loneliness you’re experiencing, but he’s willing to listen and help because he knows about facing challenges, hardships and feelings of being overlooked and left out.
The pastor at the United Methodist churches in Kenton and Hartly was born almost completely deaf, describing himself as a deaf person with residual hearing, like trying to hear a radio station you can’t tune in clearly.
Now, he’s helping to lead an effort to bring people together in the rural Kent County communities.
During his childhood, he sometimes attended schools for the deaf and he learned sign language.
“I learned to talk fairly well, but that made some people ask if I was really deaf,” Kelly said.
He communicated with some lip reading, closely observing how people reacted and a lot of smiling and nodding, even if he didn’t hear everything that was said.
He just released a book, “Call Me Rick: Grace in the Middle,” about growing up as a deaf person and his struggles and achievements in becoming a teacher, coach and pastor. He also details the hardships and happiness he and his wife have gone through raising a family.
He said his experiences help him relate with people who have been belittled, ignored, patronized and treated unfairly; people with an addiction or in prison and people society labels as different or strange.
In his book, Kelly writes, “Standing with someone in their pain does not mean you agree with every choice they’ve made. It means you refuse to abandon them in the middle of their story. It means you recognize that the image of God in them is not erased by their struggle. It means you choose to believe that grace is stronger than your fear of being misunderstood.”
As part of the effort to help residents get acquainted and to serve and support each other, the Kenton and Hartly churches are teaming up on programs and events.
Kelly said the idea is to “bring people from all walks of life together,” providing “lifelines for people who might otherwise feel forgotten.”
Sunday worship services are at 9 a.m. in Kenton and at 11 a.m. in Hartly, but Kelly said the congregations also want to “meet people where they are.”
The churches host monthly “outreach” events for the community such as an Easter parade and egg hunt, vacation Bible school and a Bluegrass music program.
The next outreach programs are:
- “Trunk or Treat” on Oct. 25 from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., when church volunteers offer kids the chance to trick-or-treat from car to car in the parking lot at Kenton United Methodist Church, 74 W. Commerce St. (Route 42), west of Route 300.
- Veterans “Cruz In” on Nov. 8 from 9 a.m. to noon, where people are invited to show off their vehicles at a car show while veterans can receive help and information on services that are available, also at the Kenton church parking lot.
Opportunities to help and to get help at community service programs
Serving others is one way to feel more involved in the community, Kelly said.
The congregations invite people to events that help children’s hospitals and animal rescue organizations. They’ve delivered protein bars to paramedic and ambulance stations so the workers have something quick to eat during an emergency. They’ve collected backpacks and school supplies for students in need.
At the Kenton church, one of the leaders of the outreach efforts is Kathy Steele.
“Our goal is hopefully that by reaching out to the community, people will want to come to our church and join what we’re doing,” Steele said. “But the main thing is doing our part to help the community and give back.”
She said Pastor Kelly has rallied the congregations in Kenton and Hartly to be more involved in the community.
“He’s really emphasized the outreach programs,” Steele said. “He has a passion for the church and has such beautiful prayers. The text prayer chain is a good example. He always has a wonderful prayer and asks if there’s anything the church can do for you.”
Former Kenton Mayor Jessica Penawell has attended the Kenton United Methodist Church off and on for about five years, but she officially joined as a member this year.
“I remember my first day, I was greeted by everyone and everyone was so welcoming,” Penawell said.
She recognizes the importance of the outreach programs that Pastor Kelly is promoting.
“We’re hoping they bring the community together,” Penawell said. “I think it’s great that the church is doing more things with the town.”
Among the highlights this year were the Easter parade and egg hunt attended by about 400 people and the “Butterpot Awakening” revival Aug. 11-15 attended by about 40 people each night at the Kenton Town Hall in the former Kenton School building.
Food pantries at Kenton and Hartly United Methodist churches
Probably the best examples of programs offering continual support are the food pantries at the Kenton and Hartly churches, offering groceries – and prayer if requested – to people in need.
At Hartly United Methodist Church, the program serves about 20 families each month, usually more during the holidays, said food pantry co-chair Joy Ford.
During the pandemic, the program moved outdoors with drive-up service that worked so well, the congregation decided to continue it.
Along with donations from church members, the program receives food from a variety of businesses and community organizations.
While people of all ages stop by for food, Ford said many are older residents.
“We have grandparents raising grandchildren,” Ford said. “There’s a burden on these folks. Sometimes they’re in poor health. They’re very grateful, very appreciative of our food pantry.”
She’s helped with the food pantry since 2009 and has served as co-chair since 2016.
“We are supposed to be Jesus’ hands and feet,” Ford said. “I want to help others, and this is my opportunity to do that. I always had a desire to do missions in another country, but we’ve got folks who need us right here.”
Along with monthly food assistance, the Hartly food pantry also “adopts” families with children at Christmas, providing clothes and toys along with a gift for the parents.
For information about the food pantries or other church programs, email PastorRickKelly22@gmail.com or see the website www.KentonUMC.org or the Facebook page www.facebook.com/hartlyumc.
Reach reporter Ben Mace at rmace@gannett.com.
Police have shut down Interstate 95 northbound in Newark, Delaware, after a serious crash on Friday.
SkyForce10 was over the scene on Friday, November 7, 2025, and several vehicles, including a tractor-trailer, could be seen involved in this incident.
Léelo en español aquí.
Delaware State Police are advising travelers in the area to seek alternative routes while they investigate.
⚠️Traffic Advisory – New Castle County⚠️
I-95 northbound near the Service Area is closed due to a crash. Please seek alternate routes of travel to avoid delays. pic.twitter.com/YIDAADUwuG
— Delaware State Police (@DEStatePolice) November 7, 2025
NBC10 is working to find out if anyone was injured in this crash.
This is a developing story; check back for updates.
A Trump-appointed judge in Delaware has declined to appoint the president’s interim US attorney to head the office in the state on an ongoing basis.
Chief Judge Colm Connolly posted a notice dated Thursday that the US District Court for the District of Delaware “declines to exercise its authority” to appoint a US attorney for the district. Connolly notes that the term of current interim US Attorney Julianne Murray expires Nov. 11, without referring to her by name.
Connolly had signaled he didn’t intend to defer to the administration’s choice of Murray, a former Delaware GOP party chair, by soliciting …
Delaware
Kensington outreach group travels to Wilmington, Del. to look for lost homeless they helped
The City of Philadelphia has been working to clean up Kensington for several years now, but in the process, people who once lived on the streets there are moving to other cities. And, outreach groups are losing track of the people they were working to take care of.
NBC10’s Johnny Archer went out with one group, Operation Save Our City, on Wednesday night as they tried to search for missing people in Wilmington, Delaware.
“I’m trying to figure how many of my folks from Kensington ended up here,” said Rosalind Pichardo.
The outreach group said they are concerned because some of the folks who have gone missing won’t get the resources they need.
The group went to a homeless encampment in the Christina Park neighborhood of Wilmington and handed out bananas and Narcan.
“This current drug supply is so dangerous,” Pichardo said. “Other cities might not know how to deal with detox and withdrawal from this current drug supply, and if we get folks back home to deal with their condition, they have a chance to survive.”
Since the City of Philadelphia started cleaning up Kensington under Mayor Cherelle Parker’s administration, many unhoused people have left Philadelphia.
NBC10 investigators reported last month that the City of Philadelphia was buying one-way bus tickets to send unhoused people out of the city.
A program from the city that buys one-way bus tickets for Philadelphia’s unhoused population is using taxpayer money to fund it. NBC10 investigative reporter Claudia Vargas looks into the reasons why.
But neighboring communities are feeling the impact.
Wilmington Mayor John Carney said his city is one of them.
“It’s just not right for these other places to send their folks to Wilmington,” Carney said last week. “The constant influx from cities and towns makes it hard for us to care for the population here. And most importantly, it’s unfair for the city residents who live in these neighborhoods.”
Pichardo said the solution to cleaning up Kensington should not be sending people some place else.
“This certainly can’t be the solution to cleaning up Kensington,” she said. “Rerouting people to other cities to make it another city’s problem.”
NBC10 reached out to Mayor Parker’s office on this issue and has not yet heard back.
Operation Save Our City said they did not find any of the people they were looking for on Wednesday night, but they will be back on Thursday to continue their search.
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