October 20, 1999
Ellis' ministry shows sheriffs
need for county jail chaplains
___By Ken Camp
___Texas Baptist Communications
___BELTON--When Harold Ellis started working as a county jail chaplain in the early 1980s, he was convinced it was a ministry needed both by the inmates and by the law officers.
___In the years since he launched his ministry, he has proved its validity not only to the Bell County Sheriff's office, but also to sheriffs throughout Texas.
___Recently, at the annual Sheriffs' Association of Texas convention in El Paso, the organization presented its President's Award to Ellis for his trailblazing chaplaincy work.
___Ellis currently serves as first chairman of a chaplains' steering committee for the Sheriffs' Association.
___A member of First Baptist Church in Belton, Ellis saw the award as a validation of the assistance the Baptist General Convention of Texas has provided to county jail chaplains ministries.
___Five years ago, Ellis served as chairman of an 11-member Texas Baptist Criminal Justice Task Force, created by action of the BGCT Executive Board. After the task force completed its work, the next year there was a $150,000 Cooperative Program allocation to the State Missions Commission for criminal justice ministries, later renamed "restorative justice" ministries.
___This year, the BGCT Cooperative Program provided $18,000 specifically for Ellis' ministry through the Central Texas Regional Criminal Justice Ministry Center.
___"All those awareness conferences we did around the state are finally paying off. Now the sheriffs' departments are wanting chaplains," he said. "It's an accomplishment when sheriffs are able to see any civilian coming into their jail as an asset instead of a liability."
___Of the 250 jails serving 254 Texas counties, Ellis estimates fewer than 10 percent have paid chaplains. However, a growing number are served by volunteers who work both as chaplains and as coordinators of other volunteer programs in the jails. Texas Baptists have helped to train many of those volunteer chaplains through the "Hands On Ministry" volunteer chaplains program.
___Ellis is one of the few paid chaplains. His chaplaincy program in Belton, JAIL Ministries, receives funding from Bell County. JAIL is an acronym for Jesus Acts in Inmates Lives.
___"When you look at line items in the county budget, ours is the only one whose first name is Jesus," he quipped.
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