The Quad Cities husband and wife team of Kit Evans-Ford and the Rev. Dwight Ford will receive the Oikos Institute for Social Impact’s 2025 Impact Award on Thursday, Sept. 4, at the Arts Ballroom in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
That award will be presented to the Fords during the 2025 Fishing Differently Conference Impact Awards Gala. It honors individuals whose work exemplifies transformative social impact through faith-rooted leadership and community healing, a news release from the institute said.
Rev. Ford is senior pastor of Grace City Church in Rock Island. He is a nationally respected voice on issues of poverty, justice, and public theology, the release said.
“Dr. Kit Evans-Ford, founder and CEO of Argrow’s House of Healing and Hope, is a tireless advocate for survivors of domestic violence and sexual assault,” Oikos Institute added.
Ms. Evans-Ford, known around the Quad Cities as “Dr. Kit”, created Argrow’s House as a safe haven that provides free holistic services and job opportunities to women healing from abuse.
“A survivor herself, she lived experience and deep compassion have shaped her into a powerful force for healing justice, peacebuilding, and social entrepreneurship,” the release said. “Her work is grounded in faith, love, and practical action.”
‘A dynamic partnership’
Through leadership provided by Rev. Ford, who is also executive director of Rock Island-based Project NOW, the Oikos Institute release said Grace City Church has become a beacon of holistic ministry by combining service and advocacy. He also is the founder of the Center for Living Leadership. It equips faith leaders across the country with skills needed to develop sustainable change in underserved communities.
“The couple embodies the spirit of this recognition through their ground-breaking, community-centered work at the intersections of justice, trauma recovery, and spiritual care,” the institute said.
“Together the Fords represent a dynamic partnership of spiritual conviction and social innovation, showing what it means to Fish Differently in a world deeply in need of hope.”
The Impact Awards Gala is a national gathering. It’s convened by the institute to celebrate innovative models of social entrepreneurship, impact investing, and faith-rooted justice work. Grammy Award winner Avery Sunshine will be guest entertainer. Following the celebration of the Lifetime Achievement and Social Impact honorees, guests will be treated to an evening of soul, joy, and inspiration.
Since its launch in 2020, the Oikos Institute has supported congregations in becoming economic and social anchors in their cities. Through its Fishing Differently methodology, it offers strategic learning cohorts, partnerships, and tools engaging congregations as catalytic agents of communal transformation.
Oikos’ co-founders are the Rev. Dr. Reginald Blount, executive director, and the Rev. Dr. Sidney Williams, CEO. She is author of the foundational text “Fishing Differently: Ministry Formation in the Marketplace” (2018).
