2021: A Year in Review
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to footer

NC Council of Churches

Strength in Unity, Peace through Justice

  • Voices
  • About
    • Overview
    • Staff
    • Members
    • Covenant Partners
    • Issue Statements
    • Governing Board
  • Programs
    • NC Interfaith Power & Light
      • NCIPL Overview
      • Faith in Action NCIPL
      • NCIPL Articles
      • NCIPL Resources
      • Upcoming Events for NCIPL
      • Contact NCIPL
    • Partners in Health & Wholeness
      • PHW Staff
      • Mini-Grants
      • PHW Collaborative Pledge
      • The Overdose Crisis: The Faith Community Responds
      • Mental Health Advocacy
      • BIPOC Mental Health Grant
      • Growing Communities of Inclusion: A Faithful Response to HIV
      • Citizen Science
      • PHW Articles
      • FAQs
  • Priorities
    • Racial Justice
    • The Overdose Crisis: The Faith Community Responds
    • Gun Violence Prevention
    • Criminal Justice
    • Immigrant Rights
    • Public Education
    • Farmworkers
    • Legislative Advocacy
    • Christian Unity
    • Peace
  • Events
  • Resources
    • COVID-19 Resources
    • Publications & Reports
    • Raleigh Report
    • Lectionary
    • Sermons
  • Donate
  • Council Store
  • Show Search

Search NC Council of Churches

Hide Search

Spotlight: Bryson City UMC

Lindsay Barth, Event Coordinator & PHW Communications Associate · June 1, 2018 · Leave a Comment

Partners in Health and Wholeness (PHW), an initiative of the North Carolina Council of Churches, is designed to bridge issues of faith, health, and justice. We partner with faith communities to provide the necessary tools for healthy, whole, and abundant living. Through these spotlights, we will be sharing an overview of the programs and initiatives of some of our partner congregations doing great work. For more information on how to join the Collaborative, visit healthandwholeness.org.   

BRYSON CITY, NC –Catherine Gantt has been a member of Bryson City United Methodist (UMC) for almost 25 years. As a retired psychologist who worked in public schools for 23 years, Catherine could feel the need in her community for a place of healing and support. After a long journey of planning and goal-setting with the head pastor, Restoration House Western North Carolina (WNC) was born. Catherine described how the vision for Restoration House was brought to life:“Our church has a building near the back parking lot that had previously been used to provide housing for the church’s youth ministers and the director of our daycare. However, it had fallen into disrepair. I started thinking it would be an awesome place for the surrounding neighborhood to come together for potluck meals and give some people a place to live temporarily if needed.”

Since 2014, Restoration House WNC has offered restorative services for the mind, body, and heart for the whole community. Catherine shed some light on some of the services and partnerships that have developed over time: “We have always strived to have a holistic approach to helping people in the community. The health clinic we partner with is called Swain County Caring Corner and they have a team of doctors and nurses that work in the clinic. We also work with a certified financial planner that provides financial services to underserved communities. When clients are having a hard time making ends meet, he is able to help them make the most efficient use of what they have. We have also partnered with Mountain Mediation Services, a conflict/resolution group that operates free of charge. Our goal is to provide services that are not repetitive and to help connect people to beneficial resources.”

Bryson City UMC has also prioritized healthy eating through an initiative called the Whole Life Challenge. The initiative promotes healthy habits through a diet that eliminates processed foods and sugars. Catherine elaborated on how the program was transformative to participants: “It makes you a little more conscious about how you’re living by making you think about daily habits that you may not normally associate with your health. This includes things like how much water you drink, sleep you get each night, and encouraging people to take time to reflect on the day — things that are actually really important and all fold together. That is the type of holistic approach that we strive for at Restoration House.”

The community garden at Restoration House has played a really impactful role in the community. Last year, they harvested 500 pounds of fruits and vegetables from the garden for everyone in the community. This year, they plan to partner with FedEx to distribute 1,000 pounds of vegetables to further relieve some of the burdens caused by food insecurity. Catherine also mentioned that they created a prayer labyrinth that passes through and serves as a walking path, meditative space, and area for relaxation and fellowship.
We are thankful to Catherine Gantt and everyone else at Bryson City UMC/Restoration House WNC for including us in their work. For more information on Restoration House, you can visit their website here, or email them at restorationhousewnc31@gmail.com.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: Health, Mental Health, PHW Spotlight

About Lindsay Barth, Event Coordinator & PHW Communications Associate

Lindsay is a native of Western North Carolina. She continued her education at UNC Chapel Hill where she studied Communication, with a focus in Interpersonal and Organization Communication, and Hispanic Literature and Culture. While at UNC, Lindsay realized her passion for public health education through working with a student-led nonprofit called GlobeMed.

Since the fall of 2017, Lindsay has been working with Council in an event planning and office management capacity. She also serves as the Communications Associate for the Partners in Health and Wholeness Program. When she’s not at work, you can catch her exploring new places and watching UNC basketball.

Reader Interactions

More Like This

Healthcare is a Justice Issue
Bolstering Local Economies & Food Access: Faith Communities & Farmers of Color
A Faith-Focused Suicide Prevention Training for All

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Anonymous comments or comments that target individuals will not be posted (please include your first and last name). All comments must be on topic and respectful. Comments will not be posted until they have been reviewed by a moderator. Comments do not reflect the positions of the NC Council of Churches.

Footer

Contact

NC Council of Churches
27 Horne St.
Raleigh, NC 27607
(919) 828-6501
info@ncchurches.org

Facebook

Partners in Health and Wholeness

Featured

Spotlight: Bryson City UMC

Latest Tweets

Your Vote is Your Voice! Learn more about Democracy in Action on 5/27 with Blueprint NC’s Executive Director, Serena Sebring. We will hear about the political movement and how we can take action. Register for our #2022CriticalIssues at the link! bit.ly/3KZgi7z pic.twitter.com/CrMe…

About 2 days ago

Learn what’s at stake for North Carolinians and how our courts impact our daily lives on 5/25 with @NCVCE Director, Melissa Price Kromm. The U.S. courts play such an important role in our lives no matter what the issue. #2022CriticalIssues bit.ly/3KZgi7z pic.twitter.com/1z1v…

About 4 days ago

Since redistricting affects who is elected to governmental bodies, the decisions about boundaries also affect policies these bodies enact. Anyone who cares about the way laws affect communities should care about this. Learn more #2022CriticalIssues bit.ly/3KZgi7z @scsj pic.twitter.com/sls7…

Last week

Through the assistance of @CarterCenter, Jennifer Roberts & Bob Orr are assembling a cross-partisan network of respected North Carolinians advocating for adherence to democratic & civic values in NC elections. Learn more & register: bit.ly/3KZgi7z #2022CriticalIssues pic.twitter.com/dCTl…

About 2 weeks ago

RT @healthactionnc Help us keep Medicaid expansion in the spotlight by joining our letter to the editor campaign. Never written an LTE before? No problem, register for our Action Hour and get all the tools you will need! bit.ly/MedExActionHo… twitter.com/healthac…

About 2 weeks ago

Follow @ncchurches

Latest Tweets

RT @FaithCompassWFU Consider becoming an HIV & Faith Ambassador! To learn more, plan to join us for a virtual information session on 05/18 at 2 PM, 06/30 at 2 PM, or on 07/20 at 11 AM, all EST. Register now: bit.ly/FaithAmbInfo #faithandHIV #faithcompassWFU #transformthestory pic.twitter.com/oZo7…

Last week

Join us now Attorney General Josh Stein for a virtual conversation, “A Faith-Based harm Reduction Approach to the Opioid Crisis.” youtube.com/watch?v=…

About 2 weeks ago

RT @NCAGO Join Attorney General @JoshStein_ today at 1 p.m. for a discussion on a faith-based harm reduction approach to the opioid crisis with representatives of Olive Branch Ministries. Register here: us06web.zoom.us/webi… pic.twitter.com/XB05…

About 2 weeks ago

Register here! #phw #MentalHealthAwareness ncchurches.ourpowerb… pic.twitter.com/VTN7…

About 3 weeks ago

Please Join Us! ncchurches.ourpowerb… pic.twitter.com/KG6o…

About 3 weeks ago

Follow @healthandfaith

Latest Tweets

RT @mocleanair Read our editorial in @GeorgiaRecorder. georgiarecorder.com/… @EnergyFdn @GCVoters @cleanenergyorg @GeorgiaIPL @gasierraclub @CleanAirMoms_GA @PSEquityMatters @SouthfaceInst @GAChapterAAP @CEHN @docsforclimate @enviRN @schoolnurses @uwomenfaith @eldersclimate @NCIPL @AlabamaPJC

About 4 days ago

RT @mocleanair Comments due in 3 days - if you haven't submitted one yet, do it today! For tips, read our blog about the different kinds of air pollution heavy duty vehicles make. #HealthyAirIsHealthCare #CleanAir @CEHN @TheOxygenProj @eldersclimate @uwomenfaith @GeorgiaIPL @AlabamaPJC @NCIPL twitter.com/mocleana…

About 4 days ago

RT @WECAN_INTL 📢Today, Indigenous women leaders & 200+ groups sent a letter calling on @USACEHQ to deny the permits for Line 5, conduct a federal EIS & respect Indigenous rights! To protect communities, water & our climate we must #StopLine5. Learn more👉bit.ly/3MBazW4 pic.twitter.com/FqeQ…

About 4 days ago

RT @interfaithpower North Carolina congregations with @NCIPL are taking advantage of their utility's solar panel rebate program to save on their lighting and space heating and cooling costs. #Faiths4Climate #EarthWeek twitter.com/PNS_NC/s…

Last month

RT @scennetwork1 This past weekend, Alexander Easdale, our Executive Director, attended the Fight for Our Future rally in Washington D.C. to advocate for climate action! Read more about this event here and see if you can spot our SCEN T-shirts in one of the pictures: nytimes.com/2022/04/… pic.twitter.com/5voq…

Last month

Follow @ncipl

Latest Tweets

Copyright © 2022 NC Council of Churches · All Rights Reserved · Website by Tomatillo Design · Hosted by WP Engine