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: St. Stephen Church of Christ

Lindsay Barth, Event Coordinator & PHW Communications Associate · December 19, 2019 · 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.   


TRENTON, NC — Pastor Rodney Parker and health-lead Beverly Hines at St. Stephen Church of Christ have been dealt their fair share of health challenges. In 2015, Beverly Hines experienced a heart attack, and for years Pastor Parker had been managing diabetes. The experiences of Pastor Parker and Beverly were not unique in the community; many of their fellow community members were experiencing similar challenges. Beverly discussed how this affected her decision to become actively involved in the health ministry at St. Stephen Church of Christ: “I had a heart attack in 2015, and there have been [at least] 4 other people that suffer from heart disease within our church. When I recovered and I was told I needed to eat better, exercise, and take the necessary measures to take care of my heart, and with Pastor Rodney going through what he went through, it’s just something that’s close to me. I wanted to make a change.”

For about 6 years, the health ministry at St. Stephen Church of Christ has developed various programs and curriculums to promote health, wholeness, and abundant living in the community. One of their most important initiatives is the Healthy Eating Program. Congregants and community members enjoy a healthy meal together in fellowship, discuss the ingredients used to prepare the meal, and leave with a recipe card that includes instructions on how to make the meal at home. Beverly further discussed that not only is it an important program, but one that their community enjoys: “Some of the things we chose to serve people had never tried before. It’s just a way to expose community members to different foods and more healthy eating choices. We are on a great path for helping our congregants be more conscious of health and exercise.” This program has been especially impactful to Pastor Parker as exercise and healthy eating are what helped him lose weight and minimize his diabetes medication!

Much of the healthy eating program is supported by the fruitful harvests of St. Stephen’s community garden. Beverly described how the community garden has offered congregants a chance to work together in fellowship while also enjoying the fresh bounty: “After we received the grant [from Partners in Health and Wholeness], we started a community garden. We had a lot of congregants who worked in the garden and we all shared the food that came out of the garden. That was a really good opportunity for us.”

St. Stephen Church of Christ has also centered exercise in balance with healthy eating as a core part of their initiatives. Beverly very eloquently described how this grew out of a need recognized among congregants and has become something that many enjoy: “One of our members in the church started an exercise class for the seniors. They do a lot of low-impact routines. They have gone to other places and performed the routine, and people really enjoyed it.”

Over the past couple years, St. Stephen Church of Christ has been affected by the hurricanes that have caused destruction in our state. During the time I spoke to Beverly several months ago, the church was still recovering from flooding. Beverly mentioned that mental health has been recognized as an important focus because so many in the community are feeling the devastating impacts of these natural disasters: “We have a lot of people who need help, because many people experiencing homelessness do not receive the proper medication and treatment they need. Our old sanctuary will function as a community development building where we can have more classes on mental health, talk about ways to combat obesity, have community nights where we will cook, etc. We are very excited!”

Beverly Hines and Pastor Parker are living examples of the health and wholeness that God intended for us on his earth. Partners in Health and Wholeness is proud to work with St. Stephen Church of Christ through the opportunity to offer funds to support their community garden and healthy habits to promote abundant living. St. Stephen Church of Christ is also one of the many congregations still recovering from the hurricanes that have affected our neighbors in Eastern North Carolina over the past couple years. Please click here to view our Hurricane Recovery Resources to find ways that you can continue to support these recovery efforts.

Filed Under: Blog, Homepage Featured Tagged With: 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: St. Stephen Church of Christ

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