Partners in Health and Wholeness is proud to partner with faith communities that are committed to promoting faith, health, and justice. The congregations in our Collaborative network are what make our work and program possible.
This page is dedicated to showcasing the health ministries of our PHW Collaborative member faith communities. During this unprecedented time, many congregations have come together in unique ways to continue providing important services and resources. We encourage you to share these stories within your own networks.
And, as always we encourage PHW Collaborative member faith communities to share with us what your faith community is doing right now by emailing information and photos to Lindsay Barth, PHW Communications Associate, at lindsay@ncchurches.org.
We are grateful, humbled, and inspired. Thank you for all you do!
Cool Spring Missionary Baptist Church
Cool Spring Missionary Baptist Church is located in Gaston, in Central North Carolina. They have been members of the PHW Collaborative since 2019.
The Rev. Dawn Daly-Mack, health-lead of Cool Spring Missionary Baptist Church, shared with us how they have been managing the collective hardships in their community during this pandemic:
“While we are not able to meet in our community center for Zumba classes, our instructor does our class online on Facebook Live. Another initiative is the Community Feeding Program on Saturdays at 12:30 p.m.. We were asked to partner with A Better Chance/A Better Community (ABC2) when they were looking for a location in our community to serve FREE gourmet meals to whoever wanted them. There are no requirements, no applications. The only rule is to place your order by Wednesday at noon. We have partnered with local farmers and restaurants to keep them in business while feeding our community.”
Mount Olive Missionary Baptist Church
Mount Olive Missionary Baptist Church is located in Lewiston, a part of Eastern North Carolina. They have been members of the PHW Collaborative for almost 5 years now.
During these times of uncertainty, faith leader Malcolm Eatmon shared how they have adapted to continue serving their community:
“Our newly instituted Health and Wellness Ministry has continued to stay focused on getting information to our congregants during this unprecedented period. So much so that we recently completed a 10-week challenge called “Walk to Jerusalem” where participants were encouraged to record “miles walked” physically, mentally, and/or spiritually. While the goal was not reached because of the virus, we continued to inform the congregation of our progress and the ministry is also going to continue sharing information by whatever means possible.”
Robbinsville UMC
Robbinsville UMC is located in Robbinsville in the heart of Eastern North Carolina. They have been a member of the PHW Collaborative since 2017.
Pastor Eric Reece shared with us not only the individual efforts of his congregation, but the collaborative efforts with other faith communities and community partners during this time:
“One of the first things we did was improve the WiFi in the church facilities. We set up a computer station in the fellowship hall for students to complete their school work. The public school system contacted us about being a school lunch site where children could get their daily lunches for the week and a weekend bag. We included helpful health information from the CDC and included the mental health hotline. We also offered childcare services free of charge for essential workers through May 8.
We worked with the public school system to provide food during Spring Break when school lunches would not be available. With grants and help from good folks, we donated $1,000 to the schools for this cause along with 6 lbs. of fresh pasture-raised beef and 1/3 lbs. of local cheese to 50 families. We have also helped DSS supply food boxes distributed to 27-33 elderly persons most weeks.
Partnering with the NC Rural Center, we purchased 14 mobile hot spots with 1-year service prepaid for our public schools. We have added a WiFi asset point in the Grace Place Communty Table for community use.
It is important to us that we give credit to our partners at Stecoah Baptist, Grace Fellowship Baptist, MANNA Feeding America, Grace Place Community Table, Bryson City UMC, and Whittier UMC for their collaboration with us in this response.”
St. John Missionary Baptist Church
St. John Missionary Baptist Church is located in Falkland, part of Eastern North Carolina. They have been part of the PHW Collaborative since 2017.
Health-lead Minerva Freeman shared how St. John Missionary Baptist Church has been working to promote health and faith in their community, especially during COVID-19:
“Our church, St. John Missionary Baptist church, has been a beacon in this community. We have produced a medical doctor, 2 dentists, numerous teachers, social workers and other professional. I say this because we are a close knit community with strong values around faith, family, school and community. Thus we are the church that reaches out to the community with food, programs and partnering with our local school. Since the pandemic, we provided lunch for our Community Shelter and the Domestic Violence Center. Over the past 4 years, we have partnered with the Domestic Violence Center to provide financial support during the time of the government shut down and the Covid-19 crisis. During the pandemic, we have been using technology to conduct services, etc. We were able to coordinate food, paper goods, and hygiene items. Statistics have shown that child abuse and domestic violence has increased, so we want to bless these two organizations. We abide by Matthew 25:35 to help during this challenging time.”
Swansboro UMC
Swansboro UMC is located in Swansboro in the heart of Eastern North Carolina. They have been a member of the PHW Collaborative for almost 4 years now.
Church member Denise Baker shared how their faith community has stayed connected during these times of social distancing:
“Through our telephone ministry to our 900 members it has been a way to keep this community from becoming lonely and feel alone. This has been one of the highlights that so many have commented in how they look so forward to these calls. It is a way for the faith community to stay mentally healthy While meeting their emotional and spiritual needs. We are so grateful for this Pastor and his team for thinking ahead when this pandemic hit.”