Become a Creator today!Start creating today - Share your story with the world!
Start for free
00:00:00
00:00:01
From 'In the Community' to 'With the Community'
6 Plays5 months ago
Lynette McIntosh-Madrigal is joined by Pamela Evans and Pastor Jermaine B. Armour of Saint Luke AME Zion Church in Wilmington, North Carolina. They share stories of hope, discuss how they are partnering with God and their neighbors to see their community flourish, and reflect on their journey from being in the community to being with the community.
Saint Luke is part of CCDA’s Flourishing Congregations Initiative, a four-year program that empowers church leaders to deepen their congregations’ community engagement, enhance their ministries, and contribute to the flourishing of their neighborhoods.
Learn more about CCDA’s Flourishing Congregations Initiative at ccda.org/fci.
Pamela Evans currently serves as the Director of Ministries & Outreach and Administration at Saint Luke AME Zion Church in Wilmington, NC. I have been a member of the church for over 27 years. I have participated in activities at both local and conference levels within the church. I also serve in the community on various boards, such as the local chapter of the Red Cross, advisory board for the Food Bank of NC, health promoter in the Faith Health Network with Novant, and Community Mediator with the Wilmington Cape Fear Museum. I enjoy cultivating partnerships and relationships through community outreach initiatives.
Pastor Armour and his wife, Tanya, moved to Wilmington in January 2014. He is a native of Buffalo, NY, and holds a Master of Arts Degree in Christian Education from the Interdenominational Theological Center and an Honorary Doctorate Degree in Ministry from Livingstone College. He serves on several community boards, including One Christian Network, Wilmington Area Rebuilding Ministry (WARM), Kids Making It, and the Diversity and Inclusion Committee of the Red Cross. Pastor Armour and his wife have two children, Jadah Alana and Jermaine Elijah.
Learn more about Saint Luke AME Zion Church and what they’re doing in their community at newsaintluke.com.
Connect with CCDA on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn. Follow CCDA on YouTube.
Recommended
Transcript
Introduction to CCDA Podcast and Mission
00:00:09
Speaker
Hello and welcome to the CCDA podcast.
00:00:11
Speaker
My name is Lynette McIntosh-Madrigal and I am the Flourishing Congregations Coordinator here at CCDA.
00:00:17
Speaker
And I am your host for this episode.
00:00:19
Speaker
CCDA is passionate about seeing people and communities experience God's shalom.
00:00:24
Speaker
And one way we are doing this is through the Flourishing Congregations Initiative or FCI.
00:00:29
Speaker
There's a comprehensive four-year program designed to empower church leaders to help their congregation deepen their community engagement, enhance their ministries, and contribute to the flourishing of their neighborhoods.
00:00:41
Speaker
Together, we are navigating what it looks like to move from community isolation to community partnership.
00:00:47
Speaker
So today we have Pamela Evans and Dr. Jermaine Armour from St.
00:00:51
Speaker
Luke A&M Zion in North Carolina, joining us to share about what it looks like to do church in the community and how they are seeing God moving.
Guests Introduction: Pamela Evans and Dr. Jermaine Armour
00:01:01
Speaker
Pamela and Dr. Armour, thank you for being with us here today.
00:01:04
Speaker
Before we dive into the work at St.
00:01:06
Speaker
Luke, I'd love for our listeners to get to know both of you a little bit more.
00:01:10
Speaker
So I'd love for you to start maybe, Dr. Armour, with your story, maybe introducing yourself, and then we'll lead on to Pamela B.
Dr. Armour's Journey to Community Work
00:01:17
Speaker
Thank you, Lynette.
00:01:18
Speaker
And it's great to be here and share on this platform.
00:01:20
Speaker
Originally, I'm from Buffalo, New York.
00:01:22
Speaker
And so it was first, it was college and school that got me to North Carolina.
00:01:27
Speaker
And what got me into the Amizine Church was definitely the Amizine Church.
00:01:31
Speaker
And then that led to
00:01:33
Speaker
doing community work that we love to do.
00:01:36
Speaker
I remember growing up in Buffalo where our Christmases were not as happy as they should be and because we lived in a very poor neighborhood.
00:01:46
Speaker
And so my aunt would take me and my cousin down to what was called in Buffalo the city mission.
00:01:51
Speaker
And we would wait online to get toys.
00:01:54
Speaker
And I'm pretty sure that is
00:01:55
Speaker
you know, people's story all over the world, but that was a part of my story.
00:01:59
Speaker
So when I reflect, it was the community back then that was doing something for people who were marginalized and didn't have as much.
00:02:06
Speaker
And so I can say that that really started my love for the community and making sure, because when I see children in line, you know,
00:02:14
Speaker
trying to get food or, you know, want to get toys for Christmas.
00:02:18
Speaker
It reminds me, I used to be that child.
00:02:21
Speaker
And so that becomes just one of my drives to do the community work that we do now here in North Carolina and the surrounding areas.
00:02:28
Speaker
So yeah, that keeps us going.
00:02:30
Speaker
Love the work.
00:02:31
Speaker
Beautiful.
00:02:32
Speaker
And correct me if I'm wrong, you lead a nonprofit.
00:02:35
Speaker
Is that correct?
00:02:36
Speaker
Or a consulting agency?
00:02:37
Speaker
Yes.
00:02:38
Speaker
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
00:02:39
Speaker
We started the business and started leading it.
00:02:42
Speaker
It's called Armor Up Consultings.
00:02:43
Speaker
And so it's kind of fresh, new, but yeah, it's starting off to a really good start.
00:02:48
Speaker
Beautiful.
00:02:49
Speaker
Thank you.
Pamela Evans' Community Ministry Roots
00:02:50
Speaker
Pamela, what about you?
00:02:51
Speaker
Are you originally a North Carolina native?
00:02:53
Speaker
Thank you, Lynette.
00:02:54
Speaker
Thank you again for having me here today.
00:02:56
Speaker
I am a North Carolina native.
00:02:58
Speaker
I am from Wilmington, but I was actually born and raised in a rural little town outside of Wilmington, probably about 30 miles.
00:03:07
Speaker
That was called Atkinson, North Carolina, which was in a little county called Kenda County.
00:03:13
Speaker
So as Pastor said, probably then I was practicing a lot of things of flourishing communities and didn't realize it.
00:03:22
Speaker
Born and raised in a small community, we're a community that engaged in, you know, mostly even if you was not related, you were, if you had somebody else had.
00:03:36
Speaker
You know, where everybody was raised and kind of came together as when it came to worshiping together, going to school together, knowing the needs and wants of the others that was in sharing in your community and even in the surrounding community.
00:03:55
Speaker
I came to Wilmington probably about almost 30 plus years ago when I married.
00:04:02
Speaker
My husband was a native of Wilmington.
00:04:05
Speaker
At that time, grew up as a Southern Baptist girl.
00:04:09
Speaker
Okay.
00:04:10
Speaker
Yeah.
00:04:12
Speaker
So that helped me to ground my foundation also in doing different things when it came to doing ministry.
00:04:22
Speaker
I always have involved myself in ministry growing up, joined the AMA Zion Church, continued to work in ministry.
00:04:32
Speaker
But that's how I ended up in Wilmington and ended up in the AMA Zion Church.
00:04:38
Speaker
So from that point, it became history.
00:04:41
Speaker
Beautiful.
AME Zion Church Overview
00:04:42
Speaker
For our listeners who are perhaps unfamiliar with the Amy Zion denomination, how would you describe it?
00:04:49
Speaker
The AME Zion Church is a denomination that is structured by its Methodism.
00:04:56
Speaker
It is a church that is, sometimes people may get a little offended thinking by saying African, but it welcomes all races, whether you are Black, white, Hispanic.
00:05:12
Speaker
So it is a church, a denomination that is structured by its Methodism.
00:05:20
Speaker
There are many different congregations across North Carolina that are part of the Amizan denomination.
00:05:27
Speaker
Is there like a rough number that you know Pastor Armour in the North Carolina region?
00:05:31
Speaker
In the North Carolina region, well, let's just say they're split up by what they call Episcopal areas and districts and conferences like you would have in most of your mainline denomination.
00:05:43
Speaker
So if we take, for example, Pam and I are considered a part of the Eastern North Carolina Episcopal area.
00:05:50
Speaker
And within that area, you're talking about churches in Wilmington, Goldsboro, North Carolina, churches as far as Durham and Raleigh.
00:05:58
Speaker
And so in those areas, we have 387 churches just in that area alone.
00:06:06
Speaker
And then if you move up to the Charlotte area, they call that area the Piedmont area.
00:06:11
Speaker
And so that's Charlotte, North Carolina.
00:06:13
Speaker
That's Gastonia, North Carolina.
00:06:14
Speaker
That's Concord, North Carolina.
00:06:16
Speaker
And so they have a great number of churches there, probably a little under 300 churches.
00:06:22
Speaker
And so worldwide, we can proudly boast of 6,000 congregations from Englewood, California to India.
00:06:32
Speaker
Wow, that's incredible.
00:06:34
Speaker
I was not aware of those numbers.
00:06:37
Speaker
That's, that's
Addressing Wilmington's Diverse Needs
00:06:38
Speaker
incredible.
00:06:38
Speaker
It sounds like both of you grew up in different spaces from where you're at now, but were completely shaped by your own communities when you were young.
00:06:46
Speaker
I want to know more about Wilmington, which is where St.
00:06:49
Speaker
Luke Amazone is at.
00:06:51
Speaker
Tell me more, Pamela, paint a picture for us.
00:06:53
Speaker
What is your community like?
00:06:54
Speaker
Our community in Wilmington and where the church is located is a primary underserved roughly community.
00:07:04
Speaker
It is a community now that is going through a lot of renovation, a community that has a lot of needs.
00:07:12
Speaker
It has a different type of people that live in the community.
00:07:17
Speaker
You may have the elders, you know, elderly that live in a community to maybe people that are living in a community that are rehabilitating a certain addictions.
00:07:31
Speaker
You may have people in the community that basically single parents.
00:07:37
Speaker
You may have
00:07:39
Speaker
married, full family.
00:07:41
Speaker
I would say it is a community that has all different sorts of people, all different sorts of needs, all different sorts of different things that can make the community thrive, but also a lot of things that can make the community stay at a place that you're trying to help build it.
00:08:02
Speaker
A community that needs a lot of resources and the resources that are needed can be from food to housing to medical.
00:08:12
Speaker
Just it's a community that it has a vast many needs in it.
00:08:17
Speaker
So that's why I think, you know, as they say, God has a sense of humor.
Impact of Church Work in Wilmington
00:08:23
Speaker
Because our church sits right on the corner, just about in a community that in either direction, there are many needs, many, many different type of people.
00:08:37
Speaker
So it's not by accident that God has us.
00:08:41
Speaker
where he does.
00:08:42
Speaker
So it's not by default that we as a church, we have to be a church that has to reach out and make sure that we serve the people.
00:08:55
Speaker
We cannot just be a church that come in on Sunday and come back the next Sunday.
00:09:01
Speaker
So it is a community that it is many needs, many different resources that are needed.
00:09:09
Speaker
I'm wondering, as you're driving or walking to church on an occasion or on a Sunday or throughout the week, what signs of hope pop up for you?
00:09:17
Speaker
What does that look like?
00:09:19
Speaker
I remember doing this one activity in our own community where a professor kind of took us to this really hard area in the city of Fresno.
00:09:29
Speaker
And really just released this and said, hey, I want you to walk around this whole neighborhood.
00:09:34
Speaker
And I want you to listen to the Holy Spirit guiding you.
00:09:37
Speaker
And those signs of need, they're so apparent.
00:09:39
Speaker
And it's actually quite hard to find those signs of hope sometimes.
00:09:42
Speaker
Like, man, what does that even look like?
00:09:44
Speaker
But I'm wondering for maybe kids can both answer what what would a sign of hope look like in Wilmington?
00:09:51
Speaker
It can sometimes get overwhelming with so many needs.
00:09:56
Speaker
That is so many different things going on.
00:09:59
Speaker
So even as a church, even I know pastor, he probably has it on a different level.
00:10:06
Speaker
But I know me as a leader, you know, just as a ministry leader, I
00:10:11
Speaker
you sometimes begin to feel like, are we doing enough?
00:10:16
Speaker
Are we meeting people where they are?
00:10:19
Speaker
But then, you know, I can look back, you know, the signs of hope for me is that when we
Transformation of St. Luke's Church
00:10:28
Speaker
do help someone find housing, when we do help provide food for someone,
00:10:36
Speaker
where we can help refer someone to a place that they may not have known of.
00:10:43
Speaker
Those are signs of hope for me.
00:10:46
Speaker
And then we can look back and we can count it as they win because I feel that
00:10:54
Speaker
It was a time that as a church, and I can just say this as a church, yes, we were a church in a community, but we were not a church of the community.
00:11:07
Speaker
That's good.
00:11:08
Speaker
So being in the community and of the community to me is different.
00:11:14
Speaker
You know, as St.
00:11:15
Speaker
Luke being a historical church here in the city of Wilmington, we were well known for being St.
00:11:23
Speaker
Luke.
00:11:24
Speaker
But now I can say that we are becoming a church of the community.
00:11:30
Speaker
We are with the community because we're not only just known by our name, we are being known for how we can help someone.
00:11:41
Speaker
And that makes the difference to me.
00:11:44
Speaker
I don't want to be known by my name.
00:11:46
Speaker
I don't want to be known by my name, just even as Pamela.
00:11:49
Speaker
I don't want to be known as
00:11:52
Speaker
Pamela Marshburn-Evans.
00:11:54
Speaker
I want to, just like as the word say, we want to be known for the work.
00:11:59
Speaker
I let our work speak for us.
00:12:01
Speaker
So that's what I can say is the hope that I can see that the
00:12:06
Speaker
the work, it is large, it is sometimes overwhelming, but we have to look at the small chunk because sometimes we can get ourselves very overwhelmed or feel like we're not accomplishing anything.
00:12:23
Speaker
But if we just take a small bite and
00:12:27
Speaker
You know, each time off of the things that we are trying to do and just realize that we're trying to take a bite at the time because we know that God didn't do it all.
00:12:38
Speaker
He didn't do it all at one time.
00:12:40
Speaker
So who are we to think that we can do it all at one time?
00:12:44
Speaker
That's right.
00:12:45
Speaker
So that is the hope that I see as I grow more in my walk with Christ.
00:12:52
Speaker
That helps me to see the good sometimes even when the, I don't want to call it bad, but when that picture is not fully painted the color that we want it, I'm learning to see more of just the corners.
00:13:11
Speaker
of the edges that we're getting there.
00:13:13
Speaker
And that gives me hope.
00:13:15
Speaker
Okay, we're getting there.
00:13:17
Speaker
And sometimes pastors say to me, okay, we'll count that as a win.
00:13:22
Speaker
So that's what I'm learning to do, even with the many needs of the community.
00:13:27
Speaker
That's the hope that I'm seeing.
00:13:29
Speaker
That's good.
00:13:30
Speaker
So you mentioned that you saw the church kind of move from a progression of being in the community to with the community, which I think it's worth emphasizing because that's the church-based philosophy is there's churches that are in the community, they're for the community, but how do we move to being a church with the community?
00:13:48
Speaker
Which kind of makes me think, Pastor Armour, what is the church's story?
00:13:52
Speaker
Has it always been a church that is moving on that trajectory?
00:13:56
Speaker
Was there a pivotal moment that said, we need to get right and we need to be with the community?
00:14:01
Speaker
What is the church's story?
Dr. Armour's Philosophy on Church Engagement
00:14:03
Speaker
Yeah, good question, Lynette.
00:14:05
Speaker
And I was thinking about that because on one of our last meetings, networking, I think you were talking about that.
00:14:11
Speaker
So when Pam said it, I was like, that was right what you were talking about.
00:14:15
Speaker
I was like, no way.
00:14:17
Speaker
I was about to cash and send the offering plate around.
00:14:19
Speaker
That's right.
00:14:22
Speaker
Don't let Pam fool you.
00:14:24
Speaker
She's not just our community person, but she's got a speaking engagement later on this year.
00:14:27
Speaker
That's right.
00:14:28
Speaker
That's what I hear.
00:14:30
Speaker
I think a lot of it has to do with number one transition because, you know, pastors can come into Amazon church and they could be gone in a year.
00:14:37
Speaker
Right.
00:14:38
Speaker
And so you have so many pastors come through and each pastor comes through and they have a vision.
00:14:42
Speaker
And then if they get moved, then here's another pastor that comes through and that person has a different vision.
00:14:47
Speaker
Right.
00:14:48
Speaker
Right.
00:14:48
Speaker
And so I think a lot of it starts with leadership.
00:14:50
Speaker
It really does.
00:14:51
Speaker
It starts with leadership.
00:14:53
Speaker
And then I think it starts with a little longevity.
00:14:56
Speaker
And I think that while we can thank God that we're so successful because I believe in community outreach, you know, and then you have people like Pam in the church who believe the same thing.
00:15:08
Speaker
And then when those one-to-twin powers come together and we have some time to work the ministry, we can really make impact instead of doing activity.
00:15:18
Speaker
And that's what we've been all about, right?
00:15:20
Speaker
Just doing things that are impactful in the community.
00:15:23
Speaker
And so St.
00:15:24
Speaker
Luke has always been a church.
00:15:26
Speaker
It was founded in 1865-ish.
00:15:32
Speaker
You weren't kidding about the historic, huh?
00:15:34
Speaker
Yeah.
00:15:35
Speaker
Wow.
00:15:36
Speaker
This is right before Reconstruction.
00:15:37
Speaker
This is right after Emancipation Proclamation.
00:15:40
Speaker
So that's why our church has a tagline.
00:15:42
Speaker
The denomination is the Freedom Church because we're up from... And so St.
00:15:46
Speaker
Luke started around that time.
00:15:48
Speaker
And so we had a lot of members, especially our female members who were in education.
00:15:55
Speaker
So you had teachers who back then just didn't teach in school, but they're going to your home.
00:16:00
Speaker
They're making...
00:16:01
Speaker
Your homework, they have a great relationship with parents.
00:16:04
Speaker
So you had to work in the community helping.
00:16:07
Speaker
So that spirit has kind of been there.
00:16:10
Speaker
Now, fast forward to 2025, we have a lot of members that are not in education, but a lot of members who are in the medical field.
00:16:18
Speaker
Like Pam is in pediatrics.
00:16:19
Speaker
We have registered nurses.
00:16:21
Speaker
at our church.
00:16:22
Speaker
We have people who work in philanthropy and development raise money for the hospital.
00:16:27
Speaker
So we went from a church that educated you to a church now that's making sure they're bandaging you and taking care of you.
00:16:34
Speaker
Man, I love that.
00:16:35
Speaker
That's good.
00:16:36
Speaker
That's some good stuff right there.
00:16:37
Speaker
Yeah.
00:16:37
Speaker
So there's always been a sense of community.
00:16:40
Speaker
I believe that
00:16:41
Speaker
You know, maybe about 13 years ago, we just decided to take it to a new level.
00:16:46
Speaker
With my mind of the community and Pam's desire to really touch and change people's lives through the gospel of Christ, I asked her to come work along with me.
00:16:56
Speaker
And we began to really move.
00:16:59
Speaker
And she gave the analogy of a church closing on Sunday and then open the doors again on Sunday.
00:17:05
Speaker
That's where we were.
00:17:06
Speaker
That's where we were until we began to kind of keep our doors open every single day so that we were a part of the community.
00:17:15
Speaker
St.
00:17:15
Speaker
Luke has a rich history of being in the community.
00:17:19
Speaker
I think that for such a time as this, the way we are in the community is very, very, very important and very vital to what's happening.
00:17:28
Speaker
for the pastors that are listening to this, the ones that are saying like, how I've been trying to keep my doors open every day of the week.
00:17:35
Speaker
I'm trying to engage in the community.
00:17:37
Speaker
What would you say has been different from, that you've seen, right?
00:17:40
Speaker
As a consultant, somebody who is helping church planners and is talking to congregations, how do you get there?
00:17:46
Speaker
There's a theoretical question that kind of looms in the atmosphere that if your church was not to exist in your city tomorrow, it was never there anymore.
00:17:59
Speaker
Would anybody miss it?
00:18:02
Speaker
And so we want to work so much where St.
00:18:06
Speaker
Luke makes such of an impact.
00:18:08
Speaker
If we're not here tomorrow, Wilmington is going to feel it.
00:18:12
Speaker
They're going to feel it, right?
00:18:13
Speaker
And so I would advise pastors to, you really got to
Building Trust Through Healthcare Initiatives
00:18:18
Speaker
walk the area and see the needs.
00:18:22
Speaker
And I mean, like literally open up your doors and it's the CCDA philosophy, listening to people, right?
00:18:30
Speaker
And know that in our denomination, the bishop may give the appointment, but God gives the assignment, right?
00:18:38
Speaker
assignment is always touching the heart of the community.
00:18:42
Speaker
So just, I mean, in practical sense, they do something around here called asset mapping, where they will, you know, a group will come into your church and they will try to, they will sit down and they will tell you where all the spots are that you can partnership with and all the needs and you pay some money for it.
00:18:58
Speaker
Well, you know, you can give it to me for free because if I go out my church and just walk around and kind of talk to people and engage with people and commune with people, you know,
00:19:07
Speaker
to see what's going on, I would encourage pastors to do that because they're, as Pam mentioned, the needs are great.
00:19:15
Speaker
I mean, the word of God says, right, that the harvest is plentiful.
00:19:19
Speaker
It's the labors that are few.
00:19:22
Speaker
We don't need no more work.
00:19:23
Speaker
We just need more workers.
00:19:25
Speaker
The work is out there.
00:19:27
Speaker
The need is out there.
00:19:28
Speaker
And so I encourage pastors now to
00:19:31
Speaker
If you look at the scripture, Jesus, you could count on your one hand how many times Jesus was in the church.
00:19:37
Speaker
And he spent 90% of his ministry on the corner.
00:19:41
Speaker
Yeah, that's right.
00:19:43
Speaker
And if we want to be Christ-like, because the Bible says, you know, be imitators of God.
00:19:47
Speaker
If we want to be Christ-like, then that becomes our ministry.
00:19:50
Speaker
That has to be a part of your ministry where we move the church to the corner and make it sustainable.
00:19:56
Speaker
Yeah.
00:19:57
Speaker
And I want to add to that, Lynette, as Pastor was saying, I was thinking in my mind, too, that to show your love, show your love and so that your community can see it.
00:20:08
Speaker
They can feel it.
00:20:10
Speaker
You know, you can be right in the community and the community not trust you.
00:20:16
Speaker
not feel the love for you, not believe in what you're doing.
00:20:21
Speaker
I remember just, you know, as I spoke before, I said before that we are in this underserved community.
00:20:28
Speaker
So we are around a lot of people that didn't receive a lot of different types of medical care, you know, didn't get the different valuations or appointments and things that were needed.
00:20:40
Speaker
We are part of the Faith Health Network.
00:20:44
Speaker
which we will bring things into the community to help people to know more about the different things that they need as far as health care, as far as things they would need to help take care of their body.
00:20:58
Speaker
A lot of them just didn't.
00:21:00
Speaker
For various reasons, insurance, money, a lot of them didn't trust different things of the government, you know.
00:21:07
Speaker
And I remember when we was just trying to do flu vaccine.
00:21:12
Speaker
It was many people right in our community that had never taken flu vaccine.
00:21:17
Speaker
Many people that had it, you know, when it was during the pandemic, hadn't taken the COVID vaccination.
00:21:25
Speaker
And we were blood pressure, you know, just getting things done.
00:21:30
Speaker
But because they trusted us as a church, when we brought those different entities into the community, they trusted us enough to say, when we would say, come over and get your blood pressure checked.
00:21:47
Speaker
And it could have been where they could have kept walking or not even signed up for it.
00:21:53
Speaker
But they trusted us enough.
00:21:56
Speaker
And even I remember some of them said we had one member to run out on a corner.
00:22:01
Speaker
We was literally gathering people in as they walked by.
00:22:06
Speaker
And I remember one person saying, he said, is pastor going to get it?
00:22:13
Speaker
I have to be the sacrificial lamb.
00:22:15
Speaker
We laughed about it, but then we thought,
00:22:19
Speaker
They trust pastor enough.
00:22:21
Speaker
They trust it.
00:22:22
Speaker
They say, if it's good enough for him, it's good enough for me.
00:22:26
Speaker
So that's the type of example and what you have to really show in your community.
00:22:32
Speaker
And you really have to, I think about the reconciliation part of the CCDA, you know, you really have to bring that community together and you got to meet them where they are.
00:22:46
Speaker
If you don't meet people where they are and see them for what they need, you're going to kind of get lost in the shuffle of it because, you know, they're not going to trust you.
00:22:59
Speaker
They're not going to feel the love from you.
00:23:02
Speaker
And you're just going to be once again in that community and not of that community.
Partnerships for Addressing Food and Housing Insecurity
00:23:08
Speaker
Wow.
00:23:08
Speaker
It sounds like healthcare is a big focal point.
00:23:13
Speaker
Would you say that there are other...
00:23:15
Speaker
Are there areas of also focus for St.
00:23:17
Speaker
Luke that your church is leaning into?
00:23:19
Speaker
And another question that I had too is, how are these partnerships changing your community and also your congregation?
00:23:25
Speaker
Are there other partnerships that have been equally as successful, like the Faith and Health Network?
00:23:31
Speaker
Yes, we can also say the need for food.
00:23:35
Speaker
That is a big focus at St.
00:23:38
Speaker
Root because as we know, with the economy and with the different things that's going on now, we have so many different diverse, different sets of families that even as two working people, sometimes after they've
00:23:54
Speaker
make their monies and bring their incomes together is still sometimes not enough money to buy food.
00:24:02
Speaker
They have to make the decision of food, groceries, bills, medicines.
00:24:07
Speaker
So we began a partnership probably about eight years ago, Pastor, I think.
00:24:13
Speaker
We decided we wanted to become a part of the food bank of the Central North Carolina here.
00:24:20
Speaker
Now one of the head chapters is located in Wilmington.
00:24:24
Speaker
They have built a brand new, awesome facility.
00:24:28
Speaker
So we are in partnership with them.
00:24:32
Speaker
So every Wednesday, and Pastor talk a lot more, we have a food pantry that we give food from 11 to 1.
00:24:45
Speaker
And during that time from 11 to 1, we may serve 65 to 90 plus people.
00:24:53
Speaker
It depends on the time.
00:24:57
Speaker
But it has been a phenomenal ministry that we have had to do at St.
00:25:03
Speaker
Luke.
00:25:04
Speaker
It is a ministry that everyone gets paid.
00:25:07
Speaker
That's a part of it.
00:25:09
Speaker
You have to feel that it is a much needed ministry.
00:25:14
Speaker
ministry.
00:25:15
Speaker
We are very blessed to be a part of that partnership.
00:25:19
Speaker
It provides so much to people.
00:25:22
Speaker
We are actually a food pantry, but to be a part of the food bank, you could be a soup kitchen or either a food pantry.
00:25:32
Speaker
soup kitchen where they're going and they actually cook the food and serve the food.
00:25:38
Speaker
We actually, we have people come in, we call it our Revive Mart.
00:25:43
Speaker
Instead of Walmart, we have a Revive Mart.
00:25:46
Speaker
And so they come in and that we give them the sense of where they, we have our racks, they come in, they shop for their food.
00:25:55
Speaker
Pastor, he has music playing.
00:25:58
Speaker
meet and greet people.
00:26:00
Speaker
We have actually, as people come through, it may be need that has been met on a immediate basis that come through.
00:26:09
Speaker
We, at that time, if there's someone come in and there's different resources that they might need, that's what we're building more to so that we can also give them food, but also help provide them with the different resources that they might need.
00:26:26
Speaker
That is a much needed, I'd say, that's needed in our community.
00:26:32
Speaker
Yes, health care and yes, food.
00:26:35
Speaker
And I also, Pastor can speak on it while I let him talk, is housing.
00:26:40
Speaker
So I would say housing, food, and health care.
00:26:46
Speaker
It's good to hear all of that.
00:26:48
Speaker
Yeah.
00:26:50
Speaker
We're doing a lot.
00:26:51
Speaker
But yeah, and I would say also, Chief, that we call a chief around the church.
Educational Support and Volunteer Involvement
00:26:56
Speaker
Our education with the adoption of our school and how we support teachers as well, right?
00:27:01
Speaker
Our food pantry is what I like to call repeatable and sustainable.
00:27:06
Speaker
That's the word, right?
00:27:09
Speaker
And what we try to do, Lynette, even with the FCI churches that we have, is to create ministries that can keep going, right?
00:27:17
Speaker
Right.
00:27:18
Speaker
We're not into events now.
00:27:20
Speaker
We're into experiences.
00:27:22
Speaker
And you have people come through the food bank.
00:27:24
Speaker
That's why there's music playing.
00:27:26
Speaker
That's why a prayer goes forth.
00:27:28
Speaker
That's why people are greeting them.
00:27:32
Speaker
And they feel empowered because they're just like they're in the grocery store, right?
00:27:36
Speaker
We want to have an experience for them.
00:27:39
Speaker
And then...
00:27:39
Speaker
We partner with the Food Bank and Food Lion, and they've come out to do a little cooking show at one point.
00:27:47
Speaker
We have Pam talking about resources.
00:27:50
Speaker
And so the volunteers we have are absolutely amazing.
00:27:54
Speaker
And we and Pam have the job to make sure
00:27:58
Speaker
that we keep our volunteers in a good place, that they're happy, that they feel good.
00:28:04
Speaker
And then they keep the people who come in and be served.
00:28:07
Speaker
They keep them happy.
00:28:07
Speaker
They keep them good.
00:28:08
Speaker
It's like a chain reaction, right?
00:28:10
Speaker
And so, but that happens every single Wednesday.
00:28:14
Speaker
We have a volunteer group that comes in shops on Tuesday.
00:28:18
Speaker
They stock on Tuesday and we all serve on Wednesday.
00:28:22
Speaker
You're talking about, it's going to take, you know, 15 and 19 volunteers a week
00:28:27
Speaker
to make sure that it's happened.
00:28:29
Speaker
And they love doing it, right?
00:28:31
Speaker
That's the ministry that happens every single week.
00:28:34
Speaker
She mentioned housing.
00:28:36
Speaker
We just signed an agreement with some wonderful nonprofits around the city where they're going to develop 16 units of affordable housing for our elderly population.
00:28:49
Speaker
And we're working to making sure that it's equitable,
00:28:52
Speaker
in the area that it's in.
00:28:54
Speaker
And for the first time, they're also building these homes for individuals who are differently abled.
00:29:01
Speaker
And so they, they, they, they're too old to live at home with mom and dad, but not old enough to live by themselves.
00:29:08
Speaker
And so they're creating these smaller homes that will have all types of gadgets, like a smart home and there'll be small units.
00:29:14
Speaker
And so we've been working on this for like two and a half years.
00:29:18
Speaker
And so, yeah,
00:29:19
Speaker
Got the signatures and that's going to be off and coming.
00:29:23
Speaker
The first demo shall start about in three weeks.
00:29:25
Speaker
And so we work with housing and it's so fulfilling because we feel that God looks down on us and says, you know, please with what you're doing.
00:29:36
Speaker
That's what I want.
00:29:38
Speaker
And to any pastor, I encourage them.
00:29:40
Speaker
I mean, it's a blow up when the pastor comes in and he's a part of the community or she is.
00:29:45
Speaker
It's a glow up when you have your members who are a part of it.
00:29:50
Speaker
Right.
00:29:50
Speaker
And so not only do I sit on boards in the community, but Pam sits on the board of the Red Cross here.
00:29:58
Speaker
You know, Pam also sits on the committee when it comes to the food bank.
00:30:02
Speaker
We got another member who sits on the board of Red Cross.
00:30:04
Speaker
We got a member who sits on the board of an organization called Nourish NC and they focus on.
00:30:09
Speaker
on community work with children who are starving and in poverty.
00:30:14
Speaker
It's a wonderful opportunity.
00:30:16
Speaker
So we have another member that sits on the executive board of the NAACP.
00:30:21
Speaker
So to sit back as a pastor and see members getting involved in the community, they have taken the heart of God, taken the path back.
00:30:31
Speaker
of that pastor, whether it's a male or female, and they're going out as well.
00:30:35
Speaker
So then it's the church now involved in the community.
00:30:39
Speaker
Church now, a part of the community.
Pamela Evans' Motivations for Community Impact
00:30:42
Speaker
And then in Methodist, if the pastor leaves, guess what?
00:30:45
Speaker
The ministry's still there.
00:30:46
Speaker
I might take Pam with me, but if... I'll take Chief.
00:30:52
Speaker
I'm going to take her with me.
00:30:53
Speaker
But the ministry stays in the community because that will be there.
00:30:58
Speaker
So it's something that we're working towards.
00:31:01
Speaker
We got some things in place and more and more.
00:31:04
Speaker
We just added another member today to the FCI class.
00:31:08
Speaker
So we're getting more members involved.
00:31:10
Speaker
We believe at St.
00:31:11
Speaker
Luke, there's no bench warmers.
00:31:13
Speaker
You are like basketball.
00:31:14
Speaker
You are not riding the pine.
00:31:16
Speaker
We don't have no six women of the year or six men of the year.
00:31:20
Speaker
Everybody starts.
00:31:23
Speaker
Everybody.
00:31:23
Speaker
I'm kind of visualizing like a guest or a visitor coming to St.
00:31:28
Speaker
Luke and already like getting signed up for a service.
00:31:31
Speaker
We're going to give you some good training, right?
00:31:36
Speaker
Jesus took his disciples and taught them before he sent them out.
00:31:39
Speaker
So we're going to give you some good training.
00:31:41
Speaker
But no, you ain't got no whole year or two to find out what you're going to do.
00:31:44
Speaker
We're going to help you because, you know, the old African proverb said, many hands make the work light.
00:31:49
Speaker
So we try to get as many hands involved as we can.
00:31:53
Speaker
sounds like your membership classes are a mixture of also community partnership but i actually want to go there for the congregations and the pastors saying like i want my members to get there actually i feel like i adapt my sermons and i'm trying i'm leading by example but my members aren't there yet maybe pamela you can or share this maybe a story but what really got you saying i'm gonna do that too
00:32:18
Speaker
And also I'm wondering, like, what would your members say that you see engaged?
00:32:22
Speaker
Because you said some of them are on the board.
00:32:24
Speaker
Some of them are active in the community.
00:32:26
Speaker
They're out doing the work.
00:32:29
Speaker
Why do we see some churches still in the glow up phase where it's like just the pastor or the leader?
00:32:36
Speaker
Yeah.
00:32:37
Speaker
It could be for various reasons, Lynette.
00:32:40
Speaker
I can say that personally for me and what I can really see at St.
00:32:46
Speaker
Luke, what has helped with the progression of getting people more involved is your walk with karate.
00:32:54
Speaker
I think it starts there.
00:32:56
Speaker
Yeah.
00:32:56
Speaker
I personally feel it starts there.
00:32:59
Speaker
Your love for Christ.
00:33:01
Speaker
Because I have to constantly remind myself that, yeah, I'm not doing this for St.
00:33:08
Speaker
Luke.
00:33:08
Speaker
I'm not doing this for Pastor, you know, even though he pulls my neck and make me do it.
00:33:15
Speaker
No, no.
00:33:16
Speaker
I'm not doing this for a pastor.
00:33:19
Speaker
I do this because I really love Jesus.
00:33:23
Speaker
I love Jesus.
00:33:24
Speaker
And I love him with my whole heart.
00:33:26
Speaker
So you really have to be a servant, a servant of Christ, you know,
00:33:34
Speaker
And when you begin to get to that part in your walk with Christ, it's not gravy, but it becomes easier, you know, because God will give you whatever you need to begin to do this progression in ministry.
00:33:56
Speaker
When I first started working, I was always engaged in ministry, but not on this level, not on the capacity of maybe working on boards or doing this.
00:34:09
Speaker
And I even think back to what I do working in pediatrics.
00:34:14
Speaker
I often say, God, you got a sense of humor because I get frustrated sometimes.
00:34:19
Speaker
But what I do, I am reviving people.
00:34:25
Speaker
reforming families because even in my daily full-time job, I'm doing ministry.
00:34:32
Speaker
I'm doing ministry of, sometimes I may have a family that fully don't understand.
00:34:40
Speaker
I am referring them to resources that they may not know.
00:34:46
Speaker
I am, you know, helping a family in the guidelines that I can go
00:34:52
Speaker
in certain ways.
00:34:54
Speaker
And that's just in my work, in being as an employee.
00:34:58
Speaker
But as I become, as I get in ministry, as it, you, I try to help encourage people.
00:35:06
Speaker
We just finished a new members class.
00:35:08
Speaker
I just said that last Thursday.
00:35:11
Speaker
And I personally don't
00:35:15
Speaker
Yes, we don't want bench warmers, but I also want people to find where they are with their walk with Christ.
00:35:25
Speaker
When they find where they are and as they begin to learn, are you a server?
00:35:31
Speaker
Find what it is that helps you to know how you can help serve people, help be a servant of Christ.
00:35:40
Speaker
How can you do that?
00:35:42
Speaker
How can you humble yourself?
00:35:44
Speaker
you know, more to hear the people, you know, how can you love the people that you may not love you back?
00:35:53
Speaker
You know, how can you be a doer, a server of Christ that you can go into a community or be a part of a community that you really don't have to be a part of?
00:36:07
Speaker
Because I really can get in my car on Sundays and come back on Sundays, but that's not
00:36:14
Speaker
I love God too much and I love people too much to do that.
00:36:18
Speaker
That when I see a need and I know that's something that needs to be done, my heart and my love for Christ won't let me do it.
00:36:26
Speaker
It will not let me turn my back.
00:36:28
Speaker
And I can say that that's where the members are progressing into.
00:36:34
Speaker
And I can take the example of our volunteers that's in the Revive Mart.
00:36:42
Speaker
I've seen
00:36:44
Speaker
the progression of their love for the people progressing on the, on a level.
00:36:51
Speaker
And that takes the love of karate, you know, because when you got people that maybe weren't as used to being in the community, really wasn't used to working with people face to face, all different diversity of people, needs of people, um,
00:37:11
Speaker
But now you can watch them really interact with people on a sincere base.
00:37:18
Speaker
That's the love of Christ.
00:37:20
Speaker
That's the love of Christ that's beginning to soften their hearts.
00:37:25
Speaker
And that's where you want is their hearts to be softened, their minds to be, you know, really changed.
00:37:33
Speaker
Because if your minds are not changing, your heart is not changed, you cannot do the work of Christ.
00:37:40
Speaker
We cannot really show the love for his people the way that we need to.
00:37:46
Speaker
So that's what I would say that I have seen that.
00:37:50
Speaker
more into the church where people really want to get.
00:37:55
Speaker
Like, for instance, last week I announced, okay, we're going to be doing this for the teachers.
00:38:01
Speaker
Please sign up.
00:38:02
Speaker
You know, people started signing up.
00:38:04
Speaker
You know, it used to be a time where I could say something and like, oh, pastor, I haven't got one to do it yet.
00:38:12
Speaker
I haven't got, or it'd be the same one.
00:38:15
Speaker
But when you can, over time,
00:38:18
Speaker
to see people's hearts change and their minds change, that's when you know that God is really in the part of it.
00:38:30
Speaker
He's really in the plan because God knows what we need as a ministry.
00:38:36
Speaker
He already knows what we're going to encounter.
00:38:39
Speaker
He knows the people that we need.
00:38:43
Speaker
And so the only thing we can do is ask God is change their hearts, change their minds so that they can really be the servants of Christ that we need to be to work in the community.
Involvement in the Flourishing Congregations Initiative
00:38:57
Speaker
It sounds like through the years, historically, you guys have invested and changed the picture of what it looks like to be a church with a community.
00:39:06
Speaker
So when people are saying like, I have need, I know where to go.
00:39:10
Speaker
Man, my health ain't right.
00:39:11
Speaker
I'm gonna go to St.
00:39:12
Speaker
Luke.
00:39:13
Speaker
Right?
00:39:13
Speaker
Like what an incredible image.
00:39:15
Speaker
Usually people say like, I need to get right with God and he should.
00:39:18
Speaker
Why do you get right with God?
00:39:19
Speaker
I'm gonna go to church.
00:39:20
Speaker
What does it look like for people who say I have a need, any kind of need, bodily need, physical needs, spiritual needs to say I'm gonna go to church and my church people are gonna help me out.
00:39:29
Speaker
Anyway, that's that excited me.
00:39:31
Speaker
That's exciting.
00:39:32
Speaker
We could keep going for hours, it feels like.
00:39:34
Speaker
But I want to close this with two more questions is,
00:39:37
Speaker
You two have said you want to be part of the Flourishing Congregations Initiative, which is an initiative brought about by CCDA.
00:39:44
Speaker
I'm curious to know, Pastor Jermaine, what drew you to the Flourishing Congregations Initiative and what do you hope to achieve?
00:39:51
Speaker
And maybe what are some takeaways thus far?
00:39:54
Speaker
Yeah, I think the word flourishing, I feel that St.
00:39:59
Speaker
Luke is not flourish, we're flourishing, right?
00:40:03
Speaker
That ING makes us believe that we're still growing and there's still to do.
00:40:09
Speaker
So, you know,
00:40:11
Speaker
During the pandemic, when everybody was at home doing church on Zoom, St.
00:40:15
Speaker
Luke would say that service is a new worship.
00:40:19
Speaker
We were doing more service in the community than being in the church in worship.
00:40:23
Speaker
So service became a new worship.
00:40:25
Speaker
And we really latched on to that.
00:40:27
Speaker
I believe now that partnership is the new sponsorship.
00:40:31
Speaker
And so anybody that we can partner with,
00:40:34
Speaker
that is doing the same work, has the same vision and passion that we have.
00:40:39
Speaker
And whether you're in your respective areas, if you're doing that work, we want to connect with you.
00:40:44
Speaker
We want you to connect with us.
00:40:46
Speaker
So being a part of the flourishing communities initiatives, that's what that was, that we wanted to be a part of a group of churches that had the desire to grow, that we could impact and that we could, maybe our story and testimony could be a help to them.
Reflections on CCDA Philosophy and Community Stories
00:41:03
Speaker
We would learn an education major.
00:41:05
Speaker
And so I believe that teachers are lifelong learners.
00:41:08
Speaker
So we're still learning as we're growing as well.
00:41:10
Speaker
And so that's why we wanted to be a part of it.
00:41:13
Speaker
And so we're just looking forward to flourishing, flourishing together.
00:41:17
Speaker
Amen.
00:41:19
Speaker
Amen.
00:41:19
Speaker
So we've reached the end and I wanted to end our time asking a question we ask at every episode is how do you see the CCDA philosophy at work in your community?
00:41:29
Speaker
We talked a little about holistic.
00:41:31
Speaker
We talked about empowerment.
00:41:33
Speaker
We heard about empowerment, church-based, but is there one in specific that you're like today, this week, or this is one we want to lean into?
00:41:41
Speaker
How are you seeing it at work in your community?
00:41:44
Speaker
One of the things that CCDA believes in and their philosophy is not churches just doing for the community, but churches doing it with the community.
00:41:53
Speaker
Right.
00:41:54
Speaker
And so St.
00:41:55
Speaker
Luke is growing to that.
00:41:56
Speaker
Right.
00:41:57
Speaker
I think we were so gung ho on wanting to help.
00:41:59
Speaker
So we started doing it.
00:42:00
Speaker
But now we're going into it's not just encouragement, but it's empowerment.
00:42:05
Speaker
Like you taking of your community and.
00:42:08
Speaker
I mean, we live on, our church is on the south side of Wilmington, which is considered a hot spot where there's a little bit of everything.
00:42:16
Speaker
We got a little bit of, you know, like Donnie and Marie.
00:42:19
Speaker
We got a little bit country and a little bit rock and roll, right?
00:42:22
Speaker
So you can see a house down the street from us that looks like it's some illegal activity going on.
00:42:29
Speaker
It's an Airbnb.
00:42:33
Speaker
You know, it's a melting pot, right?
00:42:35
Speaker
Yeah.
00:42:36
Speaker
So in that community, it helps us to be diverse of needs.
00:42:43
Speaker
But we're working at doing things with the community.
00:42:47
Speaker
And just on yesterday at our Revive Mart, one of the guys came in and he shopped and got his food.
00:42:54
Speaker
And he came up to me and was like, hey, Pastor, go.
00:42:57
Speaker
When do y'all start at 11?
00:42:59
Speaker
I said, yeah, we 11, 11 to 1.
00:43:01
Speaker
Okay, I'm going to come volunteer.
00:43:03
Speaker
And the lady up there got my name, and I'm going to come volunteer.
00:43:07
Speaker
And I'm like, man, come on.
00:43:08
Speaker
He got, I mean, he tatted up.
00:43:09
Speaker
I mean, he illustrated, man.
00:43:11
Speaker
He got ink and everything, you know, where he came from.
00:43:13
Speaker
But he's from around the way.
00:43:15
Speaker
And he said, I'm going to come help.
00:43:17
Speaker
And so that's what we want.
00:43:18
Speaker
We got a person that we're helping, a part of the community, now want to come and help and volunteer.
00:43:23
Speaker
And as soon as that interaction happened, Lynette, I'm going to come.
00:43:27
Speaker
I thought of the CCD philosophy.
00:43:29
Speaker
That's what we want to do.
00:43:31
Speaker
We want to empower you to help.
00:43:33
Speaker
We used to have a food.
00:43:35
Speaker
Well, we did hot meals.
00:43:36
Speaker
We did a grocery store and we had people from the community come in.
00:43:40
Speaker
Our neighbors would come through.
00:43:42
Speaker
So there's a young lady who came through
00:43:45
Speaker
All the time.
00:43:46
Speaker
Now she has not missed a Sunday at church for the last two years.
00:43:51
Speaker
She was coming to that.
00:43:52
Speaker
We call it hump day where you get a hot meal.
00:43:54
Speaker
She was coming to get a hot meal.
00:43:56
Speaker
She had nothing to eat.
00:43:58
Speaker
Now she sits in the second row of the church and doesn't miss Sunday.
00:44:02
Speaker
When you talk, Lynette, about, you know, how people can say, oh, I want Jesus.
00:44:07
Speaker
I'm going to go to church because more people come to Christ out of desperation than devotion anyway, statistically.
00:44:12
Speaker
Right.
00:44:13
Speaker
But you may have a few that says, oh, I want to come to church.
00:44:16
Speaker
I want Jesus.
00:44:17
Speaker
But even the model of Christ was people needed something and then they came to him.
00:44:22
Speaker
Right.
00:44:23
Speaker
I need to be healed.
00:44:24
Speaker
I'm bringing my son.
00:44:26
Speaker
I got an issue of blood.
00:44:27
Speaker
I'm coming.
00:44:27
Speaker
They ain't coming because they just wanted Jesus.
00:44:29
Speaker
They came for what he was going to do.
00:44:31
Speaker
And then they got it.
00:44:32
Speaker
That's right.
00:44:33
Speaker
I believe that we're in that model that people know they can come to St.
00:44:36
Speaker
Luke because you're going to get some food.
00:44:38
Speaker
They know you can come to St.
00:44:39
Speaker
Luke because, you know, we'll help pay a bill.
00:44:42
Speaker
We'll go down there.
00:44:44
Speaker
We just did an application for a young girl who's trying to move from one place to another.
00:44:48
Speaker
She's trying to build her life back up.
00:44:50
Speaker
She want to get in better housing.
00:44:52
Speaker
Sixty five dollar application fee.
00:44:54
Speaker
We sent one of our members over there to go pay it.
00:44:56
Speaker
Right.
00:44:57
Speaker
So, you know, you can get that met.
00:44:59
Speaker
I mean, when it comes to.
00:45:00
Speaker
blood pressure cuffs, you know, helping out, you can come to St.
00:45:03
Speaker
Luke and get that.
00:45:05
Speaker
When it comes to being supported by teachers, you can come and get that.
00:45:08
Speaker
So there's so many needs that God allows us to meet that people know if they come there, they're going to get their need met.
00:45:16
Speaker
And if you stay around a Sunday, you're going to get a little shout in Jesus too.
00:45:19
Speaker
So it's a win-win, but yeah, but thank you for that question.
00:45:26
Speaker
Beautiful.
00:45:27
Speaker
Just the places I want to be at.
00:45:29
Speaker
Well, that takes us to the end.
00:45:30
Speaker
And I just want to thank you so much, Sister Pamela Evans and Dr. Germain Armour for your time today and your stories and your deep enthusiasm for seeing communities transformed.
00:45:41
Speaker
Thank you for listening to the CCDA podcast and thank you for joining us.
00:45:45
Speaker
If you want to learn more about the CCDA and get involved with Pamela and Jermaine and their Revive Mart, wherever it is that they're at in Wilmington, we ask you to check out the show notes in this episode.
00:45:57
Speaker
Don't forget to subscribe to this podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.
00:46:03
Speaker
This episode is produced by Sarah Callen in association with Christina Forer.
00:46:08
Speaker
We'll be back soon with another episode featuring CCD practitioners who are committed to seeing people and communities experience bad shalom.
00:46:14
Speaker
We'll see you then.
00:46:15
Speaker
Goodbye.