When people are going through a crisis, friends need to come alongside of them and lend their support. That is the mission of Neighbor Brigade, a nonprofit started by my childhood friend, Pam Manikas Washek. She was diagnosed with…
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Unique Ministries
When I was in 6th grade, I failed my school state test, and self-doubt started invading my thoughts. As a 22-year-old, I felt overwhelmed, having to quickly transform into my mother’s care giver, all while trying to survive being…
We are called to something much greater than ourselves: to love God and to love others. I never thought my calling would be found intertwined in the hearts and lives of marginalized women in the sex industry. Jesus Said…
God truly uses our gifts no matter how insignificant a gift it may seem. For years, my sisters and I have worked together to decorate and put on events. We have done everything from wedding receptions to birthday parties…
I was a senior in high school when I became pregnant with my first son. Thanks to the love and support of my family, I was able to finish high school and go on to become a nurse. Eventually,…
We all face storms—some we see brewing months before they hit, and others blindside us when the massive waves strike. On Sunday, March 11, 2018, our storm made landfall as my husband, Chris, developed gall stone-induced pancreatitis and was…
Have you ever had a desire to help an organization but didn’t know what you could do? That was my situation when I became aware of the Angels Charge Ministry, a faith-based non-profit helping women coming out of prisons…
A year ago, I was extremely depressed. I was without a job and feeling totally worthless. It seemed I had lost everything that I loved. I was thinking seriously about suicide. But as I was driving home one day,…
As a teenager, I was in and out of homeless shelters. By the time I was 17, I was a single mom. But in looking back, I think God was preparing me to do some wonderful things to glorify…
On February 14, 2010, I woke up at 5:00 in the morning. Jon didn’t make it home that night because he had died in a car accident. I was 34 and he was 38. We had a 3-year-old son and I…
Inner city ministry was something that I wasn’t searching for; in a sense, it found me. It started when my wife and I moved in with my brother. It was a temporary move, so we could find a place…
I was playing Contract Bridge after I had retired in early 2005, and one of the players was an AARP volunteer who helped people submit their federal tax returns for free at the local senior center. I had always done my…
There are an overwhelming number of women who have had their children, lives, and freedom taken from them due to drug addictions. Many have professed a Christian faith but still face suicidal thoughts and a deficit of hope. After…
I’ve been writing notes on a napkin and putting them in my kids’ lunchboxes for years. Some are funny, some are serious. But to me, it’s just a way to tell them I love them and to make them…
If you were to see me in passing, you’d notice nothing different about me compared to my fellow man. God has blessed me with a job in which I work a 40-hour week. I come home to a wonderful…
In 2017, my oldest daughter started kindergarten. The school she attends has the highest poverty rate in our district, where 75% of the students receive a free or reduced lunch. So, there is a lot of need. A month…
I have worked in the cancer field my whole career. I’ve seen the struggles patients go through and how it permeates every facet of their lives. I know how difficult it is to get the right nutrition during different…
I come from a very musical family. I wasn’t blessed with the gift of singing, but I was rhythmically inclined. My mother was a great dancer, and she showed me a few moves. Then, I discovered Michael Jackson and James Brown. I…
When you spend a few hours helping build a wheelchair ramp for someone who is homebound, you play a part in changing someone’s life. That’s what struck me when I was part of a Kiwanis club that built a…
Every Monday evening, the practice rooms in our Fine Arts hall are filled with university student music instructors and pupils eager to learn piano, guitar or drums. However, this isn’t just another music school. This is a Christian ministry called WOVEN:…
When people meet me, the first thing they notice is that I have Down Syndrome. What they can’t see, though, is that I am strong and brave, and I love Jesus with my whole heart. I’m very proud of…
When I had my first son, I stopped working and stayed home. I loved it, but after nine months, I started to go a little stir crazy and missed the socialization. That’s when a friend told me about MOPS—Mothers…
When Hurricane Florence hit Myrtle Beach, it left over 2,000 families without a home. They literally had nothing. I knew I had to do something to help. Growing up, my mom taught me we should love our neighbors and…
In September of 2011, the son of one of my marketing clients was struck by a car. He was a very active eight-year-old and had broken both of his legs. I went searching for a gift for him and…
Throughout my life, I have managed spherocytosis which causes a weak immune system. I’ve battled this disease and with each step, God has guided a sickly little girl into the strong youth pastor that I am today. Two weeks…
My life is pretty busy. Between work and family, there just isn’t a lot of time left for ministry. For a long time, I felt really guilty about that. Twice a year, my church parades people from various ministries…
Food is the way God led me to serve. About 18 years ago, my husband first volunteered as a driver for a local food pantry in our home state, Alaska. Unlike most soup kitchens or food pantries, this food…
I am a nurse. I am also a Christian, and have found the best thing I can do for my patients is to pray with them and for them, which I do for every patient. Now I am retired.…
Throughout life, God has called me to places far outside my comfort zone, to use me in the lives of those who are downtrodden. I turned 70 this year, and God has always used me to connect to hurting…
My momma taught me to always help those who are less fortunate. She ingrained in me to “do unto others as you would want them to do unto you.” So that’s what I did. As a teenager, I would often volunteer…