‘Women of Faith’ reaching outside the church
Women of Faith Ministry, an idea brought to light by church member Barbara Kendrick , began formation in April of this year.
According to Kendrick, the Women of Faith Ministry will focus on different areas in the community where needs have to be met such as the schools and single motherhood, but their main focus right now is ministering to men and women in nursing homes.
“My mother was an LPN at a nursing home and my husband’s mother is in a nursing home,” Kendrick said. “I just really began to see that these people have needs.”
Kendrick said she first got the idea of a women’s ministry after visiting a friend’s church in Decatur.
“After I visited a meeting by a similar group at Friendship Baptist Church in Decatur, I thought, ‘We really should do something like that here in Russellville,’” Kendrick said. “I prayed about it for some time before I brought the idea before our pastor and other church members.”
But Kendrick is quick to maintain that even though she thought of the idea, the ministry is really a joint effort.
“I’ve been working with Jeanne Huffman, a member of the group, and she has helped me so much,” Kendrick said. “There are many other women who have been a big part of this ministry as well.”
A little more than 20 women signed up to be part of the newly formed group and they soon began to move forward. They invited speaker Jennifer Hallmark from First Assembly of God in Moulton to help them get their ministry started on the right track.
“We had four sessions during June and July where Jennifer showed us how to have a successful women’s ministry,” Kendrick said. “We feel that the things she taught us will help us reach out to the people in the community.”
This past Wednesday, members for the Women of Faith Ministry had their first project at Burns Nursing Home in Russellville where they distributed gifts to the residents there.
“It really brightens their day,” Women of Faith Ministry member Joan Ghrigsby said. “But really, it blesses us just as much as it does them.”
Terina McGalliard, Activity Assistant at Burns Nursing Home, assisted the group while they passed out their gifts.
“It makes the people here feel special just to have someone give them something and tell them they are cared about,” McGalliard said.
The next scheduled event for Women of Faith Ministry will be Oct. 2 at 11:30 a.m. at Rancho Viejo Mexican Restaurant on Highway 43 in Russellville.
