‘This is a lifestyle for us’: Outreach ministry determined to help feed members of its community and beyond – NJ.com
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A thriving food pantry, Blessed Hands Outreach Ministry has been feeding families in need for over 20 years.
During most normal weeks, it feeds 50-100 over a two-day period in the Cumberland County area.
But in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak, there’s a new normal and the ministry has stepped up its game. It has fed over 1,000 families in recent weeks and continues to do anything it can to provide assistance.
“With the pandemic, we evolved even more and want to do more to feed our community during this crisis,” said assistant director Artya Allen. “We really want to help. This is what we do and we’re good at it. We’re here to help in any way we can during the crisis and after it. This is a lifestyle for us.
“In a way, this jump-started us. Before it was once a week on a random day. Now we have to be more precise, more pin-pointed. We’re driven by the community to go harder and do more.”
The Blessed Hands Outreach Ministry has helped feed families in need for over 20 years.
The ministry has found that the struggle has no boundaries. People of various income levels have been affected and it is determined to be there for them.
“Since the pandemic happened, we didn’t realize just how many people have been struggling. We didn’t know how many struggling people have been going under the radar,” Allen noted. “People have been telling us their stories … without our help they wouldn’t be able to afford things.
“We’re all struggling in some areas, we’re all in the same boat. Without some help, it’s sink or swim and we’re teaching people how to swim. We all need a little hope, some sunshine. We’re here for our community.”
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Pastor Wayne Slaughter, ministry director and senior pastor at True Vine Pentecostal Church of Restoration & Deliverance Inc. in Millville, refers to those who have gone under the radar as the working poor.
“They’re working but just to pay the bills, barely making it,” he said. “Sometimes pride prevents people from coming to get in line for assistance, some free food. They don’t want to be looked at as needing assistance.”
Blessed Hands Outreach Ministry plans t feed close to 500 people on Easter Saturday that are serving on the frontlines in Cumberland County.
While the ministry continues to make a major impact in its community, it plans to dive even deeper on Sunday. According to Allen, it intends to feed hot meals on Easter to those essential workers on the front lines – doctors, nurses, EMTs, first responders from the Bridgeton, Millville and Vineland areas.
“We’re just trying to be impactful during this time,” Pastor Slaughter added. “The main focus is to let the world know that the church is still present even though we can’t physically be in our building.
“I did a Facebook live for people to donate and I was surprised with the donations that came in. I got more donations than Sunday mornings in my church. I was able to buy name-brand items because of the donations that came in from the community. The community has joined in and helped push the vision, help the goal.”
The Blessed Hands Outreach Ministry has fed over 1,000 families in the Cumberland County region over the past few weeks.
Some of the donations have come from other area churches as well as local businesses and church members. Regardless of their origin, the ministry has been thrilled with how communities have come together.
“It’s been an experience,” said Pastor Slaughter, whose ultimate goal is to have his ministry become an agency with Philabundance – an agency in Philadelphia leading the fight against hunger – to get more food and do more.
“When this pandemic hit, it pushed me to do more and seek more avenues of assistance for the community. The responses did something emotionally to me to do more and help more.”
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Kevin Minnick focuses on South Jersey and can be reached at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @kminnicksports.
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