When a family has to choose between paying the power bill or eating, a local church offers help in a financial crisis. Ferris Hill Baptist Church is already well known in the area for their cold weather shelter.
In addition to the homeless shelter, church members continue to offer year-round assistance to families in dire financial need through their I-58 ministry. Through offering clothing, food and other necessities, the benevolence ministry continues to see a growing need in the Milton community.
“You never realized there was such a need until we started this,” said Marcell Thompson, who volunteers at the ministry.
Since volunteering in the benevolent ministry, Thompson has seen a steady increase in the number of individuals in need since she has been involved with I-58. The ministry takes its name from the Bible’s book of Isaiah, Chapter 58.
On average, Thompson said I-58 will see between 55 and 60 individuals in need of clothing or food on a Tuesday. This ministry does not necessarily just provide for the homeless, but those who have fallen on hard financial times, Thompson said.
Some examples include helping residents who are unable to pay their utility bills or have to choose between paying for food or medication.
“They either eat or they buy medicine and they can’t do both,” she said. “We don’t buy the medicine, but we can help with the food for a couple of days.”
Lorraine Ross, who recently moved to the East Milton area from South Florida, appreciated the ministry’s generosity.
“I haven’t been in Milton long, but everyone here is super nice,” Ross said.
Ross said she and her friend are visiting local food banks in order to help get settled in the area. Even though times have been tough, Ross has a positive outlook.
“It’s been really difficult, but things will get better, I always try to think optimistically,” she said.
Thompson is among several volunteers in the ministry who offers counseling services to those visiting I-58. The church’s pastor, Brian Nall, will speak with I-58 visitors.
“We are just letting them know we care,” Thompson said. “We want to take care of their spiritual needs as well as their physical needs. We are not just trying to feed them and throw them out.”
Every Tuesday of each week, the ministry is open from 9 a.m. to noon. Each person must sign in before receiving entering the I-58 area. Each individual is limited to I-58’s services once every two months.
Although many people return to seek the ministry’s services, Thompson said the ministry continues to have new people register on a weekly basis.
“On an average, we get as many as six new ones each Tuesday,” she said. “The word is getting out .”
Thompson said she finds it uplifting when regular attendees stop visiting.
“That makes us feel good, because we helped them through a bad spot,” Thompson said. “Now they are on their own.”
The ministry is supported through donations from church members and the church’s benevolence fund.
Brian Nall said his congregation has always come through when the ministry is in need.
“We don’t even have to announce it…we get the amount of resources we need,” he said.
As for the future, the church is currently exploring to add a bathroom facility for those in need along with a laundry area, equipped with a washer and dryer.
Regardless of what is in store for the church, Thompson said the volunteer work is spiritually fulfilling.
“I enjoys and I feel like this what God wants me to do,” she said.
This article originally appeared on Santa Rosa Press Gazette: Milton church sees increase of residents in need