DeCelle Morning Ministry
To tell the story of the DeCelle Morning Ministry is to tell the story of our Troup County community and the needs found here. This Wednesday ministry is a mission outreach of the First Presbyterian Church of LaGrange to help our neighbors reach their version of a stable and sustainable life. We do our best to help others chart a path that will lead to their desired position in life. Along this journey, we offer spiritual guidance, which we believe requires growth and well-being. Each Wednesday (pre-Covid), we provide information and strategies, contacts and counseling, and caring and listening. We take the story of the disabled man at the Bethesda pool, mentioned in John 5: 1-9, very seriously in that we want to assist our fellow community members in standing and walking on their own. We believe that misplaced charity can be debilitating to those genuinely trying to learn, stand, and walk. To simply dispense money denies our ministry’s critical component, which is creating connections, developing relationships, and forming a plan to move forward, all together. Although there are times we find it necessary to find donors for housing, food, rent, supplies, and the like, our primary work is to listen, reassure, plan, pray and match people with community resources. Each person who enters walks out with a worksheet of tasks and contacts secure in the knowledge that, with everyone’s efforts and God's guidance, there is a way to get back up and thrive. Our strength is the group itself solving different pieces of an often-incapacitating situation.
Neighbors usually come to us for help with utility bills or rent assistance. Sometimes there are health issues, both significant and imagined, car problems, or family drama. Often, we help with disability applications, resume writing, job searches, and food needs. Our neighbors who are homeless are usually in search of shelter, food, and clothes. We give them our collective understanding, wisdom, brainstorming, connections with organizations, and life strategies. The most valuable thing we do is listen inside a safe environment, completely confidential and non-judgmental. We’ve been told time and time again by our neighbors that listening to each person with dignity has had the most impact on their ability to solve their problems.
A few stories* from our ministry might give a glimpse of the joy we find in our mission and how our small group helps heal our community.
*Anne, a 34-year-old woman, came to the DeCelle Ministry in September 2020, desperate for help with rent for which she was three months overdue. She had quit her job two months prior due to mental problems. Her mental issues stemmed from a difficult upbringing of molestation and parent estrangement. She experienced further abuse from her boyfriend and husband of her two children.
As an adult, she had many bouts of depression and was committed to mental hospitals several times. Despite that, Anne was able to hold several well-paying jobs for short times before her internal problems got in the way. She was hospitalized frequently and had difficulty maintaining stability. As a woman of deep Christian faith, she constantly wrestled with the demons that assaulted her wellbeing.
The DeCelle Ministry recognized her condition and immediately contacted Joan Woodson, a licensed psychologist and member of First Baptist Church, who agreed to meet with her at no cost. Joan realized she needed immediate, intense treatment and arranged a quick placement in the Bradley Center in Columbus.
With her permission, the Ministry packed her belongings and cooperated with the LaGrange Housing Authority for storage. When released two weeks later, we helped her attain temporary housing in a local motel and, in concert with Joan Woodson, began counseling on the path to stability. Numerous attempts to find a long-term rehabilitation program did not materialize. We connected her to a local psychiatrist, who led to her finding the most effective prescription.
She found a job and became financially capable of moving into her own apartment. We connected her to Volunteers of America and the Housing Authority, which facilitated her placement in an apartment in mid-December.
In her words, the story of her experience with the Ministry:
“Since July of 2019, I’ve had many churches and organizations help with rent and lights only to find myself in need of help again the following month. When I was given the hotline number to the DeCelle Ministry, I thought it would be another routine call. I was pleasantly surprised when I got a call back from one of the members. He listened to me about my struggles and hardships. He was interested in the root cause of my tribulation. He guided me to the decision of letting my house go, which was very wise in preventing an eviction from being on my record. While in the hospital, he stayed in constant contact with me. He and his colleagues packed up all my stuff and moved it to the Housing Authority, who volunteered to store it for free. He gave me contact information for Joan Woodson, who I now see every week. With nowhere to stay, the Ministry organized and funded hotels on multiple occasions over 11 weeks and then helped me get an apartment through the Housing Authority, even though I was not on the waiting list. They connected me to Volunteers of America, who are assisting me by paying three months of rent and utilities while I am getting back on my feet.
I didn’t just receive help in time of need through the DeCelle Ministry. Thanks to Jesus, I have found lifetime friends that care for my wellbeing. For that, I am truly grateful. I am on my way to discovering who I am in Jesus’ eyes and live as I’m meant to for the rest of my life. All is possible because of the DeCelle Ministry and the special member who helped me gain a new start.”
*Al visited us three times in 2015. He was unemployed, 65 years old, extremely hard of hearing, diagnosed with a learning disorder, had no technical skills, no access to the internet, and no computer. He was trying to get housing at Amberwood, a subsidized apartment community, but an old unresolved student loan prevented his application for housing. The original loan was for $2000 for truck driving school, which he took out in 1985. The 35-year-old loan was never paid in full. Had he known how or who to contact, this loan could have been forgiven years earlier.
In conversation with Al, it became clear he did not know how to navigate the education loan website, so a DeCelle member stepped up. The member brought a computer to a separate meeting with Al, set up a case for him on the site, read and explained how to achieve loan forgiveness. Al permitted the member to speak on his behalf, and three calls were made between Al, the member, and the loan organization. With documentation both he and the loan service had, Al could get the loan removed from his record. Although it took months, the loan was forgiven and expunged from his history because of his age, the age of the loan, and his SSI recognized disabilities (severe hearing loss and learning disorder). Then, he was able to get an apartment in Amberwood.
*A long-time participant in the Decelle Morning Ministry is Terri. For years, she held a job and managed her household, but then she hit a wall. Without enough resources, not knowing where to turn, and no one for support, she showed up at DeCelle morning ministry. As a single mother with two children, she came to us in 2015 because her utilities had been cut off. Her employer was willing to put up $300, and Personal Aide was willing to pay $100, but she needed $46 more, which we found through a donor. She began attending DeCelle regularly, and through many meetings, we were able to set her up with a financial advisor from DASH who helped her make and keep a household budget. Her biggest struggle was managing her money, planning a budget, and living within her means. With the help from DASH, she worked her way out of debt and continued attending our fellowship and reinforcement meetings. We worked on job searches, family issues, resume writing, and financial planning during our long journey. We were able to help Terri with her immediate needs and became a listening ear for her which provided healing of its own. Her oldest child eventually graduated from Troup High School (in 2018), hoping to attend college on an ROTC scholarship. However, his ACT scores turned out to be too low to qualify for the scholarship. We counseled him to consider going directly into the military and having the military pay for his college education. He joined the Navy and is now happily stationed in San Diego aboard an aircraft carrier handling ordinance. Terri is an invaluable DeCelle member who joins us not just to listen and fellowship, but also to offer advice and hope to some of our new neighbors who visit.
*In 2012, Prince came to the church with utility problems. She suffered from the lingering pain of a very difficult childhood, including abuse, molestation, and neglect, a condition now recognized as a version of PTSD called ACEs – Adverse Childhood Experiences. Filled with anger and resentment, she experienced many years of depression, imprisonment, and inability to keep a job.
The ministry guided on several fronts. She became homeless six times since we initially met her because of strife with family and friends. Each time we helped her get emergency housing together with our community partners. We helped her realize the importance of medication and enabled her to schedule medical appointments many times.
At her core, Prince is a goodhearted person who always tries to help those in need. Many times, she has called us to ask for help for others. Based on her meager income from disability, we worked with her to understand when she jeopardized her livelihood by giving others her money. We encouraged her to get own apartment and construct a livable budget to ensure utilities, food, and other necessities. In February 2018, she moved in and has now been in her own dwelling for three years, an unprecedented achievement. She is now actively looking for a part-time job to supplement her income and enable her to find a better place to live.
After nearly nine years, this is what Prince tells others when they need help. “The DeCelle Ministry are good people who helped me get through a lot of bad stuff. They will listen to you and help you if they can. If it weren’t for them, I would not be where I am today. I thank God for these folks. There’s nobody I’ve worked with like them. My main contact has become my best friend and is always there for me no matter what.”
*Jerry visited the ministry in 2015 because he was frustrated with his employer. He had been hired at a local plant through a temporary service. The agreement was that after 90 days, he would be put on as a permanent employee and qualify for benefits. At that point in time, he said that he had been working at the plant for ten months and was still considered a temporary employee. Being a temporary employee meant that there were no benefits and that the temp service was taking a cut out of each paycheck. He was frustrated and was thinking about quitting because he didn’t feel as though he was being treated fairly. He said that he often got positive feedback about his work. They gave him opportunities for plenty of overtime and seemed to like him. Yet, he was kept on temp status. It appeared that the plant was taking unfair advantage of the temp process. Jerry came to our meetings regularly. We agreed that he was being taken advantage of, but encouraged him to continue reporting to work at the plant and performing good quality work.
Jerry had a pleasant personality and seemed sincere in his desire to do a good job. When he came to meetings, it was like the old Cheers TV show where everybody shouted “Jerry!” We had become friends. Then, Jerry missed a meeting. Then another. On the third week, he came in and informed us that he had quit his old job and took another temp job that paid 25 cents more an hour. The following week, Jerry came to the group and informed us that his new job “didn’t work out,” and he was now unemployed. We got busy sharing all of the job leads that we were aware of with our friend. We encouraged him and helped him put together a job search plan. The ministry assisted him with food and paper products during this time of unemployment. Within a month, Jerry found a new job through another temp agency. This job required that he clean burrs off of brake pads and make notes on a report form. He also said he was expected to interact with a computer, which he admitted he wasn’t very good at. We began to suspect that he had trouble reading. We arranged for him to get tutoring in computer use through Troup Reads, a volunteer-led Reading/English Language/Computer tutoring service. Jerry continued to come to our meetings when his new job and tutoring classes permitted. He indicated that he had figured out how to fill out the report forms at work and was feeling much more secure interacting with a computer. After three months on the job, Jerry reported that he was made a permanent employee and that everything was going well. He continued to stop by our meetings as his work hours allowed, just to say hello and let us know that he continues to prosper. It is always a delight to see his smiling face. “Jerry!”
* As you can imagine, once Covid hit, DeCelle ministry went virtual. Each member since March 2020 rotated responsibility to check our dedicated phone line for calls of need. It is infinitely more challenging to build relationships over the phone, but we still try our best to provide guidance. Recently, one of our callers was a woman named Elaine, who had come with her husband, Greg, to LaGrange to look for a job. She had bladder cancer and was homeless. They had a tent at a camping site on the lake near West Point, and renting that spot took all of their cash. They needed housing and food for a week to hold them until her husband could get a paycheck at a job he had just secured at Kia. They were cold and had no food or money, so a DeCelle member went to the Homeless Coalition and asked for a room at a motel room for the couple. The Homeless Coalition granted them a week at the Red Roof Inn in West Point, GA. This is one of our greatest strengths- knowing the community resources and making the connections.
*Always at Christmastime, there are many pleas for help with presents for children. Most parents who call are single parents and have missed the deadline for school to help out. The DeCelle member on phone duty this Christmas received such calls and contacted local school counselors. All the donated gifts were given out at the schools, so there was nothing left for the families who called in late. The DeCelle member reached out to every church that might be able to help out and wound up being able to gift fourteen children with help from the Ark. The Ark was sponsoring Toys for Tots and was able to make the holidays joyous for these families, even at the late date. Also, through the member’s efforts, Rosemont Baptist Church was also able to assist one family with three children.
As DeCelle members, we find that our friends from the community bless us more than we could ever bless them. Our growth is immensely strengthened as we see Jesus moving through us to help “the least of these.” As happens with many of our neighbors who seek our help, we lose touch, and we can only assume that our assistance was critical in their journey forward. If not, they know where we are, and we are ready to listen.
Current members of the DeCelle ministry :
Joff Brock
Lynda Brock
Jeff Brown
Ellen Butts
Judy Gilliam
Bob Goehring
Bobbi Hart
Fran Nichols
Roy Nichols
Christopher Walker
Connor Smith