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NORTH CAROLINA COUNCIL OF CHURCHES
27 Horne St, Raleigh, 919-828-6501, website:
The NC Council of Churches’ Partners in Health and Wholeness (PHW) initiative is looking for faith communities to apply for grants to help educate their communities/congregations.
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Mini-Grants for up to $1,000 are available for houses of worship that can come up with projects that fit into the focus areas of the PHW program, including tobacco cessation and prevention, healthy eating, increasing physical activity, mental health, HIV/AIDS, healthy aging, and the drug-overdose crisis. Your congregation must have submitted a PHW Collaborative Pledge within the past 12 months, and if I read the description correctly, you can apply when submitting your mini-grant application.
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Community Grants can be sought by a group of congregations (at least three) that want to work together while identifying a clear need for the project idea they come up with. Each congregation must not have received a mini-grant over the past year, and together the group can receive up to $5,000 for their project. Each must submit a PHW Collaborative Pledge.
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BIPOC (Black/Brown, Indigenous, People of Color) Mental Health Grants are also available. Houses of faith serving these communities can apply for funding between $5,000 and 10,000 to use for COVID-19 mental-health efforts.
Click here for more info and for instructions on how to apply.
CHRISTIAN-MUSIC CONCERT SERIES
Here’s the May lineup for the Sacred Grounds Coffeehouse’s free music concert series. This Christian-music venue is located at 2700 N Roxboro Rd, at St Paul United Methodist Church, and donations are always graciously accepted. Call 919-220-2458 or visit the website to view the full schedule:
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Saturday, August 3, 7:30pm—acoustic trio Birdsong (Wendell Thornton and his daughters)
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Saturday, August 10, 7:30pm—acoustic singer/songwriter Blake Addison
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Saturday, August 17, 7:30pm—bluegrass gospel band New Direction
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Saturday, August 24, 7:30pm—bluegrass and gospel group the Hodnett Family Band
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Saturday, August 31, 7:30pm—3-piece Americana band the Graybirds
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Saturday, September 7, 7:30pm—the Retro Cats will reinterpret familiar old-country, folk, and rock songs
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Saturday, September 14, 7:30pm—Ace & the Royal Straights will blend Americana, the blues, country, and soul.
SHABBAT AT BETH EL SYNAGOGUE
Beth El Synagogue (1004 Watts St) will host its First Friday Shabbat Service and Potluck with DurhamISH on August 2, 6:30–9pm. Every month, a different group of volunteers will lead the Shabbat services in whatever style they choose. Attendees are invited to bring a vegetarian dish to share. The service will be held in the multipurpose room and the potluck dinner will be enjoyed in the heating tent in the parking lot. Click here to let Alexina Haefner know if you’d like to lead a few tunes or offer any additional help.
The next First Friday Shabbat Service and Potluck will be held on September 6.
HEALTH MINISTRY NETWORK
The next Durham County Health Ministry Network Meeting will be held virtually on Monday, March 11, 6–7:30pm. Representatives from faith-based organizations and houses of worship are invited to connect with others who are working to address health topics. Become a member (free of charge) and get in on trainings, educational information, community events, and grant opportunities. Click here to register for more info and the Zoom link.
COMMUNITY LUNCHEON ROUNDTABLE
The Religious Coalition for a Nonviolent Durham’s next Community Luncheon Roundtable will be held at the Elizabeth Street United Methodist Church (1209 N Elizabeth St, in the education building’s fellowship hall) on Thursday, August 22, noon–1pm. Discuss community issues and forge partnerships with others who want to work toward positive change. Lunch is free, and masks will be provided (but not required). Visit the website to learn about the Coalition’s programs and services.
MEN’S BREAKFAST
Cross Culture Church (1912 Page Rd) will host a Men’s Breakfast on Saturday, August 24, 9am. Men are invited to connect, learn, and to be encouraged in their spiritual journey.
HELP WITH FOOD + CLOTHING
The New Visions of Africa Restaurant (1306 Fayetteville St) announces their participation in the United States Department of Agriculture’s Child and Adult Care Food Program. Locally, this program is run under the Durham Health and Human Services through their Child and Adult Care Food Program. Free Snacks and Meals will be distributed on weekday afternoons to people in need from 3 to 6pm. Grocery Giveaways are held on Tuesdays at 12:30pm; be sure to sign in by noon. Write to community@nvoac.org for more info. Don’t forget your face mask.
King’s Park International Church (1305 Odyssey Dr) will host its Food Pantry & Clothing Closet on Wednesdays from 5 to 6pm. The House of Mercy Food Pantry and Clothing Closet will give away fresh, frozen, and canned foods and gently used clothing to individuals and families in need. Click here for more info.
Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Raleigh runs the Durham Community Food Pantry in the Lakewood Shopping Center (2020 Chapel Hill Rd, Suite 30). If you are in need, stop by, register, and if you qualify, receive a week’s worth of groceries to take home. In addition to food, they also have diapers and other supplies (just ask). Once you’re in the system, you can stop by the food pantry once every 30 days. The hours are: Wednesdays 10am–1pm and 5–7pm, and Thursdays 10am–1pm. Services are offered in both English and Spanish. Call 919-286-1964 for more info.
The Salvation Army of Durham (909 Liberty St) has Free Food Fridays, where people in need can receive help from 10am to noon every Friday. You can get some canned goods, meats, drinks, snacks, hygiene items, and even pet food. Be sure to take a copy of your apartment/home lease agreement and a current photo ID; they advise that you take a strong bag as well. Call 919-688-7306 for more info. Volunteers are needed to help sort, package, and dispense items on Free Food Fridays. If you’re available, click here for more info.
If you’re able to help the Jewish Family Services Food Pantry distribute food and household items for people in need, please drop off your donations at Jewish for Good at the Levin JCC (1937 W Cornwallis Rd, at the curb) on Fridays from 2:30 to 4:30pm. Here’s what’s needed most: Nonperishable, unexpired shelf stable food, such as canned tuna, dried pasta, tomato sauce, peanut butter, canned beans, canned vegetables, canned soup, canned fruit, paper grocery bags; also unused, packaged hygiene products, such as bar soap, toilet paper, toothpaste, and travel-size shampoos, conditioners, and body soap.
Jewels Outreach will host Jewels Feeding Friends, a food giveaway, on second Saturdays, 10am–noon, at the KIPP Charter School (1107 Holloway St). Please wear a mask and then pop open the trunk of your vehicle for the volunteers who will place a box of groceries inside.
One Love Christian Church (1315 Horton Rd) will host a Drive-Thru Food Distribution on second Saturdays, 11am–1pm. Call 919-688-2163 for more info.
White Rock Baptist Church (3400 Fayetteville St) will have their monthly Community Food Distribution on second Saturdays, 11am–1pm. Drive up on the Fisher Development side of the church. Click here for more info.
Jamaat Ibad Ar-Rahman will hold its drive-through Neighborhood Food Pantry Giveaway at the 3034 Fayetteville St location on second Saturdays, 2–4pm. Click here to view the events at both locations (the Parkwood masjid is at 5122 Revere Rd).
Various houses of worship provide groceries at no charge for people in need, and Durham Congregations in Action has a calendar showing where you can go to get help. Just click on the buttons below:
Here’s where you can get some assistance:
Here’s where you can get a hot meal:
Here’s where you can go if you need emergency shelter:
And here are all kinds of services offered to people in need: