On the first and third Saturdays of each month, PC3 teams prepare and serve a hot lunch meal to our neighbors in need. Through this ministry, many people have received encouragement and have witnessed the love of Christ. Areas of service in this mission include shopping for food/supplies, meal preparation, transportation, serving, visiting with guests, and clean-up. For more information or to join in this work, email missions. Below, one volunteer shares his experience with this ministry.

My motivation for first getting involved with Saturday Meals came from my desire to give back to this community and its people. God gives me free, unconditional love, and this is just one small way I can spread His love to others.

What I have discovered over time is that God is blessing me and using me in ways I never imagined. In serving the homeless and hungry in downtown Wilmington, God is teaching me a new level of contentment in life. This by no means is a way of suggesting, “Wow; these folks have nothing, and I’ve got it really good.” In truth, it’s just the opposite.

One of the worst things we can do as humans is compare. When we compare, we set up scales that judge our lives against others: looks, income, possessions, talents, etc. When God created us, He had long planned our purpose in His glory, not according to our own. No one human soul is worse or better than the next, we are ALL unique and serve a purpose in His plan.  We will surely arrive at different circumstances in our worldly lives, some good and some not so great, but God values each and every soul He has created with a very special purpose.

As Christians, we understand the importance of fellowship and community. When you work with a dedicated group of people, you establish relationships. The relationships that are developed through this program, just as any other, start and live in fullness to help each other in supporting and improving the lives of ALL people in Wilmington.  It is a blessing to see the smile on a person you are serving, not necessarily because we come with a hot meal, but simply because we love each other, and are happy to be able to spend more time together.

This program, to me, is not about providing a meal to the less fortunate. That’s what is “seen,” but in truth we are serving God’s people, regardless of color, creed, beliefs or social status. And in this fellowship, the blessings we receive in return are mutual, not based on a meal, but in sharing the truths of our lives and giving all Glory correctly to God.

My hope is that the transformation of God’s love in peoples’ hearts, just as has been done in mine, will branch outside of Wilmington and go out into the world. God is doing just that in me, as I am headed to Kenya in December!

The world has amazing potential when we remember that each, every and any person we encounter, at any moment of any day, just in fact could be Jesus.

—Submitted by Todd Devine

I have been blessed with an amazing small group of women who have hearts to serve the community. We were discussing how we could serve together as a small group, when one of the ladies talked about helping feed the homeless. That Saturday we were able to serve the hungry in downtown Wilmington. We also signed up to prepare the meal for a feeding in a couple of weeks. We divided up the food duties and then met on Friday night at one of the ladies’ houses, where we cooked and prepared the food. We all had so much fun preparing, laughing, joking and making a mess while cooking! Everyone left that night with three trays of spaghetti to bake for Saturday morning.

As we prayed about our feeding that week, we saw God come through, as He always does. We had 17 trays of spaghetti, plus salad and rolls, and then people were donating cookies, brownies and bagged lunches to go. There was SO much food that people were able to eat seconds and thirds, and even walk away with a bagged lunch. The leftover trays were donated to a hospice center and recovery house. It was one of the best experiences to be able to do this as a small group. God showed us that He is always faithful and the bond that has been formed amongst our group from serving is truly a blessing.

—Submitted by Christina Koch

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Serving the homeless… Sounds like a good idea, something Jesus would do, which is what we are called to do, isn’t it? If you’re like me, you have the desire to serve but are unsure of yourself and your gifts, and it feels downright uncomfortable to put yourself out there like that!

I decided to take that scary step, at first, just serving and standing by to learn the ropes one Saturday. After serving, our small group decided that it was time we step out of the boat and get engaged by taking on the responsibility of cooking for over 100 people! They were in need of people to help, and we had no reason not to. Never before had I been part of such an undertaking and, quite frankly, it was a little overwhelming

Things you do for the glory of God have a way of working out, whether you feel overwhelmed or not. The girls in my small group stepped up to the plate and volunteered to get the ingredients needed. We spread the responsibility evenly so no one person had more than they could handle. It was great to get together on a night other than our weekly meeting night and prepare the meal. 12 hands are better than two, and we were able to get 17 trays of a spaghetti casserole prepared on Friday evening. Each one of us took three trays home to heat up on Sat morning.

What a blessing it was to serve beside people who have a heart for God and who long to be part of His story. From this experience, my confidence in service has grown. I’ve since volunteered to serve again and have found that God will help you grow as long as you take that first step in faith.

If you’ve thought about serving the homeless of Port City, I encourage you to take that step and bear witness to how faithful our God is!

—Submitted by Bonnie Bowman

The first involvement I had with the Weekend Meals on Wheels (MOW) program was during Thanksgiving in 2006. I was trying to find a volunteer opportunity that I could participate in with my family. After filtering through a number of organizations, I settled upon the Weekend MOW program. It would be very fair to say that decision has changed my perspective and left me grateful that the opportunity was available. Four years later I can’t imagine not being involved with both the recipients of the meals as well as the other volunteers. It has truly enriched my life as well as my family’s. It has led to the development of relationships between my now 7- and 11-year-old girls and some of the most wonderful people. They look forward to our regular route, and getting to see the same faces and having the opportunity to share special holidays with them. It is extremely rewarding to see the smiles on my family’s faces time and time again. On many occasions I am left wondering exactly who is helping whom? My family has been truly blessed to be a part of delivering meals to these individuals. There is one woman in particular whom my daughters absolutely love. She is the kindest, most adoring woman who anticipates our arrival as much if not more than my daughters. She always speaks of God and how much she is blessed. She is quick to pray for us and speak to my daughters about God’s love. Through these encounters my daughters have learned what it looks like for a Christian to help others.

The Weekend MOW was started in 1990 as an independent, stand-alone nonprofit to “supplement” the weekday program in the serving of meals to elderly shut-ins. The major difference between the organizations is that the weekDAY program receives federal and state funding, while the weekEND program receives none. To continue operating, the weekend program relies 100 percent on fund-raising and donations—both with individuals’ time and/or resources. The major responsibility of the Weekend MOW program is to “pick up where the weekday program leaves off”… which is holidays and weekends. Thus our motto: “Hunger doesn’t take the weekends off.” How true!

A goal the weekend MOW program has is to involve more individuals at PC3 with our mission, whether through volunteering with a designated route or just being available to fill in. Also, we are looking to fill a void that was created on the fourth Sunday of each month with preparing and delivering meals on a regular basis. We thought that it would be a great opportunity for a couple of small groups to band together to help serve the local community a few hours a month. It’s a wonderful opportunity to actually see the difference that can be made right here in Wilmington. There is nothing better than helping others in whatever capacity available.

— Submitted by Chris Nesselroade, Chairman and delivery driver of Weekend Meals on Wheels

Working in our public school systems has shown me a lot over these past four years. What it has shown me the most is the amount of NEED our students have: a need for love, a need for encouragement, and a need for someone to believe in them, to show them they matter. When the PC3 Mentor Program was born, I knew I had to be a part of it. I obviously couldn’t be a mentor—working in the field daily with hundreds of students and picking only one might show some favoritism. So I decided to be the Program’s coordinator at the school where I work, Snipes Academy of Art and Design.

I’ve been privileged to serve with some of our church’s most dedicated and compassionate volunteers over the past couple years, and my heart is always touched when I see them in the hallways. Others I hardly ever get to see. Yet they still come, knowing that probably no one from PC3 will actually SEE their active efforts each week. But the Snipes staff continually pulls me aside to tell me how great they’ve been for the students they’re with, and I can only be grateful for the hearts the Lord has instilled in these dedicated mentors.

So this past year the Mentor Program was blessed to partner with PC3’s Treasure Island Live Theater (better known as TILT) and have the team visit a couple elementary schools to perform for children in the community who would otherwise never have the opportunity to see their extremely entertaining talents. Maureen Hill, founder of the Mentor Program and first-grade teacher at Wrightsboro Elementary School, asked TILT early this spring if they could come to her school for Dr. Seuss week, in celebration of the famous author’s birthday. She asked if they would put on a performance based on Green Eggs and Ham and put in an encouraging word to our students. When I found out about this, I soon asked if they could put on the performance twice and come to Snipes in the afternoon, after they performed for Wrightsboro that morning. Of course, they were more than willing to come, and our partnership was born.

Watching the K-2 students being thoroughly entertained left our staff so appreciative, knowing our children need to hear from the community—and not just from us, the teachers. They need to hear that they matter and that they can do just as well as any other student in any other school. After the students left the multipurpose room, getting high-fives from the TILT team as they left, my principal immediately said she wanted TILT to come back. In the following weeks, we came up with the idea for our third- to fifth-grade students to hear from them as well through an EOG Pep Rally! When I emailed the leaders of TILT about this, having the hearts they do for our community, they jumped at the chance to come back one more time before summer vacation.

So during the week of May 12^th, the TILT team returned to Snipes to see our stunned third- through fifth-graders! I’ve never seen such stillness from our upper grades, and I believe they were truly taken away by the performance and the amount of love poured out to them from people they had never seen before. The TILT team sang songs, danced and had volunteers from the crowd take part in some hilarious games. The kids were instructed from the characters onstage to do their best and believe in themselves during the EOG week. It’s a stressful test for these kids, and it was nice to see them relax and have fun beforehand. My principal thanked me afterward, for organizing the event, and I told her all I had to do was ask, and our church responded with eagerness to help in any way they could. The church has made a deep impression not only on our students but also on our staff. I’m so proud to call PC3 home. As the heart of the Lord’s body grows here, so does its imprint on our local community, one that needs Him so badly. We look forward to partnering with TILT in school years to come, as both the school and the church see the benefits of adults coming together to encourage the next generation in Wilmington’s backyard.

— Submitted by Rebekah O’Connor

I knew the moment I was told about mentoring through PC3, I wanted in.  I left the service that day, picked up my application on my way out, filled it out that night, and brought it back the following Sunday.

It wasn’t long after that I was contacted by Maureen Hill, who developed the program.  Maureen paired me with a second grade boy [David] at Rachel Freeman Elementary.  Once my background check was complete and the parental consent was in, we would get started.  During this “waiting period”, I made the mistake of starting to think way too much about it.

I began to recall my experience as a second grader.  I was in a class with an “at risk” student.  Even at that age, it was clear to me that this little dude [John] was “bad news”.  To compound the issue, we had a teacher who probably shouldn’t have been working with children.  Luckily for my classmates and me, my mom was the grade parent and spent a lot of time in my class.  Later in life, I found out [John]’s story from my mother.  He lived with his mother but spent his nights alone, scared and locked in his room.  It was common for him to be awoken by strange men’s voices and strange noises.

I began to wonder, is [David] going to be just like [John] from my second grade class?  Is his heart going to be hardened already?  Is he going to steal my lunch money?  Is his teacher going to be callus, worn-out, similar to the one that [John] and I had?  And, who am I to think that I am going to be able to reach this kid?  To date, my resume read “Father of 3 wonderful girls” … “can French-braid hair” … “fluent in sweetie talk, like schmoopy and sweet-pea”.  Why in the world did I think I should mentor an “at risk” second grade boy?

Finally, the day came.  I remember vividly the drive from my work to the school.  I remember praying … “Father, just let me plant a seed today….just something that will reach this child…something that will soften his heart and provide him a glimpse of Your Love.”

I walked into the school fully expecting it to be my first and last visit.  I anticipated a call from Maureen Hill later that day, “Phil, I just got a call from the school; they decided to go with another mentor.  It’s not you, it’s them.”  Nonetheless, I walked in.  Within five minutes, I knew the truth.  The truth about [David] – he is a wonderful, warm, friendly, and soft-spoken little guy!  Despite the roar of the cafeteria, [David] and I were able to talk.  He was pretty quiet and I had to pull a few words out of him but immediately we hit it off.   The truth about his teacher – she’s clearly a person that cares about her students and wants to make a difference in their lives.  Finally, the truth about me: it was my heart that was hardened not [David]’s.

Throughout the remainder of the school year, a seed was planted….a seed that quickly grew and bore fruit of The Spirit.  There were many little interactions that gave a reflection of God’s work and His unwavering love for us all.  This experience will live with me always, and I will always have memories of [David].  One that stands out is a discussion I had with him about the following week.  Our day to meet was on Wednesdays.  That following Wednesday, I had to be out of town on business.  I told him I would come see him next Tuesday instead of Wednesday.  He asked me if it could be Monday instead.  I asked him “why Monday”?  He put his little hand on my shoulder and looked me square in the eyes and said “because Monday is sooner than Tuesday”.

We shared some real fun times.  We tossed football with a classmate or two and worked with other classmates on an engineering project.  I got to know some of his other classmates and enjoyed the interactions with them as well.  “Hi [David]’s mentor!”  “How do I get a mentor like [David]?  One hour a week during the school year has such a wonderful, positive impact on so many.

— Submitted by Philip Gaglia