Driven by a shared mission to love their neighbors and share the hope of Christ, hundreds of North Carolina Baptist churches mobilized across their towns for the third annual ServeNC Week. From distributing school supplies and hot meals to hosting free community markets, local churches stepped outside their walls to meet tangible physical and spiritual needs.

“Love looks so different to so many people in this lost world, but to us, love means pointing people to Jesus.”

That was at the core of Green Street Baptist Church’s backpack giveaway in High Point on Aug. 4, shared Melody Dowdy. 

Dowdy, whose husband Jeff serves as Green Street’s senior pastor, said, “It’s the love of Jesus that empowers and mobilizes us to love our community. … What we want to do through ServeNC is be on mission for Jesus.”

Green Street volunteers served local families in their community by providing backpacks and school supplies for the new school year. Children also enjoyed face painting and bounce houses.

It was one of hundreds of service projects North Carolina Baptist churches participated in during ServeNC Week from Aug. 1-8. Across North Carolina, local N.C. Baptist churches identified needs in their communities and took part in different tangible acts of service to meet practical needs, connect with neighbors and point to the hope of the gospel.

More than 440 churches participated in ServeNC Week this year – the third consecutive year of the statewide service emphasis. N.C. Baptists launched the initiative in 2024 to invite local churches to commit part of or a whole week to serving their local communities.

This summer, volunteer teams cleaned up school facilities, delivered snacks to nursing homes and first responders, prepared welcome kits for teachers, provided meals for homeless individuals, built wheelchair ramps and completed home repairs for older adults, and more. 

Angela Aguirre works for C3, a nonprofit organization that provides support to children and families in crisis situations. Green Street partners with C3, opening up their facility for meetings and inviting C3 to collaborate on outreach events like the backpack distribution. 

“When churches open up their doors and involve the community, it really shows that we’re all in this together,” Aguirre said. “This shows the love that Jesus has for us, and if we could just show a little bit of the love that He has given us to others, then I think it encourages people to get closer to Him.”

In Charlotte, Mercy Church held a similar event Aug. 3. Volunteers served more than 600 families at Sugar Creek Charter School’s back-to-school open house. The outreach also acted as an outlet for Mercy Church’s youngest members to put into action what they learned during Kids Week several weeks earlier.

Throughout Kids Week, children learned that following Jesus includes recognizing needs and responding with compassion and generosity. They and their families were then invited to purchase backpacks and school supplies to donate to Sugar Creek. 

“It was encouraging to see children not only learn what it means to love their neighbors, but also have an immediate opportunity to put that teaching into action,” said Rashard Barnes, pastor of community engagement at Mercy Church. 

“Mercy Church’s partnership with Sugar Creek extends beyond one event,” Barnes said. “Our desire is to build meaningful, long-term relationships with the school’s students, families, teachers and leaders. By consistently showing up, meeting practical needs and sharing the hope of Christ through our words and actions, we are praying to see lives strengthened and the school community flourish.”

In Rockingham County, New Vision Fellowship mobilized more than 80 members, including families and children, to serve across their community in various ways. Teams completed landscaping and beautification projects at Huntsville Elementary School, while others served fire departments, nursing homes and at food pantries.

Antioch Baptist Church in Waynesville began ServeNC Week by asking a simple question: “How can we help?” 

They found their answer by connecting with a local school principal. The church came together to help teachers prepare for the school year and clean up around the campus.

Other churches across western North Carolina also leveraged ServeNC Week to help local schools get ready for the school year. Dutch Cove Baptist Church, Bethel Baptist Church and Crestview Baptist Church all partnered with their respective elementary schools to work on campus beautification projects and gathered school supplies to deliver to teachers.

Volunteers from Crestview Baptist Church helped families in need by hosting a free marketplace, including school supplies, clothing and housewares.

Columbus Baptist Church worked with the local sheriff’s office to provide 290 bookbags to children in the community during their back-to-school event. Midway Baptist Church had a similar partnership with their local sheriff, distributing Bibles and lunches to families.

Reaching out to large swaths of their community, Jonesboro Baptist Church made ham dinner plates, complete with sides and a dessert. The church made 70 of these plates and delivered them to shut-ins, people recovering from illness and surgeries, and to families in need. They also held a card writing marathon, giving words of encouragement to 50 members of the community.

Since ServeNC started in 2024, more than 2,100 projects have been completed by participating churches to help their communities and share the gospel all across North Carolina.

How did your church ‘ServeNC’ this summer? N.C. Baptists want to celebrate with you. Share your stories and testimonies to submissions@ncbaptist.org.

By Stephen Halley, Biblical Recorder Editorial Aide & Liz Tablazon, N.C. Baptist Contributing Writer