Christmas Sharing Program Is Now closed for this year.

Christmas Sharing is a community outreach program for families with infants and children through age 13 who find themselves in need of assistance with Christmas gifts this holiday season. The program is available through our two offices. If you live in the communities of Fairhope, Daphne, Spanish Fort, Malbis, Barnwell, Montrose, Belforest and Point Clear, request an application at eschristmashelp@baldwinemi.org or call 928-3430 for more information.

If you live in the communities of Foley, Elberta, Lillian, Bon Secour and Magnolia Springs, request an application sbchristmas@baldwinemi.org or call 943-3445 for more information.

If your family is experiencing financial hardship and need this assistance please do not hesitate to contact us by the methods outlined above.

This program is now closed.

Emmy's Grand Re-opening

Emmy’s Thrift Shop had a ribbon cutting ceremony with the Eastern Shore Chamber of Commerce on August 14th, The grand re-opening was Saturday August 17th. We opened up to a large crowd of enthusiastic shoppers. The new space is wonderful and we have so much more merchandise on the floor.

Emmy’s provides funding for the social service programs of Ecumenical Ministries Inc.. By donating and shopping at Emmy’s you help provide services to families in need in our community.

Repair Baldwin Reaches Two Major Milestones

BY RUTH MAYO
Reporting Intern
ruth@gulfcoastmedia.com

Because of Repair Baldwin, a program with Ecumenical Ministries Inc. (EMI), Ray White, a local homeowner, now has a safe entry for his family to enter their home.

The ramp that was installed for White on June 15 marked the 800th completed project for Repair Baldwin and the 98th ramp constructed under the program. Repair Baldwin started in 2012, and since then over $1 million has been invested back into the program.

"Repair Baldwin was put in place to address the crisis of affordable housing in the county," said Sally Deane, executive director of EMI. "Our goal is to save homes."

The ramp for White's family was constructed by a volunteer group from Eastern Shore Presbyterian Church. The group, led by Rick Skinner, a member of the church, involved several young members of the congregation alongside the adults. While volunteer groups typically construct the ramps for homes, contractors are brought in for electrical, plumbing, roofing and other structural repairs.

Complete roof replacement was common among the 200 projects that Repair Baldwin completed in the past three years with 92 complete roof replacements since the program started. Deane mentioned how important a roof is to any structure.

"We've even replaced the roofs on mobile homes," Deane said. "We're trying to keep families housed so they can live in an environment they can afford."

Funding for EMI is received through grants, utility companies, churches, other organizations and their thrift store, Emmy's, found on 564 Fairhope Ave. Some funds are received back through the homeowners using a "promissory note tailored to their budget." Deane said they have been able to put $100,000 back into the program with this.

Deane said, "It also helps give the homeowners a sense of pride."

Donations are also used as funding for the program and can be found on the EMI website, www.baldwinemi.org/donate. Just note that the donation is for Repair Baldwin. Sellable donations for the thrift store, Emmy's, are also accepted and greatly appreciated by the program.

Volunteer groups for Repair Baldwin are organized by different church groups across Baldwin County. The community is encouraged to volunteer for the overall program, EMI, by following the links on their website or visiting their locations in Fairhope or Foley and requesting an application in person.

The EMI website states, "If you have a few hours a week and would like to become part of the EMI team we would love to talk with you."

Emmy's Thrift Shop Undergoes Major Renovations

Dear Emmy’s Customers and Donors,

We are finally beginning to remodel and expand the store. For the next three months it will be a challenge to keep the store running as we work around the construction process.

During this period, we will be operating out of a much smaller space “Emmy’s Boutique” so the assortment of merchandise you are used to seeing will not be available.

So please keep in mind the following:

• There will be times when the store will be closed due to an ongoing construction issue.

• We will have very restricted hours and days on which we will accept donations because of limited space in the store and warehouse. Generally we will be accepting donations Monday-Friday from 9:00am-2:00pm

• We will not be selling or picking up furniture during this time.

We truly appreciate your support of Emmy’s by shopping and donating here. We are asking for your grace and patience as we work through this process. By the first of August Emmy’s should be back up and running in a newly remodeled and enlarged space. Stay tuned for the announcement of our Re-Grand Opening.

No Chili for Charity in 2024

We will not be having this annual event in 2024. After a lot of discussion the EMI Board of Directors has decided to not have an event this year. We have held Chili for Charity for 20 years and we are truly grateful to all of those that have participated and attended the event. Like all things they sometimes begin to get a bit stale after so many years. So, we are taking a year off to come up with some new ideas to reinvent the event and make it fresh and exciting.

Christmas Sharing 2023

Christmas Sharing is a community outreach program for families with infants and children through age 13 who find themselves in need of assistance with Christmas gifts this holiday season. The program is available through our two offices. If you live in the communities of Fairhope, Daphne, Spanish Fort, Malbis, Barnwell, Montrose, Belforest and Point Clear, request an application at eschristmashelp@baldwinemi.org or call 928-3430 for more information.

If you live in the communities of Foley, Elberta, Lillian, Bon Secour and Magnolia Springs, request an application sbchristmas@baldwinemi.org or call 943-3445 for more information.

If your family is experiencing financial hardship and need this assistance please do not hesitate to contact us by the methods outlined above.

Repair Baldwin Celebrates its 600th Repair Project

    When Eastern Shore Baptist volunteers drove the last nail in a wheelchair ramp in Summerdale recently, Repair Baldwin completed its 600th home repair project in little more than seven years.

     Launched with a grant from Impact 100 in 2014, the Ecumenical Ministries, Inc. program has averaged 85 projects a year throughout the county.  More than 200 have been roof replacements or repairs.

     Designed to help low income homeowners, the program focuses on critical safety, sanitary, accessibility and preservation issues. In addition to roofs and wheelchair ramps, the program has helped with significant sewage and plumbing problems.

Funding for the 600th project was provided by the Baldwin County Homebuilders Foundation. Other large funder through the years include, Riviera Utilities, Baldwin EMC and Ecumenical Ministries’ thrift store, Emmys. Grants, churches and individuals also provide significant financial assistance.

EMI Celebrates 50 years

• EMI celebrated their 50 years of service to the community in January 2020. This video was created for that special night. We hope you enjoy learning about our past and our programs that serve the community.

Path to Peace continues to grow in Baldwin County. Here is how you can connect.

EMI group and Mobile group join to tackle racism of the heart

The Ecumenical Ministries sponsored Path to Peace volunteer leaders shared visions at got to know each other at a joint supper at the Blue Gill in mid-June. The two groups formed about the same time, unbeknownst to each other, and came up with virtually identical missions and strategies. They expect that working together across the bay will enhance the abilities of both groups

EMI-assisted volunteers started meeting three years ago with a desire to eliminate racism of the heart in Baldwin County. In their conversations through the months, they found that many, many people in Baldwin County are interested in building personal, multi-racial relationships, but don't have the connections, socializing ideas and-or confidence to do so. Path to Peace volunteers have focused on helping people find ways to do so, and do it in an atmosphere that is fun and pure of all partisanship.

If you would like to connect with this initiative, here are some of the activities:

A Path to Peace Choir for people who like to sing -- very informal.

A monthly multi-nondenominational prayer time

An arts and creativity discussion group

Other discussion groups

Quarterly potlucks

Informal team sports

Connect Groups management

Planning and helping with the annual multi-race, multi-church celebration and worship service

If you would like to learn more, email Dan at dhxtwo@yahoo.com