Volunteers with receiving family.
The stories of people in desperate need of furniture in Alamance County, North Carolina, are varied — and include homelessness, fleeing domestic violence, fire, physical or mental illness and extreme poverty.
The stories of the volunteers in the First Presbyterian Church of Burlington Furniture Ministry are also varied: from retirees with talents for organization, woodworking and personal relations to young people who like the rewards of spending one Saturday morning a month delivering furniture to those in need.
The beginnings of the Furniture Ministry date to 2003 and the dream of one committed church member. That first year, the ministry had three volunteers and served 15 families. In 2019, the ministry had dozens of volunteers and served 177 families, comprising 289 children.
The mission of the ministry is “to provide good, useful furniture to those in need, treating each client graciously, with Christian hospitality.” The top priority is to get children off the floor and into warm, comfortable beds.
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