Dozens of incoming McDaniel freshmen volunteer to aid City of Westminster
About 50 of McDaniel College’s incoming freshmen braved the heat for a few hours on Tuesday to create thousands of items to support Westminster Recreation and Parks events, serving the community while getting acclimated to their new home.
Hundreds of capes and bunny ear headbands made by the new students will be distributed to children at free community events. Their efforts will save the parks and rec department countless hours of labor, said program coordinator Sarah Totushek, 23, of Sykesville.
“This makes them feel a part of what we’re doing in the City of Westminster,” Totushek said. “The rec and parks department brings a lot of benefits to the economy, to the businesses, to the families that live here. The activities we offer are really attractive to a lot of people. What we’re doing here is really great, so it’s great for [the new students] to understand the mission and feel like they’re a part of this.”
McDaniel Local is a two day, one-night experience that serves to provide an introduction to Westminster for many incoming students. It’s an orientation event where students also select classes and meet classmates. In addition to the 50 students who helped the parks department Tuesday, another 50 split into smaller groups to volunteer with The Arc, Habitat ReStore, Westminster Rescue Mission and The Carroll County Farm Museum.
This week was the fourth of five McDaniel Local cohorts.
McDaniel Local service leader Gabrielle Somers, 20, a rising junior, said she was inspired to become more involved with the experiential learning program after a positive experience planting trees at the McDaniel Environmental Center before her freshman year.
“It gives you purpose to feel like an important asset to your community,” Somers said, “and I wanted to provide the same feeling to other freshmen, to foster connections with other freshmen and with their community.”
Westminster Recreation and Parks began providing a volunteer experience several years ago, with around 15 students at a time. Totushek said having more students contribute this year is an enormous help to the department.
“That has been a really big deal for us because it’s helped so much with getting things done,” Totushek said. “They are almost completing these projects that take us sometimes weeks to complete.”
In total, the students created 300 capes to be distributed at the department’s free magic, comedy, circus show at 4:30 and 6 p.m. on July 15 at City Park; helped match plastic egg halves after a particularly well-attended Easter egg hunt this year; cut around 6,000 bunny ears to make around 1,000 headbands ahead of next year’s Easter celebration; attached candy canes to 2,000 cards that will promote the Santa house this winter; and sorted VIP tokens for Westminster’s annual Wine Stroll, Oyster Stroll, and Beer and BBQ Stroll events.
Javon Jones, 18, said the community service element of his McDaniel Local experience was positive.
“It’s always a joy helping out for the kids,” Jones said. “When I was younger, we really didn’t do stuff like this, so it’s always fun to just help out whenever I can.”
Kiajah Davis, 18, said she is looking forward to the life lessons she is bound to learn while living in Westminster.
“I’m going to learn a lot of new stuff,” Davis said, “I know that for sure.”
Grants tackle causes of food insecurity as rising costs plague Maryland families
Inflation continues to drop, but high prices linger, particularly for groceries. Photo by Brandon Bell/Getty Images.
Maryland families continue to feel a pinch in their budgets from rising grocery and living costs, leading nonprofits such as the Maryland Food Bank and state leaders to reconsider how to reduce the causes of food insecurity and poverty.
A report tracking the number of families living paycheck-to-paycheck in Maryland shows that in 2022, nearly 40% of households struggled to afford basic necessities including food, according to United for ALICE, a partner of Maryland United Ways.
The study analyzes financial hardship in ALICE Households, which stands for Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed. Those are households where earnings are above the federal poverty level but less than “what’s needed to survive in the current economy,” according to the updated ALICE report released Thursday.
Among other living costs, food continues to be a hardship for many families, according to the report.
“In 2023, 34.7% of Maryland parents reported difficulties in finding enough affordable food for their children,” it says.
“Food insecurity, it’s not a binary thing. It’s not an on-or-off thing. It’s often cyclical and it’s qualitative,” said Meg Kimmel, the Maryland Food Bank’s chief operating officer.
The Maryland Food Bank is a statewide food distribution hub that works to connect hundreds of food pantries, shelters and other community-based organizations to reduce food insecurity across the state.
Kimmel hopes that a new grant program from the Maryland Food Bank will help reduce what she calls the “root causes” of food insecurity.
“We try to spend energy on the drivers of why people are food-insecure in the first place and working to change those systems,” she said.
Kimmel explained that food insecurity can come from many causes, such as living somewhere without a nearby grocery store or lacking transportation to buy food. Food insecurity can also come from economic factors, such as having high child care costs, needing expensive medical services, or cutting back on work hours to take care of a loved one.
The Maryland Food Bank already has two grant initiatives that work to close gaps in food access. But the new Neighbor Impact Grant is an effort to support other organizations and nonprofits that may not directly provide food assistance but can help battle food insecurity in other ways.
Six organizations will share a total of $1.05 million in grant funding over two years from the Neighbor Impact Grant.
Among them is City of Refuge Baltimore, which not only provides a food pantry for the south Baltimore area but also has workforce development programs to help community members learn skills that help them secure employment.
The Neighbor Impact Grant will help support the City of Refuge’s partnership with NAPA Auto Parts to create an automotive technician training program that also provides subsidized car repairs for low-income residents.
“Good-paying jobs in high-growth industries is the surest way to end hunger for an individual or for a family,” Kimmel said. “And along the path to that, there are lots of other things … as an organization and as a state, we can be doing to take away some of those barriers to stability.”
Another grant recipient is the Westminster Rescue Mission, which will work to bring together existing food pantries in Carroll County to better target food insecurity in more rural areas.
“We’re a rural community. At our heart, it’s a farming community,” said Stephanie Halley, executive director of the Westminster Rescue Mission. “It’s a county that prides itself in taking care of its own.”
She said that people do not often think of Carroll County as a place that struggles with access to food.
“We have over 15,000 people in Carroll County who are food-insecure,” Halley said. “I think we get caught up in saying, ‘Those problems happen somewhere else.’ And sometimes people don’t realize to the extent to which they are happening here.”
She noted that transportation is an issue for rural communities in Carroll County.
“Transportation is just an issue everywhere when you’re talking about vulnerable populations. And it’s a big problem out here in Carroll County,” Halley said.
“In the city, people are close to things,” she said. “But in the county, if you’re poor and you don’t have transportation, you lack access to a lot. And that includes food. There are places where there aren’t grocery stores nearby and to get to food, it costs you money.”
Halley said the Westminster Rescue Mission is meeting with its food pantry partners in the county to see how they can improve access to food for low-income residents.
She said the grant will likely be used help support data collection to see where families are falling through the cracks in Carroll County and find ways to improve their food distribution efforts.
“Thinking along the lines of eradicating food insecurity rather than just, ‘How do we serve more people?’” Halley said.
The Black Church Food Security Network and the Black Yield Institute Inc. are grant recipients that will help bolster urban farming efforts so that community members can grow, sell and distribute fresh produce in their areas.
The United Way of Central Maryland Inc. will also receive grant funding for awareness campaigns to address the child care shortage and advocate for better working conditions among child care workers.
The last of the six grant recipients is the Johns Hopkins Children’s Center which will help provide food, transportation and case management support for families struggle with food insecurity as they come in contact with the hospital.
Food insecurity is a topic of current interest in both federal and state government.
Congress is negotiating new terms of the Farm Bill, wide-reaching legislation that tackles agricultural and food policy across the nation. It is updated every five years. Part of the bill provides a federal assistance program that families whose incomes are less than the federal poverty level use to help purchase food.
The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), sometimes referred to as “food stamps,” might see a cut of $30 billion over the next 10 years if Congress approves the version currently being pushed by House Republicans, according to policy think tank Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.
“The fact that we are having a conversation around not increasing those supports to those families, at a time where the cost of groceries are at the highest level that they’ve been in our history, it would create hardship,”said Kimmel of the Maryland Food Bank.
During the 2024 legislative session, the Maryland General Assembly took some steps to reduce food insecurity and childhood poverty. And in April, Gov. Wes Moore (D) signed Senate Bill 35, sponsored by Sen. Cory V. McCray (D-Baltimore City), which adds a few extra dollars each month for seniors receiving federal food assistance. He also signed the House version, House Bill 66.
While SNAP is a federal program, the funding comes from federal and state sources, and states can provide additional benefits.
Starting in October, the new Maryland law will require that SNAP recipients aged 60 and older get at least $50 in benefits each month, up from the current $40 minimum benefit for that age group.
The ENOUGH Act, among Moore’s priorities for the 2024 session, is another new law aimed to tackle the “root causes” of childhood poverty. It will provide grant funding to organizations and community leaders in certain low-income areas to address the factors that lead to high rates of childhood poverty in those regions.
During session, the Maryland Food Bank supported the ENOUGH Act for working to reduce the number of hungry children and households.
“People are not food-insecure just because they lack food. They’re food-insecure for myriad reasons,” Kimmel said.
“There’s a lot of really good work happening outside of the food-assistance space when it comes to root cause work, so we want to support that as well,” she said.
Holiday Meals Help Bring the Holiday Feels for Neighbors Statewide
December 14, 2023
Original article from Maryland Food Bank
“Oh, you know you can’t go to the store anymore because the prices are so high. There’s nothing you can do, except do without…”
It’s just two weeks before Thanksgiving, and those are the words of Ellie L., who patiently waits in her car, behind hundreds of others forming a serpentine pattern stretching across the asphalt of the Taneytown Shopping Center.
Ellie and other neighbors are here with the same goal in mind: finding a way to make ends meet at the end of the year when hunger just hits harder.
In this part of Maryland, MFB Network Partner Westminster Rescue Mission is handing out hope, today in the form of holiday meals—a turkey paired with a box packed with all the traditional fixings like stuffing, cranberry sauce, gravy, mashed potatoes, and more.
As she waited, Ellie talked about why she was in the line.
“See, I’m retired. I’m 78 years old, OK? Right now, I’m three years short of getting Social Security because you need a total of 40 quarters of work, I would need 12 more,” she explained.
Even with an improving job market, it’s tough for someone in Ellie’s situation to find work.
“I had a severe eye problem, and ultimately lost vision on this side—do you know how much the drops they said I needed cost? It was more than $200 each month, so that’s where my food money went—and I can tell you that eye drops do not fill up your stomach,” Ellie added.
When Ellie finally made it to the front of the line, she became energized.
“I was praying on a way to have Thanksgiving, and when I called Westminster, oh lord, they said ‘C’mon out, we have turkeys for Thanksgiving, and maybe a ham for Christmas’ and I am just so excited because these things cost a lot of money, which I don’t have,” she said.
It was hard to tell if Ellie was more excited about the single holiday, or the days after.
“We’re a much smaller family now, so I’ll freeze some of this and it’ll last us for a good long time!”
Further on down the line, Gina C. shared her own experience facing challenges similar to Ellie.
And much like Ellie, Gina found the volunteers helping to distribute holidays meals were welcoming, removing the stigma that is a barrier to many seeking assistance.
“This is not what I thought it was going to be. The people from Westminster Rescue here are just so nice, and I am thankful that they are looking out for us fellow community members. This holiday food means we can have ALL the kids and grandkids over for Thanksgiving,” she said.
Local Assistance, Statewide Impact
The reality is that Ellie and Gina’s stories are not uncommon, and they’re not just happening in Taneytown. They are happening all across Maryland, one of the wealthiest states in the nation.
Despite signs of an increasingly strong economy, roughly 36% of Marylanders reported experiencing financial difficulties in late October, which is 3 points higher than during the same period last year (January-October 2022). And that is but one of several data points that help illustrate what it’s like to face hunger in Maryland.
But even as more than 1 in 3 Maryland adults are having difficulties paying for usual expenses, the holidays were a little brighter for tens of thousands of individuals and families that were able to pick up holiday meals from MFB partners in local communities statewide.
Just a few days before Ellie and Gina received their holiday meal in Taneytown, local businesses came together on November 3 for MFB’s premiere corporate volunteering experience, Pack to Give Back, where volunteers from local businesses lovingly packed not only those two meals, but thousands more for Marylanders in need.
In the weeks between Pack to Give Back, Thanksgiving, and Christmas, neighbors will have visited numerous MFB partner sites statewide, including City of Refuge in eastern Baltimore, Mt. Moriah in Mount Holly, and the Love Wins Movement in Severn. While the faces and situations are different, in hearing from neighbors, it’s clear that much of the sentiment is the same.
The City of Refuge: Exceeding Expectations
On 7th street in Baltimore City, City of Refuge has been “Bringing Hope to Life” for more than 20 years, providing various resources, including food, to local neighbors in the Brooklyn area. Like many MFB partners, City of Refuge sees a variety of neighbors, from families struggling to make ends meet to individuals who earn too much to qualify for benefits like SNAP.
And then there are first timers, like Tina Crow.
“My mom is a big holiday person, so it’s kind of tough for her. She wanted to try to piece things together for Thanksgiving, but the fact is, we just don’t have it this year. That’s why I’m here at City of Refuge today, for the first time ever—a friend told me that they were giving away turkeys,” said Tina.
And following her initial trip, Tina was pleasantly surprised.
Mt. Moriah: Caring, Kind, and Comprehensive
And just as Tina was finding hope at City of Refuge, site coordinator Twelvatine Nesbitt was welcoming neighbors at Mt. Moriah Baptist Church, just eight miles to the northwest.
“Here in the heart of the Walbrook Junction community, people visit for different reasons. Some work, but many are unemployed. There are single families, but they all need what we can give to help make their ends meet, and it is especially meaningful at the holidays,” explained Twelvatine.
Veronica T., who lives just two blocks from Mt. Moriah, is frustrated by what she sees at her local grocery store.
“That place around the corner, you know it seems like the prices are going up every day. You can’t buy eggs, sugar, flour—nothing! And chicken? Oh my goodness, who can pay 12 dollars a pound?” she said.
At the same time, Veronica is very appreciative of what this dedicated MFB partner has to offer at this time of year.
“I am SO grateful that we could get a turkey and thankful for the box of sides. This lets us keep up my grandmother’s tradition of us all getting together—without it, I don’t know that we would,” Veronica said.
When Love Wins, We All Do, Too…
In Anne Arundel County, Severn’s Love Wins Movement is “dedicated to loving people well, and to meeting the needs of our local community.” They did both during a massive holiday meal distribution event in mid-November, where nearly 400 neighbors were able to make preparations to enjoy the holidays the way they wanted to, including Catherine J.
“Well, I was forced to retire from the banking industry during the pandemic and my retirement income is a lot less than what I was making, so that’s why I am here. If I can get some food, then I can pay for my medicines too,” Catherine said.
While waiting for her turn to have a turkey, a box with fixings, and an assortment of household goods loaded into her car, Catherine reflected on the fact that this, her second visit, was much easier than her first.
“I fought coming out here the first time, but my girlfriend told me that the people wouldn’t make me feel bad, and she was right,” she said. “I felt much better about coming here today, especially with the holiday coming up. This is not something I want, this is something I need, and that realization made a big difference to my comfort level. Thank you to everyone who makes this possible.”
While accessing nutritious food is critical to being able to thrive every day, it takes on an extra level of importance around the holidays. When Marylanders don’t have to worry about where their next meal is coming from, they can focus on the truly important things, like family, tradition, and self-care.
On behalf of the Ellies, Ginas, Veronicas, Tinas and tens of thousands of other neighbors whose holidays were made brighter because you cared enough to support the Maryland Food Bank—THANK YOU!
WBAL TV 'Project CommUNITY' segment in partnership with Brian Safe Haven
September 8, 2023
Introduction: At the Westminster Rescue Mission, we are always striving to make a positive impact on our community. Recently, we had the incredible opportunity to share our mission with a broader audience on WBAL TV as part of the Project CommUNITY segment. Our very own Cara Paige, Westminster Rescue Mission's Marketing & Communications Officer, represented WRm during the segment. This special feature was made possible by Lillian Hardie, the founder of Brian Safe Haven, one of our vital downstream food partners. The segment shed light on the exceptional work being done by organizations like ours to combat hunger in our community.
Behind-the-Scenes Moments: We also invite you to get a closer look at the day of filming by visiting our social media pages. We've shared some exclusive behind-the-scenes shots and insights into our mission. Check out our Facebook page here and our Instagram here. We've also attached some of these captivating moments below for those without social media accounts.
QR Code for Carroll County Free Food Resources Guide: One of the highlights of our television feature was the inclusion of our QR code for the Carroll County Free Food Resources Guide. This valuable resource connects individuals and families in need with essential food resources in our community. It's a testament to our commitment to helping those facing food insecurity in Carroll County.
Board of Carroll County Commissioners Open Session
April 13, 2023
View Westminster Rescue Mission's CEO, Stephanie Halley's presentation to the Board of Carroll County Commissioners (we recommend starting at 1:30:30, this is the presentation that preceded ours, but Stephanie was extemporaneously called upon to speak about our Mission Food Program). Then view Stephanie’s formal presentation for the CDBG application beginning at 1:45:24.
What a genuine pleasure to watch and to see how responsive the County Commissioners were to what she shared.
Investing in infrastructure improvements at WRM's Food Program
Oct 29, 2022
The Westminster Rescue Mission, the largest food re-distributor in Carroll County received $998,400 in federal grants this month for its food distribution addiction healing centers... Of the money that the Westminster Rescue Mission received $910,400 will go into improving infrastructure according to Executive Director Stephanie Halley, such as purchasing a new refrigerator truck that will help expand food distribution... The grant money also will be used to repave heavily trafficked parking lots, install ample outdoor lighting and replace the facilities traditional lock system... Read the full article here
At Taneytown food pantry, volunteers are giving back
May 24, 2022
Westminster Rescue Mission's food program is blessed to be able to support organizations like Brian Safe Haven, who provide boxed family-sized food and other household goods to the local Taneytown area with more than 100 clients each and every week (Tuesdays, Thursdays, and the 3rd Saturday of each month). If you or someone you know is in need of help, please reach out for our services.
Hope in the Gate
Take a look at the video our association just produced. This will give you an up-close look at the kind of work we and others in our network are doing every day. Thanks for being one of the people behind the scenes who are financially backing and helping us deliver life transformation for those whose lives have gone off track. You are a vital part of the Westminster Rescue Mission.
Carroll County Chamber of Commerce
Westminster Rescue Mission Executive Director Stephanie Halley was interviewed by Chamber Chat.
A Perfect Storm
Westminster Rescue Mission Executive Director Stephanie Halley was interviewed for the October issue of Carroll Magazine.
The Heart of Community Outreach Services
Westminster Rescue Mission launches dine-out program to assist with food insecurity
Thousands of residents in Carroll County skip meals, eat less and often run out of food, according to the Westminster Rescue Mission. To assist those with food insecurity, the rescue mission, the largest food re-distributer in the county, has launched Plates of Plenty.
The nonprofit is partnering with four restaurants to encourage diners to add a donation to their final bill. Each restaurant will forward donations to the organization’s Mission Food Program to purchase, store and provide meat, fresh produce, dairy and dry goods to food pantries, soup kitchens, local charities and agencies across the county.
- Greenmount Station,1631 N. Main St., Hampstead; through July 31
- Maggie’s Restaurant, 310 E. Green St., Westminster; through July 31
- Twin Arch Tavern, 1001 Twin Arch Road, Mount Airy; through July 31
- Liberatore’s, 6300 Georgetown Blvd., Eldersburg; July 21-27.
“There is a real crisis in the safety network for providing food,” Stephanie Halley, chief executive officer for the rescue mission stated in a news release. “Inflation for food and fuel – truly must-buy products – has reduced spending power for households just as governments are sunsetting COVID-era policies that provided direct financial relief to families and supported supply through food bank networks and the school systems.”
As of March, the rescue mission estimates that more than 15,000 people in the county are considered “food insecure.” The U.S. Department of Agriculture defines food insecurity as not having consistent access to nutritious food to live a healthy life. This can include worrying about not having enough food, eating less, running out of food, skipping meals and cutting meal portions.
“We are timing Plates of Plenty for the summer, which Feeding America cites as the hungriest time of the year,” Halley said. “In Carroll County, 27% of enrolled students were enrolled in meal [subsidy] programs for the 2023-2024 school year.
“When schools are closed for the summer, families who rely on free or reduced-price meals [at schools] to stretch their family grocery bill, are faced with a 12-week budget crunch,” she said.
In 2023, the Mission Food Program distributed 1,040,827 pounds of food to pantries and soup kitchens in the county, Halley said, and helps, on average, 4,800 individuals each month.
The program also maintains a Free Food Resource Guide on its website, which lists food pantries and free meals by both town and day of the week across the county.
Westminster Rescue Mission gets $22,000 state grant for food distribution
Stephanie Halley, executive director of the Westminster Rescue Mission, at the facility in Westminster on Thursday, October 27, 2022. Westminster Rescue Mission is a nonprofit Christian organization with an addiction healing center, community food distribution and other community outreach services.
The Westminster Rescue Mission, the largest food re-distributor in Carroll County, received a $22,000 state grant this month for its food distribution program.
The funding was awarded from the Maryland Department of Agriculture as part of the Maryland Food and Agricultural Resiliency Mechanism Grant Program. Launched in 2023, the grant program is intended to help Marylanders who face food insecurity to access healthy food while providing a market for farmers to sell their products.
The funding was announced by the Maryland Department of Agriculture on March 15, and is part of $200,000 in grants that was awarded to eight nonprofits.
The Westminster Rescue Mission’s portion will go toward the launch of its Harvesting Hope: Nourishing Communities project, which will supplement food it distributes to food pantries and soup kitchens in Carroll County, with fresh, healthy, and nutritious alternatives.
The food will come from Chesapeake Farm to Table, which operates as a farmer-owned and farmer-managed collective of farms in the Chesapeake region. They deliver meat, cheese, milk, seasonal fruits, vegetables, cut flowers, herbs, honey, eggs and grains to Baltimore and its surrounding areas.
“We are thrilled to receive this funding from the Maryland Department of Agriculture,” Stephanie Halley, the Westminster Rescue Mission’s chief executive officer stated in a March 20 news release. “The Harvesting Hope project will enable us to significantly expand our efforts to combat food insecurity in Carroll County and ensure that our community members have access to fresh, healthy, and nutritious foods, all while supporting nearby farms.”
The rescue mission plans to purchase, transport, process and store the food at its facility on Lucabaugh Mill Road in Westminster.
It will then distribute it to organizations that operate food pantries and soup kitchens serving the Carroll County community.
“This initiative will allow the mission to select foods based on the needs of the community, rather than solely relying on donations, which do not always fulfill the needs of the community,” the news release states.
Halley stated in an email Friday that the program is slated to start next month.
The Westminster Rescue Mission is a nonprofit that does not turn away anyone in need of food or addiction services.
In 2023, the organization’s Mission Food Program distributed 1,040,827 pounds of food to pantries and soup kitchens in the county, Halley said, and helps, on average, 4,800 individuals each month.
The food program shares many of its operational costs with the rescue mission’s Addiction Healing Center, Halley said. Roughly $500,000 goes directly into operating the Mission Food Program, she said.
The organization receives its funding and financial help through individual donations, group donations, churches and businesses in the county. Grant funding has also come from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Housing and Urban Development, Maryland Food Bank, United Way of Central Maryland and the Kahlert Foundation.
Carroll County Times CAW to Action at Westminster Rescue Mission
View the Carroll County Times link here
Volunteers worked on various painting, landscaping and food sorting and packing projects at Westminster Rescue Mission, one of 58 service projects across the region for the Baltimore Ravens "CAW to Action" Day of Service, in partnership with the United Way of Central Maryland, on Monday, Sept. 18, 2023
Volunteers representing ACNB Insurance Services, from left, Jessica Abreu, Jack Rasmussen and Tracy Bullington, work together to paint the walls of a room at Westminster Rescue Mission on Monday, September 18, 2023. The volunteers worked on various painting, landscaping and food sorting and packing projects at Westminster Rescue Mission, which was just one of 58 service projects across the region for the Baltimore Ravens "CAW to Action" Day of Service, in partnership with the United Way of Central Maryland. (Brian Krista/Carroll County Times)
Kevin Ebeling of Westminster rakes away rocks from the dirt, while working with a group of other volunteers on a landscaping project at Westminster Rescue Mission on Monday, September 18, 2023. The volunteers worked on various painting, landscaping and food sorting and packing projects at Westminster Rescue Mission, which was just one of 58 service projects across the region for the Baltimore Ravens "CAW to Action" Day of Service, in partnership with the United Way of Central Maryland. (Brian Krista/Carroll County Times)
A group of volunteers work on reseeding a landscaping project at Westminster Rescue Mission on Monday, September 18, 2023. The volunteers worked on various painting, landscaping and food sorting and packing projects at Westminster Rescue Mission, which was just one of 58 service projects across the region for the Baltimore Ravens "CAW to Action" Day of Service, in partnership with the United Way of Central Maryland. (Brian Krista/Carroll County Times)
Volunteers work together to bag ears of corn at Westminster Rescue Mission on Monday, September 18, 2023. The volunteers worked on various painting, landscaping and food sorting and packing projects at Westminster Rescue Mission, which was just one of 58 service projects across the region for the Baltimore Ravens "CAW to Action" Day of Service, in partnership with the United Way of Central Maryland. (Brian Krista/Carroll County Times)
Volunteers representing ACNB Insurance Services work together to paint the walls of a room at Westminster Rescue Mission on Monday, September 18, 2023. The volunteers worked on various painting, landscaping and food sorting and packing projects at Westminster Rescue Mission, which was just one of 58 service projects across the region for the Baltimore Ravens "CAW to Action" Day of Service, in partnership with the United Way of Central Maryland. (Brian Krista/Carroll County Times)
Caitlin Leduc, Director of Development for United Way of Central Maryland, takes a photo of a group of volunteers at Westminster Rescue Mission on Monday, September 18, 2023. The volunteers worked on various painting, landscaping and food sorting and packing projects at Westminster Rescue Mission, which was just one of 58 service projects across the region for the Baltimore Ravens "CAW to Action" Day of Service, in partnership with the United Way of Central Maryland. (Brian Krista/Carroll County Times)
Jude Ejedoghaobi, left, and Linda Dudash, volunteers representing CareFirst, work together to rid a garden bed of weeds outside Westminster Rescue Mission on Monday, September 18, 2023. The volunteers worked on various painting, landscaping and food sorting and packing projects at Westminster Rescue Mission, which was just one of 58 service projects across the region for the Baltimore Ravens "CAW to Action" Day of Service, in partnership with the United Way of Central Maryland. (Brian Krista/Carroll County Times
Teresa Pickett of Westminster, left, and Sharon Shinsky of Hampstead, right, works with a group of other volunteers to sort and bag ears of corn at Westminster Rescue Mission on Monday, September 18, 2023. The volunteers worked on various painting, landscaping and food sorting and packing projects at Westminster Rescue Mission, which was just one of 58 service projects across the region for the Baltimore Ravens "CAW to Action" Day of Service, in partnership with the United Way of Central Maryland. (Brian Krista/Carroll County Times)
Pat Webber, left, and Emma Sparks, volunteers from Carroll County's Department of Citizen Services, work together to fill dry food boxes for distribution at Westminster Rescue Mission on Monday, September 18, 2023. The volunteers worked on various painting, landscaping and food sorting and packing projects at Westminster Rescue Mission, which was just one of 58 service projects across the region for the Baltimore Ravens "CAW to Action" Day of Service, in partnership with the United Way of Central Maryland. (Brian Krista/Carroll County Times)
Jessica Abreu, a volunteer representing ACNB Insurance Services uses a roller to paint the walls of a room at Westminster Rescue Mission on Monday, September 18, 2023. The volunteers worked on various painting, landscaping and food sorting and packing projects at Westminster Rescue Mission, which was just one of 58 service projects across the region for the Baltimore Ravens "CAW to Action" Day of Service, in partnership with the United Way of Central Maryland. (Brian Krista/Carroll County Times)
Carroll Magazine "Women In Business" August/September 2023 Issue
August/September 2023
At Westminster Rescue Mission, we are incredibly proud to have been featured in Carroll Magazine's "Women in Business" issue for August/September 2023. It's an honor to be recognized for the work we do in Carroll County, where we are dedicated to making a positive impact on our community every day.
In the article, Carroll Magazine highlights our mission and the services we provide. Westminster Rescue Mission is committed to healing the addicted and feeding the hungry in Carroll County. We take a holistic approach to our work, with Christ as the foundation of everything we do.
One of the things we truly love about providing services in Carroll County is the sense of community and collaboration that exists here. We proudly embrace the hashtag #CaringForCarrollTogether because we believe that meaningful change happens when we all come together to support one another.
Our Addiction Healing Center is at the forefront of our efforts to combat addiction in our community. We offer comprehensive support for individuals seeking recovery from substance use disorder. Our long-term residential treatment and independent living options provide a lifeline for those in need. What's truly heartwarming for us is that we offer these services completely free of charge. Being a part of the journey to save and transform lives is an incredibly profound blessing that drives our dedication.
In addition to our work with addiction recovery, we are deeply committed to addressing food insecurity in Carroll County. Our Mission Food Program is the largest redistributor of food in the county. We supply dozens of local pantries and soup kitchens with provisions and operate mobile food pantries that reach every corner of Carroll County. We firmly believe that no one should go to bed hungry, and we are proud to be part of a community that shares this commitment to tackling food insecurity at its root.
The spirit of collaboration in Carroll County, with municipal partners, service providers, and other local non-profits, is inspiring. We understand that we are stronger when we work together, and we are grateful for the opportunity to contribute to the collective effort of improving the lives of our neighbors.
As we continue our mission, we remain dedicated to serving the people of Carroll County with compassion, love, and a commitment to positive change. We are humbled by the recognition in Carroll Magazine's "Women in Business" issue, and we look forward to many more years of #CaringForCarrollTogether. Thank you for your support, and together, we can make a difference in the lives of those in need in our community.
#FeedingCarrollTogether WTTR Interview
2023
Westminster Rescue Mission provides community support at Community Resource Fair
June 20, 2022
The Partnership for a Healthier Carroll County - Wellness Wednesday
June 1, 2022
Join us as we talk with Stephanie Halley about the Westminster Rescue Mission
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Baltimore Magazine Give Baltimore 2021
Westminster Rescue Mission is honored to be a part of Baltimore Magazine's Give Baltimore initiative - featured in their October 2021 digital and print spread. Learn more about the amazing work your partnership enables us to do in our Maryland communities together. Click the image below to view our spread!
Carroll Magazine Women In Business: The Addiction healing Center at the Westminster Rescue Mission
