Christian center provides lifetime transformation

Neighborhood Ministries of Campbell, Ohio—a Neighborhood Action Program (NAP) Christian center of American Baptist Home Mission Societies (ABHMS)—has always been a transformational part of Lawanda Randall’s life.

“I learned most of what I know about how to treat people and how to be a good citizen from Bethel House and Neighborhood House,” says Randall, who began attending the center during her preschool years and now, as a retired elder, serves as a member of its board of directors. “Those were some of the most wonderful times of my life.”

Formerly known as Bethel House and Neighborhood House, Neighborhood Ministries has been a place of learning, food distribution, fellowship and care for more than 90 years. Neighborhood Ministries is one of 17 ABHMS Christian centers in the United States and Puerto Rico that provides support to 30,000 families and 100,000 individuals, from newborns to elders, in the communities they serve.

“I can’t imagine what it would have been like if I couldn’t have gone to Neighborhood House,” she says. “I was an only child, and this was one of the ways that I got to be with other kids. The things we learned carried us through the rest of our lives. It just meant that much to us in the community.

“I am hoping the center is around for the great-grandchildren of those of us who had so much fun as children at Neighborhood Ministries,” she continues. “It made a difference in our lives, and I want it to make a difference in theirs.”

For more information about the NAP program, visit the NAP page of the ABHMS website or contact the Rev. Lisa Harris, ABHMS national coordinator of the Justice for Children Initiative and Christian Center Relations, at lisa.harris@abhms.org.

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