AMY SZPARA

A little white church sits nestled in between residences and other buildings. It is old and small, and the paint is peeling, but the people who worship there prefer to think of their little space as a piece of history and a quaint spot to meet together for praising God. The building may be tiny, but the people who attend the church and the efforts they make to improve their community are vital to the lives of many. New Hopeful Missionary Baptist Church in Garyvile, a building that served the community as a grocery store in the 1800s, is now a church home for a group that can truly call itself a mission church. The 75 members have turned giving to those in need into a regular practice. They don’t just donate food to the hungry during the holidays. They have a year-round drive for the needy that the congregation has found habit forming. They can’t get enough of giving. In their seventh year at New Hopeful Baptist, the Rev. Roland Morgan and his wife, Beverly, affectionately known to the congregation as Rev and Bev, said the church keeps a pantry full of canned goods in case someone in their church or their community is in need. The Morgans don’t always know who they are helping because sometimes it will be someone a church member knows of who needs the food. “One of the ladies in our women’s ministry might call and say she knows of somebody, and we will pack up a food box for the family. We find out how many children there are and make sure it’s enough food for a month. For the children we make sure they have peanut butter and cereal to eat, things children like,” said Mrs. Morgan. What started out as church members bringing one canned good item a month turned into a weekly donation of one or more items, and sometimes they donate more often than that. “One man,” said Mrs. Morgan, “pledged he’d spend $25 a month on food. He missed three months, and then he spent $75 at once.” As a missionary church, the Morgans feel they have to give. They are dedicated to helping people. They said the more they give away the more they get. They said their pantry and freezer are usually full. Rev. Morgan told a story about a time he gave to a man in desperate need, a man whose story touched his heart. “One day I left at around 10 a.m., and I met an old man walking from Garyville to Reserve. I asked if he needed a ride, and I gave him one. He told me that his wife had just passed,” said Morgan. “He had children. He wasn’t working. I came back and told my wife, and we got him some food.” Mrs. Morgan remembered the time very well. She said it made her husband cry. “The freezer was low that time. We went to a grocery store in Reserve and bought them food with our own money,” she said. After boxing up enough food for the man and his children, the Morgans drove around asking people if they knew where the man lived. They found him, and gave him the boxes. “He stood there with his mouth open,” Mrs. Morgan said. “He cried. He said, I can’t believe this. I’ve asked family to do this. I asked my own minister,'” said Mrs. Morgan. “He didn’t ask us for it,” said Rev. Morgan. “He just poured his heart out to me, to a minister. He called all day, thanking us over and over.” “We’re doing what God said,” said Mrs. Morgan. “And we’re instilling it in the children. If you instill it in them now, you don’t have to beg them for it later. On Thursdays and Sundays they bring quarters for the food drive.” It’s not just food the Morgans and New Hopeful Baptist provide for needy families. Sometimes they help families who are going through hard times by getting their gas or lights turned back on or helping out with rent money. The church helped over 50 families last year, and most of the time it’s not just a one-time donation. They help people until they get back on their feet. “If you’re not dedicated to doing that, you’re not a missionary church,” said Mrs. Morgan. Rev. Morgan remembered a mother with three children starting back to school who didn’t know how she was going to pay for their public school uniforms. The Morgans got their sizes and bought them the clothes. “We’re not rich, now,” said Mrs. Morgan. “Sometimes we’re taking from ourselves. I needed a coat that year, but I thought, I’ll wait,’ and I just layered up that winter.” The Morgans said they have received lots of thank you cards, some not signed, some just taped to the church door. New Hopeful Baptist is hoping to have a new church soon. Its members have written promissory notes pledging they’ll donate a specific amount to build, but they haven’t stopped giving to the community and don’t plan to stop. “We believe that when we give, God’s going to give back. God has the plan,” said Rev. Morgan. The Morgans don’t stop with giving to the community. They also believe in giving to the children in their church. Every Sunday morning after the children receive their lesson, the Morgans cook the children breakfast. Mrs. Morgan believes that mothers deserve a day off, so she and her husband prepare things like waffles, ham, grits and eggs for the children. The couple believes that God planned for them to marry and for them to dedicate their lives to sharing with others. After meeting in a little church in Schriever, the two went their separate ways for 15 years, then met again at Mrs. Morgan’s grandmother’s funeral. The interesting thing, according to Mrs. Morgan, is that the grandmother had predicted the couple would be husband and wife. “We dated a little after we first met,” said Mrs. Morgan. “Then he told me he wanted to be a minister. I said, No more ministers in the family.'” Mrs. Morgan is the daughter of a minister, and many of her relatives are also reverends. She ended up marrying Rev. Morgan and adding another to the family. New Hopeful Baptist Church also believes in giving to those outside their church and community. In a joint effort with A.P. Clay Bible College and the Rev. Byron Clay, the church has adopted churches in Haiti. They bring the children of these churches materials for learning, suits to wear to church, necessities for sanitation, underwear and donations given to them by Wal-Mart and other businesses and canned goods. The churches in Haiti are so tiny that many of the congregation have to stand outside of the church after walking through hills to get to the building. They go to church every day, and at night they read their Bibles with flashlights. Though the Morgans are busy people, they always find time for their children and the children of others. “We’ve always had a house full of kids,” said Mrs. Morgan. If a child needs a place to stay for a night, a week or even a few months, their home has always been open. They even adopted a son,10, who they added to their family of six children and nine grandchildren. “Children find us,” said Mrs. Morgan. Rev. Morgan cannot imagine a life without kids around. He coaches children’s basketball and other sports for the parish. If someone asks the Morgans about their generosity, they say that’s just what they are about. “We’re not supposed to turn anyone away,” said Mrs. Morgan. “Jesus helped everyone, no matter who they were or what their pasts were. The reverend and I support each other. If one can’t handle everything, the other picks up the slack and we get it done.” Rev. Morgan added, “We don’t have much,” as he looked around the tiny dining area and kitchen where they serve breakfast to the church’s children, “but we’re proud of it.”