Speaking to local faith leaders on Nov. 3, Reverend Jessica Stokes from the N.C. Council of Churches encouraged their organizations to “think outside our walls” and take pragmatic steps to […]
GREENSBORO, NC — More than two years after the the nation’s shutdown due to COVID-19 and five years since the previous Faith and Health Summit, Partners in Health and Wholeness […]
A faith-driven community event in Greensboro this Thursday offers a full day of free workshops on healthy eating, mental health, HIV prevention and more. Its organizers say they hope to […]
Join PHW for a webinar on making the connection between mental health and harm reduction work. Click here to register. We will look at substance use, harm reduction, and mental […]
We invite you to join Partners in Health and Wholeness (PHW) for a check-in call with our team and greater PHW community. Click here to register. We hope to create […]
MemoryCare has coordinated with Kari Berit, an internationally recognized speaker/writer to provide a free, half-day virtual workshop (via Zoom) teaching caregivers how to be S.A.N.E. (Supported, Appreciated, Not Guilty, and Energized) […]
This past autumn, PHW held its first Sacred Conversation on the epidemic of loneliness and social isolation for those in life’s second chapter, particularly in the time of Covid. We […]
Due to COVID-19, we want to highlight the best ways to support immune health. Join PHW and Holley Dagenhardt, MA, RDN, LDN on Friday, December 4, for a conversation on […]
You are invited to join Partners in Health and Wholeness and the UMC Northern Piedmont District for “Becoming a Trauma-Informed Faith Community.” We will define what a trauma-informed faith community […]
Join Crystal Imes and Annette Snider, certified Connections Matter trainers with Prevent Child abuse NC, for part two of their ACEs (Adverse Childhood Experiences) and trauma series. Participants will explore […]
You are invited to join Partners in Health and Wholeness and the UMC Northern Piedmont District for “Becoming a Trauma-Informed Faith Community.” We will define what a trauma-informed faith community […]
Did you know when we support and connect with one another we are providing hope and using key protective factors that actually help prevent child abuse and neglect? Connect with […]
Join us and our partners at Rural Advancement Foundation International-USA (RAFI-USA), American Foundation for Suicide Prevention – North Carolina Chapter, and NC Agromedicine Institute for a series on the intersection […]
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER. Covid-19 has revealed yet another epidemic among us: of loneliness and isolation. The challenges they present to mental health and spiritual well-being can be particularly difficult […]
Please join us for the next part of our Sacred Conversations series, on Friday, July 24 at 11am via Zoom. This will be part two of our two-part series titled […]
Please join us for the next part of our Sacred Conversations series, on Friday, June 26 at 11am via Zoom. This will be part one of a two-part series, titled […]
What does “sacred space” mean to you? This is the question I asked during my first virtual Sunday school class weeks ago. I teach a broad age range (3-9) so […]
Grappling with the reality of our changing climate, and what climate change means for our communities and families, is incredibly taxing work. Those working on the frontlines of climate and […]
Join us as we come together, virtually, in celebration of the 85th Anniversary of the NC Council of Churches and the 10th Anniversary of the Partners in Health & Wholeness […]
Grappling with the reality of our changing climate, and what climate change means for our communities and families, is incredibly taxing work. Those working on the frontlines of climate and […]
All are invited to join our Partners in Health and Wholeness Community for a Check-In call. We hope to create a space where people of faith can share needs and […]
This “new normal” of social distancing has been weighing on our minds, hearts, and souls. We are living through a challenging time constantly consumed by distressing news updates. Many face […]
THIS EVENT HAS BEEN POSTPONED. PLEASE BE ON THE LOOKOUT FOR MORE INFORMATION IN THE COMING WEEKS. “Jeremiah 31:25 I will refresh the weary and satisfy the faint” We invite […]
Partners in Health and Wholeness invites you to join fellow neighbors and community members for a regional health gathering in Eastern North Carolina. The theme of the event is “Mindful Together: […]
Partners in Health and Wholeness (PHW), an initiative of the North Carolina Council of Churches, is designed to bridge issues of faith, health, and justice. We partner with faith communities […]
The Trump Administration recently issued new rules regarding the length of short-term health insurance plans, temporary options available to individuals until they are able to enroll in the Affordable Care […]
Partners in Health and Wholeness (PHW), an initiative of the North Carolina Council of Churches, is designed to bridge issues of faith, health, and justice. We partner with faith communities […]
May is Mental Health Month. This offers intentional opportunity to think proactively about mental health, its impact on our lives and communities, and create ways to destigmatize related issues. I […]
Partners in Health and Wholeness (PHW), an initiative of the North Carolina Council of Churches, is designed to bridge issues of faith, health, and justice. We partner with faith communities […]
The Partners in Health and Wholeness (PHW) Summer Mini-Grant Cycle is now open. Mini-grants are a great way to support programs in your health ministry that engage church congregants and […]
As I work with various communities, a returning issue I hear about is the first 2000 days of a person’s life. I first learned about this number, 2000, at the […]
Partners in Health and Wholeness (PHW), an initiative of the North Carolina Council of Churches, is designed to bridge issues of faith, health, and justice. We partner with faith communities […]
The holiday season is a high-pressured time. The season’s greetings can bring unrealistic expectations, societal pressure, and busyness from Thanksgiving until New Year’s Day. If you do not feel well […]
It has been a little over a week since our third PHW Faith and Health Summit, themed “Making Connections: We’re Worth It.” The day began with worship and a keynote […]
The period to enroll or renew health insurance coverage through the Affordable Care Act (ACA) or Marketplace, is just around the corner. This year the enrollment period is significantly shorter […]
Partners in Health and Wholeness invites you to join us in Greensboro on Friday, October 20, for our Faith and Health Summit. There will be excellent workshops on many relevant […]
On Thursday, October 19th Partners in Health and Wholeness will host our 2017 Faith and Health Summit. Thursday’s events include a community gardens and permaculture tour throughout the city of […]
September is Suicide Prevention Awareness Month. Our work at Partners in Health and Wholeness, and with the NC Council of Churches, begins with the hope to see all North Carolinians […]
We find ourselves in a better place than we might have been when it comes to health care policy. Remaining ever vigilant and recognizing that there is still much work […]
Wednesday’s federal-policy-by-tweet announcement that children of God who are transgender could no longer serve in the military may have distracted attention from another action by the federal government. The Department […]
The U.S. Senate’s vote this afternoon moves the debate forward to potentially repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act. What that will look like is anybody’s guess. Senators Burr and […]
It appears that the U.S. Senate will vote today on some sort of health care action. What they’ll be voting on, however, is unclear even to some of them. This […]
No one seems completely clear on whether the Senate will vote next week on health care or what they will vote on if they do. That might be deliberate in […]
Wartime profits are a thing — from the people who make the machines we use to kill other people to the garment factories that provide clothing for the people who […]
Yesterday, the Senate unveiled a revised version of the Better Care Reconciliation Act. According to a report from our friends at the North Carolina Justice Center the changes, and their […]
Just then there appeared a woman with a spirit that had crippled her for eighteen years. She was bent over and was quite unable to stand up straight. When Jesus […]
Late yesterday afternoon the Congressional Budget Office released their score of the Senate’s proposed health care plan and the numbers are extremely troubling. As our friends at the North Carolina […]
Members of the United States Senate have released their proposed health care plan, all 142 pages of the “Better Care Reconciliation Act of 2017” developed in secrecy, with a score […]
As the Senate continues its secret deliberations on a health care plan that will effect all Americans, the potential impact on one of the most vulnerable groups in our society […]
The Council’s commitment to health care as a basic justice issue dates back decades. Significant progress toward health care for all was made with the Affordable Care Act, progress toward […]
The exhilaration of Easter is fading into memory, and we are left with more routine matters. Unfortunately, the matters that are becoming more and more commonplace have frightening implications: tweets, threats, […]
For more than two decades, the NC Council of Churches has called for access to health care for all. The score from the Congressional Budget Office makes it undeniably clear […]
Plenty of analysis is already happening around the 2018 budget proposal out of the White House. The Washington Post provides two helpful graphics here and here. More is being written […]
So, the question as always comes down to one of vision. The elected chieftains who decide how much money North Carolina’s state government will spend, what it will be spent […]
About this time two years ago, I accepted the offer to become the next Executive Director of the NC Council of Churches. We agreed that I would spend two weeks […]
The next Partners in Health and Wholeness Mini-grant Cycle will begin June 5. Interested congregations must apply to join the PHW Collaborative (previously PHW Certification) by May 31 to be […]
The passage of the American Health Care Act by the House of Representatives reflects a political choice on a life-or-death matter. If House members truly believed that this was the […]
Our allies at the NC Justice Center have put out the following action alert about efforts to repeal the Affordable Care Act. As people of faith, we believe that we […]
We often struggle to address mental health in our communities of faith. This Mother’s Day, as we honor those who bring forth life and contribute so much to our communities, […]
Two of the most volatile elements on a college campus are alcohol and hormones. These ingredients contribute to sexual assault (23.1 percent of female and 5.4 percent of male undergraduates), […]
The public is opposed to efforts to replace the Affordable Care Act, but some members of the U.S. House of Representatives seem determined to forge ahead anyway. The latest version […]
Congressional leaders are still in their home states for their spring recess, but your voices are still important. Please attend town halls held by our elected leaders, and please request […]
North Carolina’s failure under Republican leadership to improve low-income residents’ access to health care via the Medicaid program has been like a persistent, throbbing pain in the state’s civic and […]
By George Reed, Retired Executive Director Bills are being introduced at a rapid pace as the Senate’s deadline for new bills has passed and the House’s deadline on non-money approaches. […]
Every state legislator should be required to listen to the stories shared at a press conference organized this week by North Carolina advocates for health care. Anyone opposed to Medicaid […]
For those who could not be with us at St. Mark’s United Methodist Church in Raleigh, video from portions of the day is available on our Facebook page. The morning […]
By George Reed, Retired Executive Director Newly Introduced Bills BUDGET AND TAXATION H 356, Tax Reduction Act of 2017, would increase the standard deduction for state income taxes from $17,500 […]
Thank you for every call, email, and letter to Congressional leaders that led to today’s decision to pull the American Health Care Act without a vote. Those committed to a […]
With a House vote on the plan to appeal the Affordable Care Act as early as this week, the NC Justice Center has released a series of fact sheets that […]
The budget blueprint for 2018 released by President Trump on Thursday cuts a wide swath through programs that serve women, people of color, those of low income (for poor women […]
Around the release of the alt-health plan currently making its way through Congress, several elected leaders have gone where elected leaders sometimes go – blaming the poor for being poor. […]
Despite evidence that the Affordable Care Act is more popular and more needed than ever, some Republicans in Congress have proceeded with partisan plans to repeal Obamacare while dismantling Medicaid […]
The political situation at the national level has occupied the time and attention of many faithful progressives. Each day has brought with it more reasons to be concerned for our […]
We are pleased to introduce the PHW Collaborative. Mostly, it is a change in the name, so if your congregation has been a part of the Partners in Health and […]
By George Reed, Retired Executive Director Newly Introduced Bills BUDGET AND TAXES S 75, Constitutional Amendment – Maximum Income Tax Rate of 5.5%. The Constitution currently sets a maximum rate […]
Sometimes God whispers. Whether through hymns or homilies or kids dancing their way down the aisle to children’s chapel. Sometimes God shouts. Through the amplified suffering of others, known or […]
Last in a series of three blogs. Above all, these strangers bring to us the Christ. When we welcome a stranger we welcome Jesus, and when we welcome Jesus we […]
Enabling good health is a community restoration project. It’s really not about prescription plans, deductibles, out-of-pocket expenses, or any other cost-benefit analysis. It’s about community. When people are sick or […]
Our friend Rob Schofield over at Policy Watch wrote a column on Tuesday that was as vitally important in its truth-telling as it was hard to read for the future […]
The Affordable Care Act is still in place for 2017, and as our friends at the NC Justice Center remind us, nothing has changed for this year. Plans, prices, deadlines, […]
At another time in my life, I would not have spent most of Saturday occupying my tiny square of personal space in the heart of Washington DC, literally shoulder to […]
Two weeks ago I flew to Florida for a national gathering of state ecumenical leaders and a few days later I flew home. In between my landing and leaving, in […]
Dear Mr. Trump, You ARE my president. I did not vote for you, but you were elected, and that makes you my president because I am a citizen of these […]
Pizazz. Laughter. Friends. Singing. These words describe the Healthy Churches 2020 National Conference. But, did you know that a faith and health national conference even exists? Healthy Churches 2020 held […]
Groups at the state and national level continue to mobilize around concerns about President-Elect Donald Trump’s stated policy objectives and choices for cabinet posts. The NC NAACP, Interfaith Power & […]
On Friday, the House of Representatives voted to continue the process that could ultimately repeal the Affordable Care Act. Activists across the nation were already planning Day of Action events […]
We are excited to announce that we are now accepting mini-grant applications. Congregations who were certified in 2016 (and have not already received a grant from the last cycle) are […]
PHW-certified congregations across North Carolina are eligible to apply for a mini-grant to assist in furthering their commitment to health and wholeness. Mini-grant application periods are open twice a year; […]
Join us one month from today for a weekend of preaching and teaching about the cost of gun violence to our nation and how we can bring about change. Speakers […]
The NC Council of Churches has never taken peace for granted. Indeed, along with our work in opposition to violence, there has long been the recognition that peace manifests itself […]
We work toward a church that is all-loving. That’s what we’ve always done and that’s what we’re going to keep doing. Stay connected with the Council to learn about opportunities […]
Clean up continues in Eastern North Carolina following the devastation of Hurricane Matthew. The stress is enormous for those dealing daily with the damage and loss caused by the storm. […]
The Partners in Health and Wholeness program originally had an October 31 deadline for our 2016 certification applications. However, due to the severity of Hurricane Matthew, we are extending our […]
It happens to be Mental Illness Awareness Week, which comes days after I was able to take part in a workshop related to the topic sponsored by The Duke Endowment. “Caring for […]
By Kaitlyn Brodar, PHW Intern I recently had the distinct pleasure of speaking with Norma Boone, the health lead at Corinth AME Zion Church in Siler City, NC. The church […]
By Kaitlyn Brodar, PHW Intern St. Philip’s Episcopal Church is a gold-level PHW congregation in Durham, North Carolina. While the health ministry team and pastors have promoted health in a […]
July 16, 2016 is the 2-month mark since Regional Coordinator for Western North Carolina became my full time position with the NCCC’s Partners in Health and Wholeness Initiative. This is significant […]
NC advocates in orange at the General Assembly last year. Photo provided by Beth Messersmith, NC Campaign Director, MomsRising. Less than a month ago, our middle son sat with his classmates under […]
Certification in the Council’s Partners in Health and Wholeness program is up and running. Faith communities must certify by May 31 to be eligible for mini-grant opportunities in June. In 2016, mini-grant […]
