| Offering health and wholeness, 'no strings attached' By Yvonne J. Medley
UMCONNECTION CORRESPONDENT There are 'no strings attached' to Saving Station ministries, said Joyce Holland of Emory Grove UMC in Gaithersburg. She should know. Holland served as the coordinator of the church's recent Saving Station, held Aug. 15 to 20. 'Here, we're meeting those very tangible, everyday needs that people have: something to eat, something to wear and a health checkup that didn't cost them anything,' she said.  | COURTESY OF EMORY GROVE UMC | Information on many health and community services was available at the Saving Station at Emory Grove UMC held Aug. 15-20. |
'From my perspective, the Saving Station is the one thing that we do as a church that truly is what we're supposed to be doing. We're meeting a direct need that somebody has, no strings attached,' said Holland. It wasn't always this way for Holland, who first thought the notion of a Saving Station was overwhelming. Two years ago, Emory Grove conducted its first Saving Station, 'and when Pastor (the Rev. Curtis King) came in with all the papers,' Holland said with a laugh, 'it was like, I am not doing this. I know he doesn't think I'm doing that!'' But soon she couldn't put the notion down and proceeded to rally the troops. It didn't take long for the congregation to hop on board, she said. 
Warner | Saving Stations not only benefit the community, but also the church. 'It gives congregations an opportunity to transform the way they envision and carry out ministry in the community. It's a discipleship thing,' said Tim Warner, conference associate council director of Community and Economic Development. 
King | 'There is certainly life in the church and when we step outside of its walls, we can demonstrate what Christ looks like in us,' King said. 'I like to consider myself a hope dealer, to bring hope to those who are hopeless.' Holland described how the efforts of his congregation of about 175 members kept multiplying. 'It was like the fishes and the loaves,' she said. Members stood in front of neighborhood supermarkets soliciting nonperishable food because they wanted to give away bags of groceries under the tent. People gave food and money and continued giving, right up until the Saving Station's opening day. The same thing happened with its clothing giveaways and donations of school supplies. Hundreds of people benefited. Just like many other Savings Stations set up this summer throughout the urban areas of the Baltimore-Washington Conference, Emory Grove prepared free lunch and dinner meals for the community, ran children's activities and fellowshipped through song and sermons. Every evening a different preacher, most from neighboring denominations, came to celebrate. 'I'm just basically giving an opportunity for other congregations to come and witness to the community and share,' King said. Health resources were plentiful. 'I set up different health screenings, using the African-American Health Program in Montgomery County,' said Odessa Battle-Nolan, church member and a nurse practitioner with 20 years of nursing experience. Emory Grove offered blood pressure checks, and information booths dealt with mental health, substance abuse, cancer, sexually transmitted diseases and more. Visitors could even measure their body fat. Through Nolans efforts, the church will soon publish a nutrition-conscious cookbook, titled 'A Healthy Taste of Emory Grove.' The outreach didn't end with the Saving Station. During that week, Emory Grove asked visitors to fill out information cards. It will use those cards, as it did before, to keep in touch and to render services throughout the year. 'We're in a community where there's subsidized housing, all along here,' said Holland, adding that people need help more than just once or twice a year, 'no strings attached.' | 
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