Germantown: Local Church Provides for its Community

Grace Community Christian Center is buzzing with activity as the school year is coming to an end. The center, an operation out of Grace Baptist Church of Germantown, orchestrates and hosts a variety of events throughout the week.

Leola B. C. Highsmith is the director for the center’s tireless operation. A retired teacher, Highsmith helps with an after-school program, a summer day camp and a number of other events geared toward serving the community. In conjunction with SHARE Food and Philabundance, the center provides free food to over 100 households in the area, Monday through Friday of every week. Three times a week the center hosts a meeting for senior citizens followed by a free meal.

Due to the large number of activities hosted in the center, the church has begun raising money for a larger building. Floyd Hargrave, a member of Grace Baptist Church since 1965, has been faithfully mending and repairing cement jobs on the church’s property for some time and plans to help with the new construction as well. “Any new cement you see around here, I did,” Hargrave said. Now retired, Hargrave will leave the heavy work on the new building to younger members.

Most of the programs offered through the center are free. Finances are sometimes challenging, particularly since there are no grants or special funding available at this time. Highsmith said enrollment for the after-school program, for which there is a fee, have dropped recently as parents are struggling with unemployment or underemployment. The program currently serves children from seven different local schools between the ages of five and 12 years old. Highsmith said she suspects some of the children who have been pulled from the program are now being sent to empty homes after school. “It reminds me of society,” she said. When finances are tight, Highsmith said she believes education is often the first to go. “A hand out and a hand up always get cut.”

Still, Highsmith and other members of the church are keeping busy and looking to the future of their building and operation. Highsmith said they are always trying to remain faithful to the church mission statement: “In the heart of the community, seeking ever to reach the community’s heart.”