On Mission: Acts 9 Feeds Bodies and Spirits in Hagerstown for Nearly 60 Years

Hagerstown, Md. — Ten volunteers gather twice a week inside a converted Hagerstown storefront, and together they hand out groceries, clothing and prayer to families across Washington County.

Four Seventh-day Adventist churches — Highland View, Hagerstown, Williamsport and Willow Brook — jointly operate the ministry, called Acts 9. The mayor of Hagerstown, the Chesapeake Conference president and an Adventist Community Services (ACS) coordinator inaugurated the center in 1967, and it has run continuously ever since.

Volunteers serve every Tuesday and Thursday, and their ages span six decades. Most helpers are in their 60s, 70s, and 80s, though one volunteer is only 22. Each week the team serves 12 families, and every family may return for help only once a month. Because family sizes vary, the number of people the center reaches each week multiplies well beyond the 12 households it logs. Over the course of the last year, Acts 9 distributed more than $139,000 in food, not including the government-donated food items that surpassed 11,000 distributed to more than 2,800 individuals.

The Maryland Food Bank and Martin’s Food Markets, a Giant Food subsidiary, supply most of the groceries the center gives away, and members of the general public donate the clothing. In addition to that, Acts 9 gives away even more Bibles and religious literature each year than food and clothes combined, according to center leaders.

Cliff Schramm, director of Acts 9, said the ministry’s greatest reward has nothing to do with the goods on the shelves. He said the best moment of his week comes when he offers to pray with the families he serves, and most people accept and open up about specific struggles in their lives.

Schramm recalled one visitor, a man named Frank, who asked for prayer because he wanted to reconcile with parents he had been estranged from for years. After Schramm prayed with him, Frank said he felt compelled to reach out to his family.

Schramm said he would tell any congregation without a community-service ministry that Tuesdays and Thursdays at Acts 9 complete the worship that begins on Saturday.

“God wants Acts 9 open,” Schramm said.

Shawn Paris, Chesapeake Conference Adventist Community Services director, said the center embodies the mission of Adventist Community Services chapters across the region.

“ACTS 9 reminds us that the gospel is not only preached, but it is also lived,” Paris said. “Through Adventist Community Services, compassion becomes the language of Christ in Hagerstown.”

To donate to this project, visit: Hagerstown SDA Church donation page, local offerings; Acts 9 Community Services is listed on the second line.

https://adventistgiving.org/donate/ANB8DV