Customer Service Representative Janet Fant paid forward $500 to help her church open its doors again after being closed during the Pandemic.
Saint Matthew AME Zion Church in Whitmire has been closed since March of 2020 for the safety of its members.
The church’s pastor, Reverend Edward J. Wilson, said, “This donation will assist us with purchasing the supplies needed to open the church following CDC safety guidelines, and any extra funds will be used to help the needy within our community.”
Janet added, “All churches and organizations are going through an unforeseen crisis because of this pandemic. I wanted to help my church and my community during this time.”
Saint Matthew African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church came into existence around July 25, 1898. The first church was a brush harbor made of bamboo and cane poles. The first ministers at the church travelled by train and horse and buggy.
Today the church consists of about 75 parishioners who participate in outreach ministries such as adopting families during the holidays, preparing and distributing food boxes for needy families in the neighborhood at Thanksgiving, and missionaries who serve locally as well as overseas.
Find them on Facebook at facebook.com/St-Matthews-AME-Zion-Whitmire.
“On behalf of the members of Saint Matthew African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church, I would like to thank God for you and our devoted member Sister Janet Fant for this tremendous blessing,” said Reverend Wilson.
The Pay It Forward program began in 2015.
Every Laurens Electric Cooperative employee is entered into a random drawing to receive $500 to pay forward in any way they choose. Each month a new name is drawn, and the employee then has one month to apply the funds toward their own act of kindness.
This initiative is budget-neutral; the funds will come from Laurens Electric’s charity events, which employee volunteers make possible.
Employees and the community will enable individual employees to help individuals in the community, and that’s a win-win situation.