Category Archives: HopeCenter Ministries

Community Grocery Giveaway Draws Crowd!

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We had another huge turnout at our Community Grocery Giveaway on Sunday! from 2-4pm on Sunday, June 5th, the Trinity Center was bustling with guests doing a little complimentary grocery shopping.

Our Community Grocery Giveaway is a free food event to help provide grocery assistance to anyone in the community. With food prices rising and inflation taking its toll, many people are struggling to keep their pantries stocked and their families fed. Our Community Grocery Giveaway helped relieve some of the pressure for these families and individuals.

We provided a wide assortment of all sorts of non-perishable items like cereal, ramen, pasta, canned vegetables, boxed dinners, mac & cheese, beans, canned meat, and more.

We are so thankful to be able to help fight hunger in our community and make sure that no one is dealing with food insecurity. We noticed an increase in senior citizens who participated in the event due to rising prices vs their fixed income. These are definitely challenging times for many and we’re happy to be able to provide assistance.

And we’re able to help so many every month because of our wonderful group of supporters like you! Our Community Grocery Giveaways are possible because of the generous support of our friends who donate so much food each month! Not only are we able to host these grocery events every quarter but we’re serving multiple meals a day to the community and providing food bags every month to anyone in need. God continues to bless our pantry and provide us with the needed food to provide for our neighbors in need. It’s truly nothing short of a miracle how our pantry stays stocked for all the ways we help others. We thank God for everyone who has partnered with us to care for others in their time of need.

There were so many grateful people at our Community Grocery Giveaway. Your donations have helped to make a huge impact on your community – and not just in providing food but also providing hope and showing God’s love! Thank you for caring and sharing!

We also want to give a big THANK YOU to all the volunteers who gave time on Sunday afternoon to help make sure this event was so successful! Thank you so much for your kind and compassionate spirit and giving of your free time to care for the community!! We appreciate you all so much!

If you’d like to learn more about donating food and supporting our food programs then visit hagerstownhopecenter.com/pantry.

If you, or someone you know, is in need of grocery assistance please call us at 301.739.1165 to request a food bag.

The Hope Center Family Came Together for an Evening of Fellowship and Fall Fun!

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For the first time since the pandemic started we were able to bring our staff, Board of Directors, Auxiliary, and residents together for an evening of fun, food, and fellowship.

We hosted our first Hope Center Family Fall Fest at our Hope Center Farm located just outside of Hagerstown on the Conococheague Creek.

All of our staff, Board members, Auxiliary, Foundations Life Recovery residents, and some graduates were invited to come to the farm for a relaxing evening of hanging out and having fun together.

We had a hayride, lawn games, and tons of delicious food! And on top of all the fun, God provided an absolutely gorgeous fall evening to make the event perfect.

We all had a great time feasting on all the fall flavors, catching up and getting to know each other, and playing games like horseshoes and corn hole.

And it was a very special evening because this was the first time that many of the men in our residential life recovery program, Foundations, had the opportunity to hang out with the staff, Board, and Auxiliary. Many of these men entered the program after all the pandemic rules and procedures went into effect. We’ve been unable to host big group events like this so it was a special night for everyone.

The guys in our Foundations program especially loved having a night outside the city to have fun and meet new people. In fact, the guys were so excited for the event that they created a corn hole tournament with brackets prior to arriving at the farm! They organized and hosted the tournament for anyone who wanted to play.

Everyone enjoyed the food and fellowship but, let’s be honest, the food was the star of this event! We had our staff, Board, and Auxiliary all bring fall foods to share with everyone. The Hope Center provided the meat – and boy, was it good! Dillan Izer, son of staff members Aimee and Terry, spent hours overnight to make the most perfect and delicious smoked pulled pork. We’re so thankful for Dillan volunteering his night to prepare the meats for our picnic! The meat was definitely worth it!!

It was so nice to finally be able to host a large event with our staff, Board, Auxiliary, and residents. Covid has been a challenge for all of us but these moments together make us so appreciative of all the wonderful people God has put in our lives. We’re so thankful for our staff who have worked so tirelessly during the pandemic to keep our doors open and programs operating while also keeping everyone safe and healthy. God protected and provided during the pandemic and we’re so grateful to Him for all He did during these trying times.

As the pandemic slowly releases its grip on the world we’re excited for more opportunities to come together like this. And we’re really looking forward to the return of large events that include our wonderful volunteers and community guests! Continue to pray for protection for each other and continue doing what is necessary to keep each other safe during this pandemic.

Our Residents Pitch in to Help Down on the Farm

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The other week some of our men’s staff and residents spent the day working at our farm located just outside of Hagerstown. The farm has had many uses over the years but has set silent recently.

But this spring we started to bring the farm back to life with the arrival of cows, chickens, turkeys, and pigs. Now we’re focused on getting the rest of the barn and farmyard back into good shape for future use and growth. In addition to reviving the barn area, we’re also starting to clean up and make much needed improvements to our lodge facility that sits adjacent to the barn.

Our men’s staff and residents have started the big job of cleaning and mending to get the different facilities back in shape. From cleaning out the barn that had accumulated years of junk, to fixing bathrooms, polishing floors, and deep cleaning the kitchen in the lodge, these guys worked hard to start the improvement process. And they did a spectacular job!

The men in our 13-month residential program, Foundations Life Recovery, are assigned various jobs at The Hope Center as a part of their recovery program. But working at the farm is not normally one of the jobs they do. But the guys enjoyed the change of scenery and new activities and had a great time working together as a team. It wasn’t all hard work, though. Dillan Izer, son of two of our staff members, Aimee and Terry, volunteered some time to grill up a delicious lunch for the guys.

We’ve still got a lot of work to do at the farm and we’ve got many exciting dreams and visions for the property. But it’s just so nice to see it coming back to life and watching these men work so hard to help revive it and be a part of the future of this ministry. Please continue to pray for the men who are in our Foundations Life Recovery program. They’re great guys who are fighting a tough battle. God has great things in store for them so please pray for their endurance during this time of recovery.If you’d like to talk to someone about our Foundations Life Recovery program please call 301.739.1165 or email foundations@hagerstownhopecenter.com.

To learn more about all of our programs and services or how you can get involved and partner with us please visit hagerstownhopecenter.com.

Down on the Farm

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Did you know…

We have a farm?? The Farm is home to our Good Samaritan Lodge and our outdoor camp facility for Camp Wild.

But The Farm is not just used for those ministry purposes. The Farm is an actual farm complete with barn and fields!

The Farm is situated on about 80 acres just outside of Hagerstown on the Conococheague Creek.

For the past few years our farmyard and barn has sat dormant. But this spring we’ve started bringing it back to life. And now we’re excited to announce that The Farm is up and running again!

Spearheaded by Terry, husband of our Thrift Store/Donation Center manager, Aimee, The Farm is now home to a pair of steer along with chickens, and turkeys.

The animals are being raised to help supplement the eggs and meat supply we use at The Hope Center to feed our residents and community guests.

We want to give a huge THANK YOU to Terry, Dillan and the rest of the crew who’ve helped mend fences, corral the steer, and bring our barn back to life! There’s a lot of work involved with this operation and we’re so thankful for their skill, hardwork and desire to help make sure we’ve got plenty of meat to feed those in need in our community!

If you are ever in need of a delicious meal please join us for one of our meals served every day of the year. Our kitchen does not close ever – it’s open on holidays and during inclement weather. All meals are free for anyone and everyone in the community – so bring the family or the whole neighborhood!

For more info about our food/meal programs or our farm please call 301.739.1165 or email info@hagerstownhopecenter.com

We’re Hiring! Join Our Team and Help Make a Difference!

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We’ve got a few job openings currently! If you or someone you know is looking for part-time work or trying to find a way to get involved then keep reading!

All current job openings are part-time. The positions available are Chaplain, Cook, Driver (box truck for donation pickups), Deskman, and Cashier/Sorter.

If you’re retired, looking for some additional income, or want to get involved in a ministry and would like more info about any of these positions then please click here: EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITIES | hagerstownhopecenter

If you’d like to speak to someone about any of these job postings please call 301.739.1165 or email info@hagerstownhopecenter.com.

And please spread the word to your friends, family, church and others to help us quickly fill these positions. Thank you! Also, if you’re unable to apply but would like to volunteer please call 301.739.1165 or email volunteer@hagerstownhopecenter.com.

Christmas & New Year Schedule

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Christmas is almost here so we want to give you our schedule of all the closures taking place at The Hope Center this week and the next.

CHRISTMAS EVE: Thrift Stores (Hagerstown & Chambersburg), Donation Center, Recycling Center, and Wildside Youth will all be CLOSED. The Administrative Office will CLOSE AT 11:30am.

CHRISTMAS: Administrative Offices, Thrift Stores, Donation Center, Recycling Center, and Wildside Youth will all be CLOSED.

New Year’s Day: Administrative Offices, Thrift Stores, Donation Center, Recycling Center, and Wildside Youth will be CLOSED.

Our daily community meals, including Soup Line, and our overnight shelter will be OPEN on all holidays. Soup Line will operate on holiday schedule (same as Sundays) on Christmas and New Year’s Day. Trinity Center doors will open at 12:45pm on those days.

If you have any questions or concerns about our holiday schedule please call us at 301.739.1165 or email info@hagerstownhopecenter.com. Learn more about The Hope Center by visiting hagerstownhopecenter.com and be sure to stay up-to-date by following us on Facebook at facebook.com/hopecenterhagerstown

We hope each of you have a safe, healthy and happy holiday celebrations this year! Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

In Memoriam

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2020 has been an absolutely difficult year for all of us but November dealt The Hope Center family a painful blow with the sudden passing of Danny Sluss and Reggie Carroll.

Danny graduated from Foundations Life Recovery, our 13-month rehabilitation program, in February of this year and was doing great in his new life. After graduating Danny had gotten his own place and had gotten a job at FedEx. He was also working to get his license again, which was one of his post-graduation goals he set for himself. Unfortunately, Danny passed away unexpectedly in his hometown in Delaware.

Reggie was a current resident in our Foundations program who contracted COVID-19 and passed away during his recovery from the virus. Reggie came to us from DC to seek help with his addictions. While in the program he worked in our kitchen and was a deskman during the day. Reggie was so close to graduating from the program and was so excited to achieve his goal of completing the program and being free from his addictions.

If you had the pleasure of meeting or working with either of these men you would know how kind, friendly, helpful, and genuine they were. It was a delight to know both of them and to have been able to be a part of their victory story.

Please pray for the families and loved ones of each of these men. Our hearts are broken and we know their families are hurting as well.

The passing of each of these men is tragic in its own way, but we can rejoice in knowing that both are in the protective arms of their Savior now. When these precious men left this earth they were instantly welcomed into their eternal home. Danny & Reggie both had a personal relationship with Christ and we take comfort in knowing that they are both at peace now.

Please remember to pray for the men currently enrolled in Foundations, all of our graduates, and for the future men who will be coming to seek help. This is not an easy fight during the program nor any easier after graduation. The stakes are high and Satan knows exactly how to destroy. Please continue to pray for strength and power for the guys who’ve had victory in Christ. Each day is a battle and we so sincerely pray for victory for our graduates as they venture back into their world.

Also remember to pray for the vulnerable in our society and those who are currently physically fighting COVID-19. For some of us it’s not a big deal but for others it’s a life & death situation. Please remember these vulnerable and valuable people and wear a mask to help protect them from this deadly virus. And join us in praying that the vaccine works and can help us protect our friends and family from the virus.

As we say our farewells to Danny and Reggie we’re reminded about the one fact of each of these men that matters so deeply – they had found their victory in Christ! This song has always felt like an anthem or fight song for the Church but now, more than ever, it has such a powerful message about the lives of these two precious men, Danny & Reggie:

“I heard an old, old story, how a Savior came from glory
How He gave His life on Calvary to save a wretch like me
I heard about His groaning, of His precious blood’s atoning
Then I repented of my sins and won the victory

Oh victory in Jesus, my Savior forever
He sought me and bought me with His redeeming blood
He loved me ‘ere I knew Him and all my love is due Him
He plunged me to victory beneath the cleansing flood

I heard about His healing, of His cleansing power revealing
How He made the lame to walk again and ’caused the blind to see
And then I cried, “Dear Jesus, come and heal my broken spirit”
And somehow Jesus came and brought to me the victory

I heard about a mansion He has built for me in glory.
And I heard about the streets of gold beyond the crystal sea;
About the angels singing, and the old redemption story,
And some sweet day I’ll sing up there
The song of victory.

Oh victory in Jesus, my Savior forever
He sought me and He bought me with His redeeming blood
He loved me ‘ere I knew Him and all my love is due Him
He plunged me to victory beneath the cleansing flood”





Thanksgiving Day Update

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As Thanksgiving Day quickly approaches we’ve had to make a tough decision. Unfortunately with everything that’s currently happening with the rise of Covid-19 cases we’ve decided to serve delivery meals for Thanksgiving only.

We had originally planned on providing carry-out meals along with delivery but for the safety of our staff, volunteers, and guests we’ve chosen to only provide delivery meals to the Hagerstown area. Meals will be delivered between 11:30am – 1pm on Thanksgiving Day.

The delivery meals will provide all the same delicious items that we’d serve carry-out orders. From roast turkey, to our delicious stuffing, mashed potatoes and sweet potatoes, succotash, sauerkraut, cranberry sauce, fruit cocktail, and pie, each delivery meal will be packed full of amazing Thanksgiving goodness.

Reservations for delivery meals are required. To reserve a delivery meal for yourself and anuyone in your household please call 301.739.1165 by noon on Monday, November 23rd.

Our Thanksgiving Feast is free for anyone and everyone in the Hagerstown area. Call to reserve your meal and then share this with everyone you know!

We will also host our daily Soup Line on Thanksgiving. Soup Line doors will open at 12:45pm and close promptly at 1:15pm. Soup Line meets each day in the Trinity Center (215 W. Church St). MASKS MUST BE WORN and SOCIAL DISTANCING GUIDELINES ARE ENFORCED. Seating is limited for Soup Line due to social distancing regulations.

To place your delivery order or for more info please call 301.739.1165.

Recycling and Redemption

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Along with our Thrift Stores & Donation Center, our Recycling Center is back up and running following a closure due to COVID-19. We’re happy to be able to start receiving cardboard to be recycled again.

Since reopening we’ve been blessed with a brand new baler for our Recycling Center! We want to thank Terry Izer for helping us with finding a new baler, transporting it to our Recycling Center and for training our team on how to operate the new baler. Our previous baler was old and continued to break down so this new baler is going to be a huge relief for the staff in our Recycling Center.

Baling 3One of our Recycling Center operators, Danny, is actually one of our recent graduates! Danny successfully completed the program and graduated in February with three other guys from our Foundations Life Recovery program.

Originally from Wilmington, DE, Danny actually ended up at The Hope Center by choice. After completing various detox and rehabilitation programs, Danny was given the choice to go to a recovery center and he chose The Hope Center.

While at The Hope Center Danny attended Gateway Church in Williamsport. It was there, just days before Christmas in 2018, that Danny accepted Christ and became a believer.

Danny’s favorite verse is John 14:6, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man comes to the Father but by me.” What an incredible verse to claim as a man who was addicted and destroying his life – now he has found the path to life and truth! And what a difference this verse has made in his life!

Upon completing Foundations Life Recovery at The Hope Center Danny reflects back on the life lessons learned. The first life lesson he states is simply a verse to help stay on the right path, “Therefore submit yourself to God, resist the devil and he will flee from you.” James 4:7.

Danny is fully aware that the key to his success is to “put the Lord Jesus before anything and make Him your center point and foundation.”

Following his graduation from Foundations Life Recovery Danny is optimistic about his DSC_0429future. He’s devoted to “walk according to the spirit and not the flesh.” He’s hoping to deepen the relationships that he’s made. He claims Proverbs 3:5 & 6 “trust in the Lord with all your heart and do not lean into your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths” as the verse for his future.

Currently Danny is working in our Recycling Center. The coronavirus pandemic put future plans on pause, as it did for the majority of us, but Danny is still optimistic about his future. One of his post-graduation goals is to get his drivers license! He was in the process of accomplishing this goal when the DMV shut down due to the pandemic but he’s excited to finally be able to restart the process of achieving his license. In addition to getting his license, Danny is ready to get out on his own. He had applied for housing prior to the outbreak but now things are moving forward for him in pursuing housing of his own!

We are so excited for all the great things happening for Danny! We pray for his continued success spiritually, emotionally, and professionally. The pandemic could’ve easily derailed his success but Danny has stuck with what he learned in Foundations and is keeping his eye on Christ.

Please continue to pray for Danny and the others guys who have graduated or are still working towards graduation from our life recovery program. Rebuilding a life isn’t easy but these guys have made the most important step to recovery: admitting they need help and asking for it. Whether they just graduated or just enrolled in the program, each day is challenging. But knowing that the community is praying for them and supporting them is the encouragement that many of these guys need to keep going strong! Thank you for your continued support – in many various ways – at The Hope Center. You are a part of the success story that is Danny and others like him.

If you’d like to learn more about the various programs and services at The Hope Center, or you’d like to start partnering with us to help change lives then please visit http://www.hagerstownhopecenter.com.

If you, or someone you know, would like more info or would like to enroll in our Foundations Life Recovery program then please call 301.739.1165 or email foundations@hagerstownhopecenter.com.

Happy Birthday, Fellas!

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We all love a good party but there’s just something extra special celebrating the birthdays of guys enrolled in our Foundations Life Recovery program!

Many of the guys in our Foundations Life Recovery program were destroying their lives with addictions to drugs and alcohol so each birthday celebrated at The Hope Center is not just a celebration of another year but also a victory celebration!

This month we were able to celebrate with Reggie & Justin! Reggie has been a part of Foundations for 7 months and is doing great in his rehabilitation and life recovery. Justin just joined the program – in fact he’s so new that the cake was delivered just before he enrolled. But we’re still excited to celebrate Justin’s birthday along with Reggie’s.

Join us in wishing Reggie & Justin a very ‘HAPPY BIRTHDAY’!

Foundations Life Recovery program is our 13-month residential rehabilitation program for men battling addiction. The guys in the program attend various classes and participate in a work program at The Hope Center. The goal of Foundations is to help these guys create a new life centered on Christ so that each day is a day of victory and success against the temptations and struggles of this world. The encouragement of our staff and community really help these men to continue walking a path to life recovery which is not an easy thing to do.

Thank you for supporting our ministry by donating financially, volunteering, shopping at our Thrift Stores, donating food products and your gently used items for our Donation Center, and, most importantly, thank you for praying constantly for our men, staff and volunteers. There are thousands of people whose lives have been changed because of each of you! Thank you!!

If you’d like to learn more about how you can help us or if you’d like more info on Foundations Life Recovery please visit http://www.hagerstownhopecenter.com or email us at info@hagerstownhopecenter.com.