Local church holds Jan. groundbreaking ceremony for new Good Neighbor building.
The Cedartown Seventh-day Adventist Church held a groundbreaking ceremony for a new community service center that’s part of a larger ministry within the church nationally.
It was a rainy day on Jan. 22 according to officials in a apress release, “but we had a good crowd that came to celebrate.”
Speakers included Pastor Jeff Freeman of Cedartown SDA church, Gary Rustad, general vice president of Georgia Cumberland Conference and Jack Porter, owner of Porter Built, LLC.
The Good Neighbor Center is a ministry of the Seventh-day Adventist church and was established in 1996 shortly after t he c onstruction of t he Cedartown Seventh-day Adventist Church building in 1994.
This ministry has grown into a busy center of distributing food to 100 to 140 families each week.
Every Monday and Wednesday from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m., people who find themselves in need of provisions come to take home a box filled with f resh vegetables, canned goods, bread, meat, sweets and other food items.
Donated clothing can be purchased for a very low price and in some cases is given away.
The Good Neighbor Center distributes over 20,000 pounds of food each month with higher amounts during Thanksgiving and Christmas.
The center is operated under the direction of Jean Bentley who has a passion for helping people in need.
Bentley has served as the director since 2005 and has organized a team of community volunteers that faithfully serve in picking up food from the Atlanta Community Food Bank, prepare the boxes and distribute them to the families as they come in.
The current trailer from which the GNC has been operating has served its purpose well over the past 21 years. However, it is time for this trailer to be replaced, the press release stated.
The new facility has been anticipated for some time and with the help of generous donors, much prayer, and careful planning, this building is now in process.
Jack Porter of Porter Built, LLC is working with the planning committee to erect a 70 foot by 28 foot pole barn style structure on the south side of the property adjacent to the church building.
Recipients will have easy access to the GNC from Woodall Road with plenty of parking. The building will have a check in area, waiting area, pick up window and restroom.
A kitchen will serve as a much needed food preparation area and will have room for the many refrigerators and freezers. Also a third room will serve as the receiving and storage area with a roll up door for truck deliveries.
“I am so excited to see this ministry move forward to the next level as it opens a new chapter with enormous potential in impacting our commu- nity” Pastor Jeff Freeman said in a press release.
Freeman has been serving the Cedartown SDA church since June 2016.
The new building is expected to be complete in the next few months, and fundraising is an ongoing effort to help in completing the interior structure.
Those who would like to contribute should please contact Freeman at 678-901-9184 or send an email to cedartownsda@gmail.com.