Life at The Resource Group | Community Volunteering

By Carole Lendry, Kayla Pankey, Molly Wilhite 

Recently, associates across The Resource Group took a hands-on approach to serve: in Nashville, the team members volunteered at a Medical Mission at Home event; in Jacksonville, they held a hot dog lunch and bake sale; in Birmingham, they volunteered at Jeremiah's Hope. Read more about these acts of kindness below.

Medical Mission at Home

Molly Wilhite

Medical Mission at Home, started in 2007, is a day dedicated to providing access to healthcare for those in need. Through Medical Mission at Home events, Ascension Saint Thomas and our community partners deliver free medical care to those who may face barriers and limited access to getting care. Services provided include medical care and screenings, dental, vision, spiritual, mental and behavioral health care, food and nutrition services, employment support, housing support and more. Ultimately, the goal is to live out our mission by serving those who are poor and vulnerable.

During our most recent Medical Mission at Home that took place June 29, 2024, at the fairgrounds in Nashville, Tennessee, 1,130 patients were served by 650 volunteers who came out to help in addition to 35 partnered vendors and staff. Patients included indigent, refugees, uninsured, those who lack transportation to receive healthcare, and anyone else who needed and wanted free care.
The Resource Group, in alignment with Ascension’s mission, seeks out opportunities for community wellness. We were able to come together and build on our relationships with one another as we gave back to the community. It fills our cups and encourages us to be diligent workers even during the mundane parts of our jobs. We are called to give what we have, which is often time and energy.

The Medical Mission at Home occurs annually, we are always enhancing it, and I am already looking forward to the next one. We are also going to be serving lunch to the homeless alongside my local Tennessee team with The Resource Group at the Room In the Inn.

Hot Dog Dog Lunch & Bake Sale

Carole Lendry

Our Ascension St. Vincent’s Southside Supply Chain and Integration Team held a hot dog lunch and bake sale to raise money for our American Heart Association Walk team fundraising goal. Community service events help us to extend kindness and generosity to the community in which we serve as well as help us fulfill the mission of Ascension by serving the poor and vulnerable in our community.  The lunch and bake sale provided an opportunity for our campus associates and leadership to come into the supply chain department and engage with our teams while supporting a good cause.

Our goal for this event was to raise money towards our $1000 team goal and allow for all of the Southside Supply Chain Manager and Inventory Management associates a T-shirt to wear when we participate in the Heart Walk on October 5. We were able to serve over 230 people at the lunch and bake sale, and raised over $600 towards that $1000 goal. 

When we engage with our community, we are able to extend kindness and touch those that are in need, and the events also raise awareness of who we are within the community so that when community members need care they will hopefully think of us. We are looking to do similar events at the other campuses to continue to raise money toward our goal and hopefully surpass it. Additionally, we are looking to do a community clean up in the next few months. We will be organizing a food pantry drive for a local food pantry prior to Thanksgiving and also adopting a family at each campus for Christmas.

Volunteering at Jeremiah's Hope 

Kayla Pankey

Jeremiah’s Hope is a program that provides education for certifications in medical careers, such as Administrative Medical Assistants, Clinical Medical Assistants, and Sterile Processing Technicians. The programs are fast-tracked and Jeremiah’s Hope provides resources to remove barriers from entering the medical field. The program also provides scholarships, support materials, flexible hours, child care, and more. Learn more about Jeremiah’s Hope here: https://jhcareers.org/

A group of Ascension and Resource Group associates had the opportunity to revamp Jeremiah’s Hope child care building and classroom space. We spent the day making the rooms and building safe, fun, and inviting for the children. We built shelving in the classrooms, painted walls, pressure washed the building, and did a lot of landscaping. Some of the projects we worked on will be something the children can engage with and will provide opportunities for enrichment. We put in new plants and watering hoses that the children can use to water the flowers and see them grow throughout the year!

While there are so many great places around Birmingham to volunteer, Jeremiah’s Hope is an exceptional organization because they provide something so full service to members of our community. It is great to know our work is going to positively impact the parents and children's everyday lives.

This project really helped me see The Resource Group’s mission lived out in a very hands on way. Working in supply chain, we often provide services behind the scenes, so it was really refreshing to be in a group, working together for our community. I also think this opportunity showed how impactful healthcare is on our communities. When people think of healthcare they often just think of hospitals and procedures, but it is much more than that. Healthcare can be proactive and serve people in more ways than one. For Jeremiah’s Hope, healthcare can mean building careers and providing resources.  

We were so thankful for this volunteer opportunity, and we hope to participate in more in the future.