The Community Care Clinic is reaching out to the faith community to make local congregations aware of its services.
The clinic hosted a breakfast for area pastors on Thursday morning. Because of torrential rains, the event was not well attended. Still, Krista Woolly, the clinic’s executive director, feels like her staff has made a good first step in connecting with leaders in the faith community.
The staff worked for six weeks to develop a list of all the pastors in the community. They worked with associations and denominations to come up with a list of more than 200 pastors. The staff sent out some 220 invitations, brochures and business cards.
“We want pastors to know we’re here in case any members or visitors need us,” Woolly says. “We just want churches to know how easy it is to be a patient here: an adult, with no insurance, at 200 percent of the poverty level. That’s it.”
To that end, she’s formed a church relations committee made up of three women who came to volunteer at the clinic within 10 days of one another. They are Donna Wiseman, Pat Gantt and Melissa Shue.
“I’d been praying about this forever,” Woolly says. “We needed someone to do church relations, but I cannot be it. Our story needs to get out to churches. I want us to have liaisons in churches that want to be involved.”
The women are available to speak to circles and other church groups, says Shue, who also volunteers at the clinic. “I love what the Community Care Clinic does. I love what they’re all about. I love the people and I love the patients.”
Another way the clinic is becoming more visible is through the addition of two signs, purchased with a grant from the benevolent foundation at St. John’s Lutheran Church. The signs have recently been installed.
A new guardian angel, painted and donated by local artist Patt Legg, was installed in December — again making the clinic more visible to passersby and motorists along Mocksville Avenue.
Koco Java donated coffee for Thursday’s breakfast and the staff made breakfast casseroles, most of which were taken to Rowan Helping Ministries.
“It didn’t cost us anything to promote the clinic,” Woolly says. “We want to be in partnership with churches to offer services for folks who come through their doors.”
If your church group would like to partner with Community Care Clinic or tour its facilities, call Krista Woolly at 704-636-4523.

Freelance writer Susan Shinn lives in Salisbury.