Nonprofit to Serve Two Atlanta Historic African-American Churches

Leaders from Atlanta’s legal, nonprofit and business communities have come together to create a new nonprofit, Hope+Access, whose mission is to provide resources in times of hardship and also access to education benefiting the communities of two of Atlanta’s historic African-American churches, Beulah Baptist Church just west of downtown, and Lindsay Street Baptist Church in the English Avenue community. The organization will equip church leaders and staff with the knowledge of resources, including best-in-brand service providers, which can benefit and empower their congregations and communities.

Leaders who have helped to form Hope+Access include:

• Simon Bloom, a partner and the founder of the law firm Bloom Sugarman LLP. Bloom’s charitable activities include leadership roles with the Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta, Teach for America, the Marcus Autism Center and Project Open Hand.
• Judge Shawn Ellen LaGrua, who has served as a Fulton County Superior Court judge since 2010.
• Eloisa Klementich, president and CEO of InvestAtlanta, the official economic development authority for the City of Atlanta.
• Wendy Stewart, Atlanta market president for Bank of America.
• Missy Dugan, president and CEO of the Boys & Girls Clubs of Metro Atlanta.
• Mike Beatty, president and CEO of the nonprofit Great Promise Partnership Inc., which works to alleviate persistent poverty and to aid in workforce development throughout the state. He also is the former commissioner of the Georgia Department of Community Affairs.
• Clint Rucker, chief assistant district attorney for Fulton County.
• Duke Bradley III, the principal at Banneker High School in Fulton County.
• Brian Jordan, former Atlanta Braves and Atlanta Falcons player. Jordan also serves as a baseball analyst with Fox Sports South and founded the Brian Jordan Foundation, whose mission is to help children reach their full potential.
• The Rev. Darrell Hall, campus pastor at Elizabeth Baptist Church, Conyers campus.

“The issue our city has been struggling with for years is that underprivileged communities do not have the same access to quality education and the wrap-around support structure that normally exists in the household of higher-income communities, and, therefore, they are often forgotten or overlooked,” said Bloom, who created the group and launched this initiative after his program year of Leadership Atlanta.

“That is exactly why this organization was created,” Bloom continued. “Children in lower-income communities must look elsewhere to receive the wrap-around support services, to reduce the distractions, reduce truancy and allow them to focus on their education. It is hard enough to pay attention in pre-algebra when there’s nothing else on your mind. It is even harder when your clothes haven’t been washed and your stomach is growling. With the leadership of those involved in the effort, we have the resources and services to connect these kids and their parents to the host of stellar service providers this town enjoys.”

Hope+Access plans to serve 100 families in its first year, providing tens of thousands of dollars in benefits per family and driving outcomes such as reduced truancy, better reading proficiency by third grade, higher rates of graduation and readiness for life after high school. By year five, it plans to expand the number of churches it serves to 15, increasing the number of families that it reaches to more than 1,000.

Churches are often the first place where people turn for help during times of hardship, which is why Hope+Access plans to operate as an access portal for services programming. At the time of its launch, Hope+Access will serve the congregations of and communities surrounding Beulah Baptist and Lindsay Street Baptist churches in west Atlanta. However, it has plans to scale up in the years ahead.

“Working with Hope+Access will provide our congregation and community with great benefits, of which they might have otherwise been unaware,” said the Rev. Anthony A.W. Motley, pastor of Lindsay Street Baptist. “In addition, having leaders of this stature help to raise funds and bring attention to the needs of those in our community will be of great service.”

Said the Rev. Eric Vickers, pastor of Beulah Baptist Church: “Our church engages in a number of outreach ministries and having access to additional services will be a great welcome to our members. We are thankful that Hope+Access will partner with us to help lift up the members of our community.”

To learn more about Hope+Access or find out how you can become involved, please visit the website here.

Lindsay Street Baptist Church is located in the historic English Avenue community off Joseph E. Lowery Boulevard in downtown Atlanta and has served the Atlanta community for more than 100 years. Its ministries include those for youth, men, and health and wellness. It also offers services in the form of a “Boys to Men Mentoring” program, a nurses guild and a “Mother’s Board,” which has a special emphasis on female relationships and issues. The Rev. Anthony A.W. Motley has served as its pastor since Sept. 7, 1980.

Beulah Baptist Church was formed in 1889 with 110 members. On May 29, 2016, Rev. Eric Vickers was affirmed as the church’s pastor. Among the areas in which it offers ministries are those for students, seniors, fine arts, holistic health and mothers. It also awards grants to high school graduates who plan on continuing their education at a higher level. The Rev. Vickers has begun the work of amplifying the intergenerational worship experience, emphasizing technological modernization while undergirding the church’s outreach ministries.