As a newer campus, the Ross Medical Education Center campus in Huntsville, Alabama is working hard to establish a strong tradition of supporting and helping the organizations and individuals in their community. This year, they wanted to help the needy during the holiday season. So, during the first week of December, the students in the Pharmacy Technician program headed out into the community to visit nearby The Rose of Sharon Soup Kitchen and Thrift Store.
Every year at Christmas time, The Rose of Sharon has a Holiday Food Box Ministry. They provide food boxes for needy families, and for disabled people living in subsidized housing. Throughout the time leading up to the visit, the Ross students, faculty, and staff collected canned goods and non perishables to donate to The Rose of Sharon. They also assisted the staff members with packing 110 food boxes and loading them into their box truck. The excitement of working together with others and helping those who are less fortunate was a great holiday experience for the students.
The Rose of Sharon Soup Kitchen and Thrift Store is a non-profit, 501c3, non-denominational ministry to the homeless and needy in Huntsville, Alabama. They serve two meals daily, Monday through Friday and on Saturdays they serve one big meal. They also offer monthly clothing assistance to those in need. In the colder months, they supply them with blankets, coats, hats, scarves, and gloves to help them stay warm.
The small leadership team at The Rose of Sharon works together to assist the homeless and needy with food and also with items sold in the thrift store such as clothing, appliances, furniture, and household goods at a minimum price, so that low income families can have the items they need without stretching the family budget.
Sharon Walker is the Founder and Overseer of the Rose of Sharon Soup Kitchen and Thrift Store. She began the journey of starting a homeless ministry in 2001 and the soup kitchen ministry first opened its doors in November 2003. Sharon is passionate about watching people turn their lives around. She established the ministry with the vision of seeing people walk from defeat into victory.
To learn more about this organization and how you can help, visit The Rose of Sharon Soup Kitchen and Thrift Store Facebook page or their website at roseofsharonsoupkitchen.org.