A.B. Fulcher has been leading the Food Ministry at Union Baptist Church, Achilles, since 2003 after Hurricane Isabel pummeled the East Coast.

“Food Lion and Farm Fresh were throwing all this food in the trash by the selling date, not the ‘using’ date,” said Fulcher. “So I started picking it up and delivering it to trailer parks down in Guinea.” Union Baptist Church now has its food trailer open every Monday and Thursday from 9-10:30 a.m. located in the parking lot behind the church.

Union Baptist Church has one trailer, two buildings, three refrigerators and seven freezers, all dedicated to its Food Ministry. Last month, the church received 20,000 pounds of food from Kroger, Food Lion and vendors. It also purchases food from the food bank in Hampton to stock its food pantry.

The Food Ministry serves approximately 120 families per week and delivers to 23 families every week. It also donates food to the Salvation Army. Groves Memorial Presbyterian Church assists the Food Ministry and Union Baptist also helps a couple of other church food ministries in the community. Union Baptist also donates food to the Salvation Army. There are approximately 17 part-time volunteers and Fulcher is a full-time volunteer.

Before he began the food trailer at Union Baptist Church, Fulcher was in the Coast Guard for 23 years and retired in 1979 at the Yorktown Training Center. “I also went back to work in the Coast Guard Training Center in 1979 for 21 more years,” he said. A past deacon at Union Baptist Church, he also does the benevolence for Union Baptist in connection with the Food Ministry. “The Lord laid it on my heart to do this,” he said about the Food Ministry.

Senior Pastor Jared Berry of Union Baptist mentioned that the book of James talks about “a genuine faith and genuine love will produce genuine action.” Union Baptist has helped to meet people’s tangible needs through the Food Ministry. “We pray for the opportunity to meet their spiritual needs,” said Berry. Monetary and food donations for the Food Ministry can be made through the church.