Sis. Kathy Gay Wilson
[email protected]
(309) 828-1162

The role and concept of the Deaconess dates back to biblical New Testament times and is still a role that fulfills special needs in today’s church.  Phoebe, who was a servant in the church at Cenchrea, Corinth, is considered to be the first Deaconess (Romans 16:1-2). Other scriptural references related to the history and qualifications of a Deaconess include I Timothy 3:8-13 and Titus 2:3-5. Today the role of the Deaconess is one of a sister and a helper, Christian women who are dedicated to the service of the Lord, who have faced life’s many pleasures, pains, trials, and challenges; yet, through it all, she has kept the faith.

The history of the Deaconess at Union M. B. Church dates back nearly 100 years.  From the 1930’s-1950’s the group was known as The Deacons’ Wives. Sometime between the 1950’s and 1962 a name change occurred and the group became known as The Deaconess.  They wore white attire and white nurse’s caps.  The wife of the Chairman of the Deacon Board served as Chairperson of The Deaconess.  She was also responsible for preparing the Lord’s Supper.  The Ministers’ Wives also served with The Deaconess during that time. 

The Deaconess became an organized ministry under the pastorate of the late Rev. Phenues Bush. Specific duties of the Deaconess include attending to female candidates for baptism, preparing and setting the communion table, and encouraging and mentoring young women of the church. 

In the fall of 1998, the name of the ministry was officially changed to The Deacons’ Wives and Deaconess Ministry to accurately reflect the status of its members since some members who were appointed by the pastor were not married to deacons.

Over the years, the DWD’s, as the ministry is often referred to, expanded its focus to include more in-reach as well as community outreach. Some of our projects included:

• Sending twenty-two boxes of clothing and toiletries to two families who lost their homes due to Hurricane Floyd in October 1999.
• Providing Thanksgiving baskets to families of Union.
• Blessing the residents of Scotchwood Health Care Center, Asta Care Nursing Home, and Heritage Manor with gift bags.
• Hosting a Breast & Cervical Cancer Awareness Seminar.
• Presenting “A Day with the Girls: The Total You-The Total Christian Young Lady” which included classes facilitated by church members and local, professional community members.
• Donating winter clothing items to the students of Raymond Elementary School.
• Supporting and participating in St. Mary’s Catholic Church’s Fishes & Loaves ministry which feeds the hungry and homeless on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
• Organizing “College Daze” for Union’s college-bound students to give them an idea of what to expect when they go to college. Topics included: scholarships, dual degrees, sororities/fraternities, honor roll, and campus security.
• Collaborating with the Laymen’s Ministry to sponsor a workshop for students in grades 6^th – 12^th and their parents entitled “College Costs: Financial Aid and Scholarships.

The DWD’s have sponsored many “Teas” over the years, taken our young ladies on various church outings, visited with our sick and shut-ins, attended many Baptist General State Convention retreats and DWD programs, provided college graduates with gift baskets and gift cards, participated in The Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure, and we’ve even taken time to relax and fellowship with each other during several shopping trips to a few IL malls.  

In 2011, the DWD’s increased their outreach efforts once again by adopting Union’s Food Pantry Ministry to help service the needs of our community. 

Our signature outreach program for almost 20 years has been preparing and serving meals twice a year to the homeless residents of Safe Harbor.  In the Spring we provided a spaghetti dinner and in the Fall we provided our now famous soul food dinner. The Laymen’s Ministry has assisted us in recent years for our soul food dinner. As the entire world came to a screeching halt in March 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic forced us to reimagine how we could continue this outreach that had become near and dear to our hearts. It was decided in 2020 that until we are able to safely return to Safe Harbor’s kitchen, we will have our Spring and Fall meals catered and delivered.

Members of the Deacons’ Wives and Deaconess Ministry are also active members of other ministries including the Sunday School, the Choir, the Mothers’ Ministry and the Food Pantry.

Our current members are:

Kathy Gay Wilson – President

Daphne Gay – Secretary

Kathryn Hudson – Treasurer

Beverly Gay – Historian

Bertha Norris – Outreach Coordinator

Elodia Collier – Member

Clariona Tucker – Member Emeritus

Our past presidents include:

Dorothy Miller

Mary Riley

Bernice Gay

Pearl Johnson

Joyce Rusk

Bertha Norris

Mary Ann Pierce

Daphne Gay

Elodia Collier

Some of our former members include:

Harriet Allen                          Elizabeth Johnson

Lillian Bacon                          Pearl Johnson

Jo Ann Boykins                     Eva Mae Jones

Gertrude Brown                    Dorothy Miller

Gladys Brown                        Mary Ann Pierce

Lillian Caldwell                     Catherine Poole

Rubie Marie Caldwell          Mary Riley

Marjorie Dean                       Matilda Riley

Bertha Douglass                    Joyce Rusk

Ethel Douglass                      Luella Rusk

Bernice Gay                           Tina Thomas

Vernell Gray                          Gwendolyn Thornton

Victoria Hamblin                 Ernestine Walls

Velma Williams                    Ruth White

“I commend unto you Phoebe our sister, who is a servant of the church in Cenchrea, that you may receive her in the Lord in a manner worthy of the saints, and assist her in whatever business she has need of you; for indeed she has been a helper of many and of myself also.”   Romans 16:1-2 (NKJV)

July 2022