In 2018, grant support from the ENCORE Ministry Foundation (formerly the Golden Cross Foundation) funded two tiny homes at The Village at Glencliff, located on the campus of Glencliff United Methodist Church in Nashville. These homes have become a beacon of hope for older adults, people experiencing homelessness, and individuals facing illness.
ENCORE Ministry Foundation offers free resources to church leaders and older adult ministry leaders that help older adults live dignified and grace-filled lives.
Living through a season of uncertainty can feel heavy. Sometimes, it can feel downright oppressive. There are days when we may want to throw our hands up and stop trying to hope for a better future.
Whether uncertainty looms for us personally, our friends and family, or far away in places we will never see, it can weigh on us. The longer we live with uncertainty, the more it can pile up — impacting not just our emotional and spiritual health, but also our physical well-being. This can be especially true for older adults.
The ENCORE Ministry Foundation and the University of Tennessee Chattanooga, College of Nursing, with additional funding from the Tennessee Department of Health, are embarking on a bold new plan to help make a positive impact on the life of the congregation, older adults, and persons of all ages. Together, we are developing an Age-Friendly Congregation Certificate program (AFCC). The Certificate program is an opportunity for congregational leaders, often lay volunteers, to take classes to learn about intentional ministry by, with, and for older adults. Congregational leaders will be engaged in ways to start, renew, or strengthen older adult ministry. The Age-Friendly Congregation Certificate can be received by taking in-person or online classes.
There are moments in the life of every ministry when the future calls for both faith and courage. For ENCORE Ministry Foundation, this is one of those moments.
Across our nation, congregations are facing profound questions about aging, purpose, spiritual formation, caregiving, loneliness, and intergenerational connection. At the same time, one of the greatest untapped resources within the Church is growing rapidly: older adults whose wisdom, faith, experience, generosity, and witness continue to shape families, congregations, and communities in powerful ways.
Independent living communities are designed to provide healthy seniors with a safe and secure living environment, quality food, access to social and recreational activities, and convenient access to services such as transportation and housekeeping.
ENCORE Ministry Foundation is self-supporting and relies on the gifts of generous donors. We provide – at no cost – resources, leader training, and consulting services for local churches and older adult ministry leaders. ENCORE provides grant funding addressing critical needs facing older adults. Learn More
ENCORE Ministry Foundation (EMF) provides free in-person or virtual consulting services for local church leaders and older adult ministry leadership teams concerning the needs of older adult ministry. EMF wants to help you start or revitalize your intentional ministry by, with, and for older adults.
One of our consultants are here to help you or offer a presentation.
Empowering Churches.
Honoring Senior Adults.
Strengthening Communities.
