Community Care at Emmanuel

Community Care at Emmanuel Lutheran Church serves to provide members and families with community mental health and disease management resources and support groups, along with short-term spiritual counseling. This care provides a unique alliance between faith, spiritual care and health, working collaboratively with Emmanuel and in the community. Two distinct care programs offered at Emmanuel are Stephen Ministry, and GriefShare. These programs ensure that Emmanuel church members are getting the personal, emotional, and spiritual Christian support needed in challenging life circumstances.

Contact

Julie Basile
Community Care Coordinator
“My goal is to bring JOY to others in their daily life.”
239-261-0894 ext. 307
julie@naplesemmanuel.org

Julie is from Westwood, Massachusetts outside of Boston and joined Emmanuel Lutheran Church in May, 2022. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Counseling Psychology with a minor in Dance from Curry College. After moving to Naples to care for her Dad in hospice, she received a Master of Science degree in Healthcare Administration from R.I.T. while working as the Associate to the CEO of Cleveland Clinic Florida Hospital Naples. Julie worked in business development for Anchor Health Centers and managed the transition of a traditional physician practice to a concierge model and worked in home health and hospice to increase physician referrals and assist patients and families.

She has a passion for working with others one on one in the Stephen Ministry program and is enjoying getting to know the members, families, and friends at all of Emmanuel’s church communities. She will be building a program of community resources to share with our Stephen Ministers and members.

Julie is an experienced yoga practitioner, baker, and lover of music, ballet, and animals.
Her favorite scripture is Philippians 4:1-8.

About Stephen Ministry

Stephen Ministry is a one-to-one Christian care giving ministry that supplements pastoral care. This ministry is made up of congregation members (Stephen Ministers) who provide high quality, confidential, Christ-centered Scripture based care to members of the church (Care Receivers).

The program teaches lay persons to provide one-on-one care for individuals who request support. The confidential care-giver and care-receiver relationship, usually conducted by weekly visits, may continue for months or years. Reasons for requesting a Stephen Minister’s visits may range from grieving the loss of a loved one, experiencing a major illness, going through a divorce,job loss, or other life difficulties. Stephen Ministers are trained to know when and how to refer to community mental health professionals and resources.

The mission of the Stephen Ministries organization is summed up in St. Paul’s letter to the Ephesians. “To equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ” (Ephesians 4:12-13).

if you, or someone you know, are experiencing losses and struggles, a Stephen Minister can take care of you through this comprehensive program. Losses and Struggles can be grief, loneliness, relationship issues, chronic or terminal illness, and any life situations causing duress. Feel free to contact Julie A. Basile so she can assist you in finding a Christian friend to provide companionship in your walk with Jesus Christ through life.

The Training Program

The training is a program that teaches members to provide one-on-one care for individuals who request spiritual and emotional support. This relationship is usually conducted by weekly visits and may continue for months or years.

Stephen Minister curriculum provides a formal, structured introduction to human psychology and peer-to-peer counseling. Curriculum materials, which draw on literature from pastoral counselors, Biblical scripture, theologians, and psychologists, cover such issues as assertiveness and honesty, healthy boundaries, confidentiality, and ways to proceed with referral to mental health professionals when appropriate.

To become a Stephen Minister is a rewarding calling to use your spiritual gifts to help others through life.

Emmanuel Lutheran Church offers this 50 hour in-person training program led by Stephen Ministry leaders. Each class is two hours in length and the course should take 10 weeks to complete.

if you are interested in becoming a Stephen Minister, please contact Julie A. Basile (julie@naplesemmanuel.org or 239-261-0894 ext. 307)

Karl Fink, Stephen Minister

Stephen Minister Testimonial

“In our daily Christian walk, we are continually urged to be bearers of Christ's light in the world. Emmanuel is fortunate to have various activities and ministries through which members can spread Christ's light. One notable avenue is the Stephen Ministry, where congregation members serve as listeners, encouragers, and providers of Christian care, offering emotional and spiritual support to those navigating crises or difficult times such as grief, hospitalization, illness, loneliness, or just stress or discouragement. Stephen Ministry, originating from a Lutheran pastor, operates in over 12,000 congregations across the United States, Canada, and 24 other countries. The goal of the ministry is to bring Christ's light, love, care, and support to those in need. The ministry emphasizes compassion, faith, skill, trustworthiness, and confidentiality.

Over the past decade, as a trained Stephen Minister, I have realized additional benefits beyond providing support. The training has empowered me to confidently express Christ's light, love, and care to friends, colleagues, and neighbors facing challenging situations.

It may not cross our minds as we go about our daily duties and responsibilities, that loneliness can be a short- or long-term stressor that can subtly affect our wellbeing. Loneliness is something that we don’t always talk about. This is a perfect reason to try Stephen Ministry, both as a care receiver and a caregiver. A caregiver is a Christian partner to enjoy a cup of tea with, to share and talk and pray; It is one of the most meaningful ways to begin a Stephen minister relationship!

In closing, as Martin Luther wrote, “a Christian lives not in himself, but in Christ and his neighbor. He lives in Christ through faith … in his neighbor through Love.” Come join us, and help us bring Christ’s light, love and care to those in need.”

— Karl Fink

For more information on setting up an initial Stephen Ministry visit or if you would like to share your spiritual gifts and learn more about becoming a Stephen Minister, please contact Julie at julie@naplesemmanuel.org.

FAQs

In Acts 6, Stephen was among those chosen to provide caring ministry to those in need. Since Jesus’ time, caring ministry has been a hallmark of the Christian faith community.
Stephen Ministers are members of your congregation trained to provide one-to-one, Christ-centered care. They have a compassionate heart for those who are hurting, and they're equipped with caring ministry skills by your congregation's Stephen Leaders. A Stephen Minister typically has one care receiver at a time and meets with that person once a week to listen, care, pray, encourage, and offer emotional and spiritual support.
Stephen Ministers are:
• CHRISTIAN
• TRAINED (in-person 50 hour certification class)
• COMMISSIONED (with a Stephen Minister Certification) and
• SUPERVISED– Supervision Groups with Stephen Leaders meet monthly to review the caring relationship with the goal of becoming better care givers. Referral Forms begin the care giving and Check in Statement Forms and In-Depth Reports help us to focus on how the relationship is going.
In the Continuum of Care, Stephen Ministers have a distinct role of providing one to one Christ centered support to the care receiver, filling an important gap between close friends/family, pastoral care, small groups, and MHP’s (mental health professionals).
The Stephen Ministers grow greatly as they learn about helping others and they learn about themselves. As one of our members facing one or more of life’s difficulties grows stronger receiving regular Christian care from a Stephen Minister, our whole church benefits. Also, we all can be comforted by knowing that when the pains of life come our way, a Stephen Minister as well as a Pastor will always be there ready to provide Christian Care for us in a confidential and personal way. Our Stephen Ministers also provide needed help to our pastoral staff by providing Christian care to those selected by our Pastors. Perhaps God is calling you to become one of these caring committed Stephen Ministers.
Stephen Ministers provide care to individuals facing difficult times in life-grief, cancer, divorce, financial difficulties, hospitalization, chronic illness, job loss, disability, a spiritual crisis, or other life struggles.
Stephen Ministry supports your pastor by deepening, expanding, and extending the caring capacity of your church. A team of Ste¬phen Ministers, along with a pastor, provides ongoing care for more people than the pas¬tor could provide alone. This also frees your pastor to invest more time in other important ministry areas.
Stephen Leaders are the lay leaders, church staff members, and pastors who are equipped to oversee Stephen Ministry in your congregation. Stephen Leaders have gifts and skills in areas such as leadership, teaching, and organizing people, along with a heart for caring ministry.
It depends on the size of your congregation and the scope of your ministry. Most congregations begin with two to four Stephen Leaders and then periodically train more to expand and strengthen their team.
Toe Bridge Leader's Training Course (BLTC) is a live, interactive online training experience through which lay leaders, church staff, and pastors are equipped to serve as Stephen Leaders. They learn the Stephen Ministry System so they can start and lead Stephen Ministry in your congregation.
Stephen Ministries St. Louis is a not-for-profit Christian education organization founded in 1975. Our staff carries out our mission to "equip God's people for the work of ministry" (Ephesians 4:12). Helping congregations get involved in Stephen Ministry is a major way we accomplish this mission.

It doesn't—the BLTC trains people to be Stephen Leaders, the ones who lead Stephen Ministry in your congregation. Those Stephen Leaders then train members of your congregation to serve as Stephen Ministers and provide care.
Yes. Stephen Ministers often provide care for people in the broader community, enhancing and expanding outreach in a powerful way.
Yes—and more than 600,000 have done so since 1975. People are eager to use their God-given gifts in meaningful ministry to others while they grow spiritually and learn to use their skills in all relationships.
More than 13,000 congregations have Stephen Ministry—representing over 190 denominations, all 50 states, all 10 Canadian provinces, and 30 other countries. Many of these congregations have had Stephen Ministry going for over 30 years.
The Stephen Ministry logo represents a care receiver's journey from brokenness toward wholeness through the cross of Jesus.
In this way, it illustrates "Christ caring for people through people."
Enrollment begins a relationship between Stephen Ministries and your church. After paying a one-time enrollment fee, with no annual dues or subscriptions, your congregation will receive many benefits, including:
• A step-by-step system for an effective lay caring ministry
• Access to high-quality training and resources
• Free ongoing consultation and support
Stephen Ministry works well in congregations of all sizes, demographics, and styles, including-
o Congregations with fewer than 100 members and more than 10,000.
o Congregations in urban, suburban, and rural communities.
o Congregations that are mainline, evangeli-cal, traditional, contemporary, missional, and non-denominational.
o Congregations founded in the 1700s and in the current decade.
Stephen Ministry works in so many different situations because two factors are constant for every congregation:
1. There are always many more people in need of care, both in the congregation and in the community, than a pastor alone can care for.
2. There are always gifted laypeople capable of providing high-quality Christian care—if they're trained and organized to do so.

Care Receiver Testimonial

Grief Guidance: We are here to help!

GriefShare(TM) is a network of 15,000 churches worldwide equipped to provide a warm and caring environment to help us find peace in our daily living through fellowship, and biblical study. At these small group gatherings, you will see videos of people who have experienced grief and successfully rebuilt their lives, knowing the complexity of the grief journey. Using Holy Scripture references, and our own sharing of stories, we learn and walk this path together through grief toward healing and hope for the future.

Essential grief guidance is offered at Emmanuel both privately, one-on-one, with a certified Stephen Minister or through our small group GriefShare which meets in our Chapel twice monthly, on Wednesdays through season (with a short break in summer).

Each participant will receive a workbook, to go along with the video lessons. All are welcome!

Our time together at each meeting is 90 minutes and includes:

· 40 minute video where individuals share their grief journey and what has helped them, along with professional grief counselors expressing uplifting messages and helpful ideas!

· An optional Scripture based take home workbook with exercises and to take notes

· Discussion and sharing together if desired

“All are welcome!” For more program information visit www.griefshare.org Or contact Julie at Julie@naplesemmanuel.org.