Stephen Ministry

If you or someone you know is facing a crisis - large or small - and could benefit from the caring presence of a Stephen Minister, email one of the leaders (listed below) or call the church office. Mount of Olives has a trained team of over 40 Stephen Ministers.


"And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds." - Hebrews 10:14


Our Motto - Christ Caring for People Through People

The Stephen Minister's role is to bring God's love into the lives of people who are going through a difficult time or experiencing a crisis.


Stephen Ministers are ready to come alongside you. To learn more about receiving care, please contact any one of our Stephen Ministry leaders:


Jim Trunick: Jim@jimtrunick.com

Arleen Alvarez: arleen.alvarez@hotmail.com

What Do Stephen Ministers Do?

They listen to you, care for you, support and encourage you, and pray with and for you. And in the midst of this confidential, one-to-one, caring relationship, God's healing love comes pouring through. To hear from individuals who have benefited from having a Stephen Minister, click here.


What you should know about Stephen Ministry

Mount of Olives has a system for training and organizing lay people to provide one-to-one Christian care to hurting people in our church community called Stephen Ministry.


Training

All Stephen Ministers receive 50 hours of training in care giving and attend continuing education classes every month that prepares them to listen and care for anyone going through a difficult time.

The name Stephen comes from Saint Stephen, who was the first lay person commissioned by the Apostles to provide caring ministry to those in need in Acts 6.


More Info About Stephen Ministries

Stephen Ministry began in 1975 when the Rev. Kenneth C. Haugk, Ph.D., a pastor and clinical psychologist, trained nine lay people at his congregation in St. Louis to be Stephen Ministers. They assisted him in providing distinctively Christian care to members of the congregation and community. These trained caregivers were so enthused about their ministry, they encouraged Dr. Haugk to offer it to more churches. Since that time, more than 500,000 lay people have been trained as Stephen Ministers in 50 states, 10 Canadian provinces and 24 other countries.