AdventHealth, which started more than 150 years ago with founders of the Seventh-day Adventist Church, has a sprawling campus in Ocala. In furthering the organization’s overall mission to “extend the healing ministry of Christ,” the AdventHealth Ocala Spiritual Ambassadors recently secured a donation to help homeless clients who visit the emergency department.
The hospital collected 400 blankets that are being given to those who need them—and want to keep them when they leave the facility.
“We were very grateful for this resource and we look forward to working together in the future to donate additional linens to our homeless population,” said Gregory Cain, Director of Mission and Ministry at AdventHealth Ocala.
To learn more, we did a question and answer session with AdventHealth.
Who are the Spiritual Ambassadors?
Spiritual Ambassadors are AdventHealth staff members who volunteer to be trained to support the emotional and spiritual well-being of hospital care team members.
How did they decide to collect blankets?
One of our spiritual ambassadors, Jennifer Pabon, and her team, decided to create a care program to collect items that could be used in the emergency room. We learned there was a need for blankets for many people visiting us for care and we worked to find a way to fulfill that need.
Where did the blankets come from?
Gregory Cain, Director of Mission and Ministry, reached out to the corporate laundry provider to ask if they would be willing to donate for those in need and the company provided the team with 400 blankets.
Can a non-staffer become a Spiritual Ambassador?
If a person is a member of one our Faith Community Partners, they can volunteer to go through the training.
For more information, visit AdventHealth.com/Ocala.
