News & Mission Stories
News / Mission Story
ABHMS community outreach partner helps seniors nourish their bodies and souls
VALLEY FORGE, PA (11/03/2026)—Rankin Christian Center (RCC), a faith-based community outreach organization and American Baptist Home Mission Societies’ longstanding partner, has served the community of Rankin, Penn., and the surrounding Mon Valley area for 120 years. Its ministry is dedicated to serving those who are underserved and at-risk from birth to old age. It provides early childhood care, after-school youth programming, family support, and senior activities, as well as a community food pantry, support for people with intellectual disabilities and autism. Darlene McGregor, executive director of RCC, said, “We are IN community but more importantly OF community.”
ABHMS intercultural leadership program concludes first year, seeks 2027 applicants
KING OF PRUSSIA, Pa. (ABHMS)—Seven emerging leaders from across the United States and Puerto Rico will gather Nov. 5-7 at the Baptist Church of West Chester in West Chester, Pennsylvania, to share how they are applying intercultural leadership principles in their ministries, professions, and communities. The three-day symposium concludes the inaugural year of Young Adults With Emerging Ideas (YAWEI), a community of practice developed by the Intercultural Leadership Institute (ILI) of American Baptist Home Mission Societies (ABHMS).
ABHMS’ Puerto Rican community partner helps people transform their lives
VALLEY FORGE, PA (10/23/2026)—ABHMS’ longtime community outreach partner in Puerto Rico, Corporación Milagros del Amor (CorMA), changes lives in profound ways. One of the people served by CorMA is Edwin, a man who lived a life full of hardships. He was born deaf but did not know sign language. He survived by running an informal car wash where he also lived. He entered CorMA’s programs in June 2021 and little by little, his life became easier.
ABHMS and ABF help students at Academia Bautista de Puerto Nuevo expand their environmental work and advocacy
VALLEY FORGE, PA (10/01/2026)—Students from Academia Bautista de Puerto Nuevo, Puerto Rico, learn about the health of their local ecosystem in a hands-on fashion. Their teacher, Professor Blanca Guemárez, who has taught science and math at Academia Bautista for 34 years, helps them measure the flow of the Puerto Nuevo River at several locations between two points along its course.
Chaplains, specialized ministers gather in Chicago to network, learn from one another
VALLEY FORGE, PA (10/01/2026)—On September 11, 2026, members of the Endorsement Committee of American Baptist Churches USA and local chaplains gathered at the North Shore Baptist Church in Chicago.
As Haitians face life after TPS, American Baptists respond to a mounting crisis
VALLEY FORGE, PA (09/28/2026)—For some 330,000 Haitians in the United States who lost Temporary Protected Status (TPS) on July 27, the consequences are becoming increasingly stark. For those whose ability to work legally depended on TPS, the loss of work authorization has put jobs—and the income needed for rent, food, and transportation—at risk. Beyond the economic consequences, fear of detention and deportation is keeping many closer to home, making even going to school, running errands, or attending church a source of anxiety.