Impact Ashland to be Held at Unity Baptist Church
By Pamela Hall
The Ashland Beacon
Unity Baptist Church in South Ashland has been known for many years as a steadfast church with various outreaches in the community. The church has served the community for over 183 years, sharing the love of Christ. Last year, the church began yet another outreach called Impact Ashland, which is a continuation of their service to the community and is of great benefit to many.
Impact Ashland is a one-day event that allows residents to come to the church and receive health screenings, eye exams, haircuts, and many other services for the low cost of… FREE! Yes, FREE!
This year, the event will be held on Saturday, August 19 from 9 a.m. – 2 p.m. The church is located at 2320 29th Street.
Pastor Heath Bauer and his wife, Amber, had been missionaries to China for 13 years before returning to the U.S. and eventually coming to serve at Unity Baptist Church in October 2021. One of the churches that gave the Bauer’s much support as missionaries was Lenexa Baptist Church in Kansas City. That church has held several successful events similar to Impact Ashland and was only too happy to assist Pastor Heath and Unity Baptist last year in the organization of the first event. The purpose of the event is to help supply the physical needs of those in the community while opening the door for their spiritual needs to be met as well.
“The church was never meant to simply be a building with a schedule of services,” Pastor Heath explained concerning why the event is important. “A church is a group of people blessed by God to be a blessing to others. Christ’s message of hope is best delivered while meeting the needs of others.”
Impact Ashland does just that, meets the needs of those in the community by offering free services that might otherwise be financially beyond the means of some. The church considers it to be their gift to the community.
Those attending can enjoy a community block party as they make use of free services such as an eye clinic with exams and glasses, health and wellness screenings for certain conditions such as blood pressure, haircuts, food pantry items, a clothing pantry, car wash, massage therapy, and much more, including oil changes for their vehicles. Those wanting oil changes must pre-register at www.unitybaptistashland.com or the Unity Baptist Facebook page. Pre-registration is required so that the proper materials may be obtained for the make and model of the vehicle.
Also offered at the event is a complimentary lunch, along with a goody bag of various items. Children in attendance can enjoy playing in the Kid Zone which has games, toys and more available to keep them occupied while parents partake the other services.
“This is another outreach event for the church,” stated Greg Jackson, a Unity Baptist Church member who is one of the organizers of the event. “We are trying to help meet the needs of the community just as the Bible instructs us.”
Unity Baptist Church is indeed fulfilling the instruction of the Bible with Impact Ashland, along with the other outreach ministries of the church. The event was named correctly as well, for the church is, in fact, having a positive impact on Ashland.
Don’t miss Impact Ashland from 9 a.m. – 2 p.m. on Saturday, August 19 at Unity Baptist Church, 2320 29th Street. Visit the website or Facebook page, or call the church office at 606.324.7157 for more information.