Barb Powell
During the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, in the midst of the Black Lives Matter Movement gaining prominence, the Rev. Dr. Sheila Harvey — pastor of Union Congregational UCC in West Palm Beach, Fla., and a CHHSM board member — found that many of her Sunday messages were having a profound effect on church…
Part of UCC Fellow Essence Ellis’ work includes participation in the UCC Justice and Local Church Ministries (JLCM) Washington office’s Reproductive Justice Working Group. And her main focus in that group has been helping to develop a set of state-specific toolkits, which are slated to be released next month on the heels of the Supreme…
The UCC Council for Health and Human Service Ministries has opened applications for the 2022-2023 Rev. Jerry Paul Scholar. The CHHSM Scholar program is open to seminary students interested in learning more about ministry in faith-based health and human service nonprofit organizations. The program is tailored to the individual seminarian, and runs during each school…
A new curriculum pilot program currently underway in the UCC’s Heartland Conference holds the promise of increased harm reduction and overdose prevention. It’s the first undertaking of the conference’s Heartland Harm Reduction and Overdose Prevention Network, of which the Rev. Dr. Elyse Berry, CHHSM’s associate for advocacy and leadership development, is a part. In one…
For years, St. John’s Community Care, based in Collinsville, Ill., has integrated music into its programs for people with Alzheimer’s disease, dementia, and other cognitive disorders. But having a professional music therapist was always beyond its budget capacity. So when a donor asked Nancy Berry, executive director, what program St John’s couldn’t offer due to…
The next free webinar in a CHHSM series geared to assist its member agencies takes place Tuesday, May 24, at 2 p.m. ET. The one-hour webinar will focus on pharmacy services and best practices, and is sponsored by Care Purchasing Services (CPS), the group purchasing agent behind the CHHSM Store. Two major topic areas will…
Outgoing President and CEO Mike Readinger may be leaving his work with CHHSM over the past 17 years in the care of others, but one ingredient that has defined his tenure will go with him — living a caring, compassionate, purpose-driven life and ministry. Readinger was hired in 2005 as vice president of the UCC’s…
Two Kentucky CHHSM Agencies Forge Partnership to Help Fill Mental Health Care Needs of the Community
Two Louisville, Ky., health and human service agencies are partnering to improve services to the Russell neighborhood of Louisville. The partnership began thanks to a conversation between Abby Drane, president and CEO of Seven Counties Services/Bellewood & Brooklawn (SCS/B&B), and the Rev. Dr. Jamesetta Ferguson, president and CEO of MOLO Village Community Development Corporation (CDC),…
Orion Family Services, based in Madison, Wis., recently received a University of Wisconsin (Whitewater) Qualified Treatment Trainee (QTT) grant. The program, funded by the Wisconsin Department of Health Services, is coordinated with the University’s Center for Inclusive Transition, Education and Employment. It is designed to increase the quality of training and reflective supervision for supervisors…
The latest of the UCC Council for Health and Human Service Ministries’ (CHHSM) Affinity Groups kicks off April 19. The Diakonal Minister Affinity Group is open to all members of the Diakonal Minister Community — the alumni network of the Nollau Leadership Institute and its two predecessor programs, the Transformational Leadership Program and the Faith-Based…
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Johann Ellerbrake, Long-Time CHHSM Supporter and Healthcare Advocate, Dies at 91 - CHHSM
www.chhsm.org
CHHSM is grieved to announce that friend, supporter, and advocate Johann Lee Ellerbrake (née Havenner) has died at age 91. Ellerbrake died of natural causes May 19, 2026. Johann was born to Wilson El...