Almost a half century ago, ministers in the small town of Fuquay-Varina realized there were people in their midst with emergency needs from time to time, and there was no organized way to help them. Every church could cite experiences with individuals coming into church offices seeking enough money to buy food for a family, shelter for a night, a bus ticket “home,” wherever that might be, help paying a light bill or buying a ton of coal.

Some churches provided their ministers with discretionary funds to use in such instances, but the funds were usually small, and the ministers had to do the vetting to determine the validity of the need and help point the applicant to agencies that might provide more long-term assistance.

In 1964 The Fuquay-Varina Ministerial Association founded the Family Aid Council of Fuquay-Varina. Some lay people joined in forming the Council. Its mission was defined this way:

“The Family Aid Council is a cooperative project of Christian assistance to human need, combining the professional services of a battery of helping agencies with personal Christian love in action. It is For Christ’s People Through His Churches.”

The aim of the Council was to assist with immediate emergency needs and to advise those in need of agencies that could help on a more extended basis. Guidelines were established and an application drawn up to be filled out by those seeking assistance. The Rev. James B. Reaves, pastor of the Fuquay-Varina Presbyterian Church, served as the first ministerial advisor and acting administrator.

Others on the original board were Leo L. Matthews, of the Presbyterian Church, Mrs. Ezola Speed of First Baptist Church, P. K. Honeycutt of the Methodist Church, all of Fuquay-Varina, and Paul Bradley of Kipling. Places where applicants could apply for help were designated as: the Presbyterian Church, Honeycutt & Mudge Realty, or the Tilley-Matthews Company.

The Fuquay-Varina Presbyterian Church was particularly active in the project. The church had maintained a clothing closet in its basement for several years, but that effort had become more than the church members could manage. The Rev. Levi Humphreys, pastor of the church at that time, said it became overwhelming when local people who held yard sales would load up all that didn’t sell and dump the leftovers at the clothing closet. Some church members found an empty store space beneath the Pope’s store and got free use of it for the closet. The Family Aid Council paid the light bill. A part-time worker staffed the closet with help from volunteers. It is not clear who paid the staffer.

When someone applied for Family Aid in those days, the Council tried to find a sponsor from the applicant’s church or, if the applicant had no church, a sponsor from some local church to work with the applicant, verify the need and help the individual in distress find additional help if needed. A version of that process worked for many years. Eventually, it was volunteer lay people who accepted applications, checked on the need and approved those that came within the Council’s purview.

The Council sought and found volunteers from among retired Christian businessmen of the town to act as treasurer and dispense financial aid, thus freeing the ministerial advisor to devote time to counsel with families, sponsors, churches and for promotion, publicity and public relations. In fact, there was little publicity. The Council operated quietly. Many townspeople didn’t know it existed.

At those early meetings of the Ministerial Alliance it was determined that offerings from the annual Community Thanksgiving Service should be designated for the Family Aid Council. Churches holding their own Thanksgiving services would be asked to designate offerings for the Council. That decision led to a tradition that remains to this day. (See related story on this year’s Thanksgiving service.) Some churches budgeted money for the council, and several businessmen in town advised Council members that if coffers ran close to dry, they would help out.

Minutes from Council’s end-of-year report at the close of 1965, its first year, show collections from all sources totaling $827.12 and a balance at year’s end of $57.06.

List of ways in which help had been provided included such varied items and services as food orders, dinners, shoes and socks for a child, doctor visits, medicine and more.

As the town grew and became more diverse and less close-knit, Family Aid struggled along until the early 2000’s when the all-volunteer organization began to lag.

Then several people who had worked with the Council for years and some newcomers agreed that more organization was necessary if the work of emergency assistance was to continue. More money would be needed, better records kept and a clearer process for accepting and acting on applications. Mary Bethel, one of those who worked with the old Council and supported reorganization, said she felt the Family Aid Council had run its course. She said nothing was computerized and the only records kept were on a Rolodex maintained by a church secretary.

The Rev. Gene Pierce, formerly minister of the Presbyterian Church and a supporter of the Family Aid Council , now retired, supported the reorganization effort as well.

From that effort emerged the Southern Wake Faith Community in Action (SWFCA). Its mission remains essentially the same. It provides once a year emergency assistance in cases where the need is now, then works with clients to find agencies that may offer extended assistance.

SWFCA has just launched its first community-wide fundraising drive, hoping to raise $50,000 to stock the new organization’s coffers for the coming year. A part-time, paid executive director maintains an office at St Augusta Missionary Baptist Church on Bridge Street. The office is open to accept applications Tuesday and Thursday mornings from 9 until 11:45 a.m.