Sunny skies were another tally mark on pastor Doug Plumlee’s record of God’s provisions in the history of Ridgedale Baptist Church’s foster care ministry.
The church was holding a groundbreaking celebration Sunday for The Haven House for Children, a new transitional home for children entering the foster care system, born out of conversations Ridgedale leadership was having with the Tennessee Department of Children’s Services.
The home will serve children after they have been removed from their biological family while the department works to find foster home placements for them.
The missions pastor at Ridgedale, Ryan McBride, wanted to get the church more involved in serving local communities. He heard about the need for foster care support through a meeting in 2020 with Tennessee Kids Belong, a faith-based nonprofit that supports foster families and connects children in foster care who are available for adoption with possible families.
The church’s Wrap teams, a ministry that involves church members who commit to support a specific foster family by sending words of encouragement, helping care for children, doing housework or praying for the family, were created shortly after, in 2021.