Local leader heading south

May 11—ASHLAND — After four years serving as pastor of Summit Church of the Nazarene and director of the Ashland Community Kitchen, Dr. Desmond Barrett said he's been called to serve in another community down in Florida.

May 19 will be his last day at the Kitchen. A few days after, he will preside over his last meeting at the Kiwanis Breakfast Club (where he is the president), and then he will hop in the U-Haul and head off with his family to Winter Haven, Florida.

While originally from the Sunshine State, Barrett said the move is like leaving home.

"Over the last few years, I've lived in Appalachia. I ministered in Bristol, Virginia and Pulaski County, Virginia," Barrett said. "I did serve in Louisville for a while, so that was the odd one out. Most of the places I've served were in areas like this."

For Barrett, his path to the ministry was a bit atypical — he didn't come from a long line of preachers. Growing up in a pretty rough childhood — one marred by addiction, like many unfortunately have experienced around here — Barrett said he accepted Christ when he was 22.

"I'm still a baby in this, in a lot of ways," Barrett said.

Barrett, who has a background in organizational leadership, said when he first entered the ministry, he and his family were barely making ends meet at the first church.

"There were only eight people at that first church and I prayed that somebody new would come there," he said.

Those prayers were answered and Barrett oversaw the growth of that church. From there, he found a knack at growing churches in the communities he landed in.

Which is what brought him to Summit. At the time, it had an aging congregation. Barrett and the church were able to get younger folks to attend and saw the flock grow.

For Barrett, it takes a sense of humility to oversee that transformation.

He's written books on church revitalization. His latest is called "Missional Reset."

"There's no room to get an ego about this, because change is hard. There's a lot of pushback at first and you have to learn to listen," he said. "There's growing pains, but when you turn around see where the congregation has come from, everyone can say, 'Look at what we did.'"

That meant more than serving on the pulpit.

Barrett said the key in any community in which he's served is getting out there and finding those who are doing God's work.

"In every community, I believe it's our responsibility to go out there and find where God is at work," he said. "There's people out there; we just need to find them and partner with them."

Barrett continued, "We live in a day and age where people are behind computers and screens, where it's easier to lack compassion. So I don't want to just talk about it on Sunday. I believe I need to go out there and serve to be the hands and feet of Christ and help where I am needed, doing my best not to criticize, but only to help."

It was in that vein that Barrett became Director at the Community Kitchen, which he said was at a turning point when he joined.

"The Kitchen was financially strapped at the time," he said. "Over the last four years, we've been able to turn that around to make this a sustaining mission."

Starting in 1983, the Community Kitchen was established as a sack lunch a couple times a week to help out laid-off workers. It moved to the Neighborhood in 2012.

Going on its 40-year anniversary, the Kitchen has expanded to serve the homeless, the destitute, the drug-addicted, struggling families and low-income seniors, Barrett said.

Over the last four years, Barrett said the Kitchen served a little more than 130,000 meals, 5,425 food boxes and 60 low-income seniors.

That kind of turnaround — in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic — wasn't without its struggles, Barrett said.

"When I first started, we had 10 people on the payroll. Today we have three, counting myself," he said. "It's radically changed, so we have to partner with other members of the community to keep serving."

Barrett said school groups, social service groups and even inmates in the community service program have all served at the Kitchen. In fact, Barrett said the community service program has sent 40 people over the years to hand out meals.

He said the Kitchen's next challenge is to develop a "new crop of volunteers."

"The older generation, they tend to write a check to support the Kitchen, which is good," he said. "But the younger generations want to donate their time and their energy, which is also needed. I think the part of that is due to how tight money is these days."

Neighborhood Director Jeremy Holbrook said Barrett's impact has not gone unnoticed.

"We are by far a better place because of his service," Holbrook said. "Thousands of people have not only been nourished, but have also been encouraged by his leadership and influence."

Barrett said one observation he tries to keep in mind while serving the community is that anyone, including himself, could be in the position many of his clients are in.

Other groups Barrett served on during his time in Ashland include the Ashland Housing Commission and the Legal Aid of Bluegrass as a senior citizen advocate.

Barrett said when he sets up shop in Winter Haven, he will do what he always has done — help grow the church and find areas where he can be of service.

"It will look different, but it has a homeless ministry that has been going for 25 years now," he said. "I'm looking forward to finding local organizations we can work with to serve."

The biggest takeaway from Barrett's time in Ashland is the area's deep ties to its history.

"I learned that every community has a rich history, but we don't have to live in the past," he said. "We can build off that history and go forward and be a small part in making things better."

And Barrett said he won't be a stranger even though he's gone. One of his adult children has laid down roots in the area, so he'll back to visit from time to time.

(606) 326-2653 — henry@dailyindependent.com