Penny Seymour Ministries makes special Fayette delivery

Steve Keenan, The Fayette Tribune, Oak Hill, W.Va.
·2 min read

Nov. 4—BEARDS FORK — The community served by the Southern Appalachian Labor School received a delivery from the heart last Saturday.

"We partnered with a ministry from Virginia, the Penny Seymour Ministries," said Artie Mullins, a SALS staffer. "Every year, they take supplies to hard-hit areas to try to assist in alleviating poverty in the area, and they brought in food, clothing, furniture, appliances large and small.

"We probably had close to 300 people pass through here today getting (free) clothes and food and appliances and furniture. It's been really successful."

The day also included a lunch of soup and sandwiches.

While a good deal of the supplies was claimed Saturday, Mullins said the remaining items will be available in Beards Fork for the next month or so before the rest is donated to other area ministries.

Penny Seymour, the namesake for the ministry group, said PSM has been operational since 1986. She serves as pastor of the King's Court multi-denominational church in Ashland, Virginia.

"We do a lot of evangelism, and we do a lot of evangelism in the West Virginia area ... I'm really drawn to the Appalachian Mountains," she said.

The ministry locally began with a truckload of coats delivered in the Beckley area a few years back. "We literally filled that truck up," she said. "We gave out 3,000 coats that year and left 1,000 more."

As she supplied a reporter with a brief synopsis of the mission, a local woman approached Seymour and said, "I want to thank you for everything that you did here for us today. You helped us out so much, and I really appreciate it."

"God bless you, sister," Seymour replied.

Seymour said that, in addition to volunteers, donated support structure, including individuals who transport the items with their trucks, as well as free warehouse space, are a blessing that help keep the ministry going.

Past efforts have including helping flood victims in Kentucky and West Virginia, she noted. "We go to a lot of different places."

The PSM group last week featured 11 volunteers, and that was supplemented by more volunteers on the ground in Fayette County. "Another dozen or more locals came in and helped," Seymour said. "Cooked for us, gave us a place to stay next door."

While the support structure is critical, Seymour said intervention from another source gives the program its core. "God keeps us going. How blessed we are."

For more, visit Penny Seymour Ministries on Facebook.

Email: skeenan@register-herald.com or follow on Twitter @gb_scribe