Compassion UMC in Florida Offers Women in Need Hope, Care, and a Path Forward

by

Florida Annual Conference | May 29, 2024

Compassion was in short supply outside the abandoned Druid Hills United Methodist Church in Ocala, Fla. The scene was one of poverty and desperation. All that was plain for people passing by to see, assuming they didn’t avert their eyes and numb themselves to what was really happening there.

It was a gathering spot for those facing homelessness, addictions, and abandonment, while inside the walls, the memories of what once had happened in that house of worship had long since faded at a place that seemed to have outlived its usefulness.

After Druid Hills closed, a nearby Hispanic congregation, Nueva Vida, used the building for a few years before disaffiliating; the Florida Conference retained the title to the church’s property.

The North Central District moved its office there, but there was no congregational ministry happening at the site.

But something stirred in Rev. Jill Beck as she drove by the building. How could it be, she asked herself, “that there was a cross and flame displayed on the outside, and the inside remained empty.”

She saw beyond the misery and instead saw an opportunity to show God’s compassion in action. She spoke with her husband, the Rev. Dr. Michael Beck, about what they could do 

Those questions led to a call for action that included approaching North Central District Superintendent Rev. Dr. David Allen and meetings with the Florida Conference Cabinet. On Jan. 7, the aptly named Compassion United Methodist Church opened as a safe haven for women battling addictions or fleeing abusive situations.

“Women who were celebrating a couple of weeks clean from intravenous drug use worshiped alongside two circuit court judges, a bank president, and the mayor of Ocala,” Michael Beck said.

“There were several construction company owners who have lost children to drug overdoses, the director of the local substance abuse rehab, and Rev. Dr. Candace Lewis the President of Gammon Theological Seminary, was there. It was like the kingdom of God on earth.”

And that was just the beginning.

God had a plan for that space

Compassion UMC has quickly grown since that opening day and changed lives by turning despair into hope and proving what can happen when people are faithful to listen to God's voice.

“Jill and I would often pray over the space when we passed by, just believing God had a plan for it. Jill, in a previous marriage, ended up in a domestic violence shelter for a time. She had a dream for the property that would help women,” Michael Beck said.

“We have a coalition of influential people in the community who are committed to making a difference in the largest overdose epidemic in US history," Michael Beck said. "We submitted a proposal to the conference to plant a church that would include women's sober housing, and it was approved.”

Compassion UMC helps fill a desperate need in Ocala for women facing challenges. The Becks already oversee a recovery housing program for men called Open Arms Village at St. Mark’s that includes sober housing, but there was no such space for women in Ocala until Compassion UMC opened.

The Becks know firsthand about the problems these women face. Michael Beck battled addiction and spent time in prison on drug charges before finding purpose and freedom in serving God.

His wife faced her own challenges.

“As Michael explained in my previous marriage, I was a victim of domestic violence. After many years, my children and I became residents of the local domestic violence shelter,” she said.

“During my stay, I was taught the tools that I needed to be self-sufficient. Since the day that Michael and I began our journey in ministry, we have talked about having a place for women to not only find safe shelter but also gain the life skills that they need to be self-sufficient.”

That includes basics like getting a driver’s license, writing a resume, how to apply for a job, and so on. 

“Today, we have a mixed ecology of folks,” Jill Beck said. “We not only celebrate and lift up the normal joys and concerns, but we celebrate recovery dates, And we mourn the loss of those who are dying from this drug epidemic.”

Looking  to the future

The Becks stay busy.

Jill is an Associate Pastor at Wildwood UMC, while Michael is the Director of Fresh Expressions in The Florida Conference of The United Methodist Church. They also serve at St. Mark’s UMC in Ocala.

At Compassion, renovations are planned that are estimated to cost $600,000; they have raised about half of what is needed in a relatively short amount of time.

Compassion also depends heavily on volunteers, and it’s particularly gratifying that several of those individuals were among those formerly sleeping outside the church because there was nowhere else to go.

It started because Rev. Jill Beck saw human beings outside that abandoned church, people with value who needed what the United Methodist Church could offer. With her husband, she launched a mission to show that no one is beyond God's reach.

“Compassion is already seeing lives transformed. One of our guys, who had been utilizing the space outside to find shelter long before we were there, told me on day one that he would never come into the sanctuary,” she said.

“He does not attend services on Sunday and comes to dinner on Tuesdays, but he came down and recently took communion for the first time in his life. That’s what Compassion is all about.”

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Joe Henderson serves as news content editor for the Florida Annual Conference. This article is republished from the conference website.