At Annual Conference 2025, Rev. Robb Webb, Director of the Rural Church Division of The Duke Endowment, announced an exciting new partnership between The Duke Endowment, the North Carolina Conference, the Western North Carolina Conference, and the NC Department of Adult Correction. This initiative aims to strengthen connections between local churches and correctional facilities across North Carolina.
The program will partner with United Methodist Churches that may only be able to afford a quarter or halftime appointment with a prison in the county where their church is located, enabling these clergy to serve full-time appointments while also ensuring that correctional facilities have access to chaplaincy services.
Rev. Sarah Jobe, Interim Director of Chaplaincy Services at the NC Department of Adult Correction, shared that this partnership aligns with the department’s broader commitment to place chaplains in every state prison. She expressed hope that these partnerships will increase communal engagement and bring fresh vitality to congregational life as churches learn more about incarceration.
During Annual Conference, Rev. Jobe was joined by Rev. Webb and Leslie Cooley Dismukes, Secretary of the Department of Adult Correction, to commission four chaplains who began this important work in July. Rev. Jobe said that all partners have committed to an initial two-year period, with hopes of expanding the program in the future.
Churches interested in learning more about the program or how to get involved can contact Rev. Sarah Jobe at sarah.jobe@dac.nc.gov for additional information.