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Couple finds hope through Mother’s Day Offering
North Carolina Baptist Hospital
April 26, 2013
4 MIN READ TIME

Couple finds hope through Mother’s Day Offering

Couple finds hope through Mother’s Day Offering
North Carolina Baptist Hospital
April 26, 2013

Brad and Sarah St. Clair of Taylorsville, N.C., know what it’s like to see many of the things that were comfortable and familiar be taken away in an instant.

The normal life they had known was suddenly torn apart by illness and near tragedy.

Sarah had surgery at N.C. Baptist Hospital (Wake Forest Baptist Medical Center) to remove painful and dangerous tumors. A few months later a terrible car accident left her with broken bones and a head injury. She was unable to work for a year. With only Brad working, financial pressures quickly overwhelmed them as waves of medical expenses piled on top of other bills. A difficult road to recovery became nearly unbearable.

“It was so frightening with all those bills weighing down,” Sarah said. “I felt like we were losing hope.”

Like many couples who work hard to make a living, the St. Clairs fell between the cracks of assistance. They had too much to qualify for Medicaid or charity care programs, but not enough to pay the balance of her hospital bills.

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NCBH photo

Brad and Sarah St. Clair are thankful for the help received through the Mother’s Day Offering.

In the midst of their fears, a miracle of God’s grace began to unfold. Brad reached out to Eddie Yount, their pastor at Mount Hebron Baptist Church in Taylorsville. Yount contacted Paul Mullen, director of Church and Community Relations at the hospital.

“After Rev. Yount called, I asked the Mother’s Day Offering committee to carefully and prayerfully review Brad and Sarah’s needs,” Mullen said. “I was privileged to call them with wonderful news and say, ‘Sarah’s hospital bill has been paid by compassionate and mission-minded North Carolina Baptists in the name of Jesus Christ and His love.’”

Tears streamed down Sarah’s face.

“The Mother’s Day Offering was a gift from the hand of God,” she said. “After this past year it would have been easy for us to give up. Then this beautiful thing happened. They lifted a huge burden off our shoulders and we thank them with all our hearts!”

“This gift was God coming to us through North Carolina Baptists and saying, ‘I still love you and you’re going to make it,’” Brad added. “They saved us financially and gave us hope. What a way to tell others about Jesus and change their lives like they did ours.”

Pastor Yount confirmed, “This was an incredible blessing for Brad and Sarah, and for all of us. By teaming up with Baptists and the Mother’s Day Offering, we were able to see their needs met in a way that we couldn’t do by ourselves.”

Mullen added, “We are very grateful to North Carolina Baptists on behalf of the St. Clairs and hundreds of other hurting patients and families. “Our gifts really are the hands of God’s love, giving people hope and leading them closer to Jesus Christ in heartfelt gratitude. Please join me in praying for God’s love to be at work through the Mother’s Day Offering. Please give generously and allow His grace to reach out through you.”

The St. Clair’s story can be seen at www.mothersdayoffering.org. Mother’s Day Offering materials were mailed to Baptist churches across the state.

They can be obtained by calling (336) 716-3027 or email Mullen at [email protected].

(EDITOR’S NOTE – The Mother’s Day Offering is May 5-12. The statewide goal is $650,000.)