Opportunities to Serve

FirstShine Summer Camp
FirstShine is a traditional summer day camp for young adults in our greater community with special needs. The camp is held at First Baptist Church of Asheville and day activities are geared to the age and interests of each individual, including outings such as horseback riding, bowling, swimming, and more!  This camp is staffed entirely by church volunteers.  Adult and youth volunteers counselors are needed.  (Summer 2026: July 27-30).

Free Market
We are working to gather and utilize essential resources including food pantry items, fresh produce, clothes, and other essentials. All of these resources are free and open to our congregation and the community. Available items can be picked up every Thursday from 11:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. through the Charlotte Street entrance. All are welcome to come and get what they need.

Our Free Market is made possible through partnerships with Trader Joe’s and MANNA FoodBank. Our volunteers pick up available food from Trader Joe’s and work with MANNA FoodBank to purchase food and pantry items at a reduced cost. These partnerships help us provide a greater variety of fresh and shelf-stable food to our neighbors.

As we prepare to welcome our neighbors, we also welcome new volunteers of all ages to serve at the Free Market by assisting guests, unpacking food items, sorting clothing, and picking up food from Trader Joe’s Saturday evening.

Helene Recovery Ministry
As our community begins the long and slow process of post-Helene recovery FBCA seeks to be a source of healing and hope, working collaboratively with friends from near and far. In addition to the Free Market, we have a Helene Recovery Service Team that partners with N.C. Baptists on Mission to complete a wide range of jobs, including flooring removal, drywall repair, and painting. No construction experience is necessary to join any of the volunteer teams.

We also have a Helene Hospitality ministry in which we host out of town groups volunteering through N.C. Baptist on Mission.

Lunch at the Crossroads
Everyone is welcome at Lunch at the Crossroads, a free community meal served every Thursday (except during the month of July). Guests gather around common tables in our gym to enjoy a hot meal, friendly conversation, and a welcoming atmosphere. Lunch is served from 11:45 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. Following the meal, everyone is invited to an optional Communion Service in the Chapel at 1:00 p.m. 

We are grateful for our community partners who help make these meals possible. We are pleased to welcome Equal Plates as a new partner, providing meals at a reduced cost for select Lunch at the Crossroads gatherings this fall. We are also grateful to partner with All Souls Counseling, whose counselor is available during Lunch at the Crossroads and the Free Market to connect guests with additional resources, support, and care.

Whether you’re looking for a good meal, meaningful conversation, or an opportunity to connect with others, you’ll find a place at the table. Volunteers of all ages are welcome to help prepare and serve the meal or simply share lunch and fellowship with our guests. We hope you’ll join us!

The Peacemakers Team
The Peacemakers Team is a opportunity for FBCA members to engage in peacemaking. As we build a community of Beautiful Belonging, we will seek to be attentive to challenges that may include, but not be limited to, homelessness, voting rights, refugee settlement, economic and racial inequalities, gender issues, hunger, and the environment. As issues are identified, we will encourage creative involvement in finding solutions through connections with other peacemakers.

The Peacemaker’s Team invites you to a time of prayer for our church, community, and country in the Chapel or out on the Labyrinth each Third Sunday from 9:15-9:45 a.m. and ongoing book studies. We hope to see you there!

Yearly Journeys of Faith, Service, and Partnership
Across a variety of mission opportunities, our church has been blessed to engage in compassionate, relational, and restorative work both domestically and abroad.

Our travels have taken us to the U.S.–Mexico border in Harlingen, Texas, where we partnered with CBF field personnel and immigration lawyer Elket Rodriguez to support refugee families in urgent need, and to Immokalee, Florida, where we worked alongside Rick and Ellen Burnett and Cultivate Abundance to address food insecurity among migrant farmworkers through culturally relevant food distribution and community partnership. We are planning a return to Immokalee November 10-14, 2026 (see post below to learn more).

Internationally, our long-standing relationship with Iglesia Elohim, our sister church, in Las Tunas, Cuba has allowed us to share in dialogue, fellowship, worship, service projects, water filtration initiatives, youth pilgrimages, and vibrant ministries such as their summer Vacation Bible School for 50 children. Our team departed March 20-23, 2026 to Cuba. We have also served in Puerto Rico, where teams have helped communities still recovering from Hurricane Maria by repairing roofs and offering encouragement amid ongoing structural challenges. In every place, we have sought to honor the dignity of those we meet, respond faithfully to human need, and deepen the bonds of hope, justice, and shared Christian fellowship.