Bridge Community Church in Warrington, Virginia, one of our customers, has been awarded the 2025 Brotherhood Kingdom Builders Award for their Canteen ministry!
Bridge Community Church’s Canteen Ministry helps first responders and victims get food and relief at the site of disasters, for what is for many the worst day of their lives. The canteen has served more than 6,000 first responders, 2,422 local citizens, and 7,000 hurricane victims with hydration, meals, comfort, and spiritual support. When someone calls 911, the traditional first responders are deployed, and the Canteen rushes to the scene as well. Since its founding, the ministry has added an enclosed trailer with a portable bathroom, a truck for supply transport, and 88 dedicated volunteers, including a chaplain for every deployment.
Presented by Brotherhood Mutual, this award will provide Bridge Community Church with $35,000 in the form of a kingdom-advancing grant, as well as mentoring services. They intend to use these funds to help purchase emergency Starlink communication units (so first-responders get the chance to contact their families after a crisis, even when cell service is limited), cots for first responders and volunteers, and commercial bathroom trailer upgrades.
How did a church get involved in such a ministry? Curious about how to better serve Washington, DC, in 2019, Pastor Danielle Dean reached out to local law enforcement and was surprised to learn that there were no canteen units to support first responders during emergencies. With the help of a retired fire lieutenant, Danielle raised funds to purchase a refurbished ambulance, which then became their canteen unit with which to serve first responders. Unlike any other service in the area, the canteen operates 24/7, often staying on-site for 12+ hours to serve those on the front lines.
“Our canteen ministry is not just about providing physical nourishment,” Danielle says. “It is a mission field where our volunteers offer prayers, encouragement, and opportunities to share the love of Christ with both first responders and disaster victims.”
Their insurance agent, Kyle Butler, is excited that they got the award. “This is a fantastic outreach ministry to those on the scene of a tragedy,” he says. “Whether it’s a house fire or a lost child search/rescue, the Canteen ministry reaches people with the love of Jesus in their toughest life moments.”
Bitner Henry Insurance Group is also proud to help provide insurance to such a changemaking ministry, and the agency is excited to see what they do next!
You can find their website here, and the article that announced their winning from Brotherhood Mutual here.
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