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- ELCA Pastor Anna Taylor-McCants (center) received a $100,000 G2 Overachievers Grant from Ariann Langsam (left), vice president of marketing for Pilot Pen, and Kelly Clarkson on “The Kelly Clarkson Show.” Photos: Courtesy of “The Kelly Clarkson Show” and FedUp Ministries
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- Clarkson surprised Taylor-McCants with the grant on the June 9 episode of her NBC show. The grant will go toward Taylor-McCants’ FedUp Ministries work.
“I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.”
Jesus’ words from John 10:10 are the basis for the approach of FedUp Ministries, an ELCA synod-authorized worshiping community food truck ministry in Southeast Michigan. “Our work is about those on the margins, those who have been cast aside,” said Anna Taylor-McCants, a pastor, a mission developer and the executive director of FedUp. “It’s about being more than included but celebrated within the community. That is abundant life for those who have been forgotten.”
Taylor-McCants’ dedication to FedUp’s ministry, as well as her community advocacy and anti-racism and food policy work, landed her a spot on NBC’s The Kelly Clarkson Show as a finalist for a Pilot Pen G2 Overachievers Grant. On the June 9 episode, Clarkson surprised Taylor-McCants with the winning $100,000 grant.
The segment featured FedUp’s innovative programs for combating food insecurity and supporting marginalized communities, including mobile food services, hygiene services, mental health support and more. Ariann Langsam, vice president of marketing for Pilot Pen, joined Clarkson on the show to present Taylor-McCants with the award. “One of the most mind-blowing things is that you started all of this during COVID,” Langsam said to her on the episode. “You are unstoppable, and we are so excited to be part of the story you are writing.”
Clarkson agreed, saying Taylor-McCants is a “compelling example of what it means to turn a challenge into a mission, creating real impact in communities that need it most.”
“You are a compelling example of what it means to turn a challenge into a mission, creating real impact in communities that need it most,” Clarkson said.
Taylor-McCants was nominated for the G2 Overachievers Grant by her teenage daughter, Laynee, last year. She learned that Laynee had submitted her for the grant because of her ability to hold roles as a spouse to Monique, a mother to Laynee and Ezra, the director of FedUp, a pastor, the chair of the Southeast Michigan Synod’s hunger team, and as a member of the synod’s anti-racism team and of multiple advisory councils in Washtenaw County, Mich.
The grant “celebrates individuals and organizations that go above and beyond to make a positive difference in their communities,” according to Pilot Pen.
Taylor-McCants credits ELCA coaching and the support of the Southeast Michigan Synod with helping her to grow as a leader and make that difference. “The synod has paid for my coaching the last four years to support our work, and it has really yielded a great return,” she said. “I think more pastors and mission developers should take advantage of this opportunity.”
Tajalli Hodge, former president of FedUp’s board of directors and a current volunteer, sees Taylor-McCants’ innate leadership as a primary driver of the ministry’s success. “From the very beginning, she’s been guiding us with the gospel, making sure we have our priorities and finances straight and that FedUp and all its ministries is doing the most good it possibly can,” Hodge said.
Making a dream reality
Dreamt up by Taylor-McCants on napkins from a Culver’s restaurant in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, FedUp has been serving the community of Ypsilanti, Mich., for more than four years.
By providing access to nutritious food—the ministry has served over 75,000 meals to date—hygiene services and community-building opportunities to unhoused and food-insecure people, FedUp seeks to empower individuals and families to achieve self-sufficiency and well-being.
“We envision an inclusive and equitable environment where everyone is nourished in mind, body and spirit,” Taylor-McCants said. FedUp’s mission is to meet people where they are, to serve people with dignity, to strive to employ their guests and to advocate for systemic change, she said.
The ministry offers an umbrella of services. Community members can gather for LiftUp, a worship service that follows a free meal on Wednesday evenings. WashUp provides a laundry trailer and a shower trailer, where guests can maximize their privacy and space for personal hygiene.
“It’s often more cost-effective for unhoused individuals to throw away their clothes and buy new ones at a thrift store because of the cost of a laundromat,” explained Hodge. “[If you don’t have clean clothes] that really affects the ability to go on a job interview or into work.”
Thrive, the newest FedUp program, is offered through a partnership with the University of Michigan School of Social Work in Ann Arbor. Thrive interns work with community members who are transitioning to employment or being housed.
“This grant will enable us to kick-start our capital campaign to build our own commercial kitchen and have a hub to host our fleet of vehicles and services.”
Although those making such a transition are typically eager to take their next steps, the changes they experience in the process aren’t easy. “These are such joyful times, but people lose their community,” Taylor-McCants said. “They’ve been ingrained in trauma-response and don’t have basic life skills, such as budgeting for weekly grocery shopping.” Thrive aims to bolster those skills in its guests.
One of the greatest challenges FedUp has faced in better serving community members is finding a permanent location for its staff and trucks. “We’ve moved three times in the last year,” Taylor-McCants said. That’s a lot of transition for a ministry that values showing up in the community.
While FedUp’s growth has been continuous, the fact that it has always shared or rented space has limited its ability to expand its reach. The ministry has sometimes had to say no to free meals it’s been offered because it hasn’t had the kitchen space to prepare.
“The dream is to have our own hub, where we can house all of our vehicles safely, and also have a place where people can enjoy a hot meal,” Hodge said. “Our own space will allow us to say yes more.”
The G2 Overachievers Grant could make that possible. “This grant will enable us to kick-start our capital campaign to build our own commercial kitchen and have a hub to host our fleet of vehicles and services,” Taylor-McCants said.
The passion Taylor-McCants continues to feel for her community is evident as she lays out her vision for FedUp’s future. “Coming to a place and being known by your name, being loved for exactly who you are and as God has created you, would be a huge step,” she said. “This grant is going to help make that dream a reality.”
To help
Visit fedupministries.org/give to learn how to support FedUp Ministries though its “Companion on the Convoy” monthly giving program or with an annual gift, available for individuals and congregations.
