About Us

History

The Cooperative Ministry began in 1982 when five downtown Columbia, SC, church congregations joined together to coordinate their efforts to help the area's needy, working poor and homeless.

Since then, The Cooperative Ministry not only has moved to a larger facility, but also grown to encompass congregations of all faiths and 120 partnering agencies, plus countless local civic and social organizations, foundations, businesses and individuals.

One thing that hasn't changed is our mission to help the needy and working poor of our community in crisis. And that means meeting their immediate needs with emergency financial and housing assistance, transportation to get and keep jobs, material goods to start over. But more than that, it means working equally hard to provide emotional support and counseling to prevent future crises.