Today we’d like to introduce you to Nanda Morris.
Hi Nanda, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
I have always felt different and called to do what is different. This has taken me on a rollercoaster of a journey! From childhood to adulthood, I experienced difficulties trying to find my place in life. There were many challenges I had to overcome. Getting an education did not interest me but drugs did. I dropped out of high school when I was 16 years old, by the time I was 17 I was pregnant with the first of three children. I was afraid, uneducated, and had no idea what to do. I enrolled in a continuation school and received my high school diploma. Going to this school encouraged me to keep my baby but I was very immature and not ready for motherhood. We moved around a great deal. I looked for love and acceptance from men I thought would fill the void but each relationship left me empty, abused, and in a deeper state of darkness.
Hunger was an issue for us. My limited education left me earning minimal wages, relying on the government became our life but even this wasn’t enough. I found myself trying to sell my body to make money but it wasn’t what God has for me. We ended up living in a hotel with some friends, one day we were all out of food and it was going to be a long time before we would receive our aid. I went to a local church to ask for assistance. They did not help me, in a sense, but sent me to a lady who ran a food pantry in her home. I will never forget this! It is the inspiration for why I began Helping Hands Ministry and Emergency Food Pantry aka Helping Hands. This beautiful lady opened her garage door and there were cabinets, a refrigerator, and freezers of food! She became the reason we made it that year. She was like Elijah’s widow woman in Zarephath, the Lord had prepared her to help us through our season of famine.
One of the goals of Helping Hands is to help those in need make it through their time of need! Helping Hands has allowed me to find my place in life, through Christ I found peace and the void in the life has been filled. He delivered me from drugs, lesbianism, lying, cheating, stealing, a life of prison, and so much more. I owe Him everything!
Besides being the President of a nonprofit, I am also a spiritual mentor. By the grace of God, I help men, women, children, and families overcome issues with their past so they can find and fulfill their purpose. This is another area of my life where what I experienced led me to develop what would meet others’ needs.
Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
Oh no! Things have been rough and rocky. As I stated earlier, getting to this place in life has been like a rollercoaster ride. The biggest challenge I faced was overcoming my past. My failures plagued me and limited me from excelling in the corporate world. I spent nine years working for a company that never appreciated the work I performed. Let me share this one instance with you, I had gone back to school to finish my bachelor’s degree (for the 4th time). In 2010, I finally graduated! I was so proud of myself. I was a major achievement for me. However, it was not celebrated in my workplace. The Vice President of our Human Resources Department came into the office and shut the door. He pulled up a chair to my desk and said how admirable it was for me to have obtained my degree but that it would not be recognized. His words cut me like a knife! This is the man I admired, we prayed together, ate together, laughed, and shared much of our lives together. The betrayal was deep.
I could not allow my achievement to be treated like it did not matter while I watched others in the same company be rewarded, promoted, and applauded. So, I wrote a list of all that I do in the department and attached that to a proposal for a promotion and raise. I made an appointment with the CFO of the company and presented it to him. I told him all that had transpired and how unfair I had been treated. He apologized to me for what had occurred. I ended up with a promotion and raise, not what I should have received but I stood up and spoke up for what was right.
Then while this fight was occurring I had to fight for a place in the local church. The Lord called me to preach in 1997, it was unspoken for a woman to preach in the pulpit in those days. We moved to Alabama and the local church where I attended did accept women preachers. I was delighted to find what seemed like a place to call home. But unfortunately, what I found was more politics, betrayal, favoritism, and plenty of false promises. Now, let me be clear, I am not against the church! But it is not a business but a body. I should not have experienced the same issue at my place of work in the church.
I learned so much during these seasons! Each one helped me to grow up and become strong. I had to face and overcome the fear of people, being timid, feelings of inadeqecy, and my own insecurities. During these years I authored one of the four books I have had published.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I believe that I am most known for my ministry to others. I love to serve people! Praying, teaching, mentoring, preaching, feeding, loving on people has filled my life. My children can tell you of the many, many young people we took into our home. We were the house where every child could find love and acceptance and a meal (smile). If a parent was looking for their child, they came to our house first. Once a dear sister had an emergency and we took her seven children into our 2 two-bedroom two-bath apartment. I am a giver, I am a lover of people, especially the poor. I truly believe that the poor are special to God and that He has called some to help them to survive. This is truly my happy place! If you could see the tears filling my eyes as I write you would understand.
About the books I have been privileged to write, first was “To the Seven Churches” and end-time comparison of the present-day church to the seven churches in the book of Revelation. Then there is, “Make me a House of Prayer.” Written to help individuals in churches body’s overcome life issues that rob us of our true identity, being a kingdom of priests. Next, is “The Gap in my Teeth,” this book was written to help children and young people who have issues with having a gap. Many children are teased and become ashamed of their gap. I wrote this to help counselors help children embrace their unique qualities and to show that they are not alone. The last book is “Firey Bride” this book was written to help believers rekindle their love for the Lord. Each book can be found on Amazon.com or on my ministry website www.iamnandamorris.com.
Can you talk to us about how you think about risk?
I believe that if you feel you are called to do something there will be risks. I do not believe that anything we see in this world has happened without someone taking risks. When I began Helping Hands I wasn’t working, but one day I received a call for a contract position. I took the position but knew in my heart that I should not have accepted it. It was such a burden, it took the most important hours of the day, and I was miserable. I quit that job! No, income for the nonprofit but I had a vision and people who would support what I have been called to do.
You cannot be fearful and be in business! Taking risks is part of seeing any vision come to pass. I believe there will be other opportunities ahead that will require me to leap without seeing where I will land. I trust that God will guide me through every step and carry me through every leap.
Contact Info:
- Email: helpinghandsmefp@yahoo.com
- Website: https://helpinghandsfoodpantry.net
- Facebook: https://fb.me/hhefp
- Other: www.iamnandamorris.com
Image Credits:
Ramonica Gamble
Angel Moore
