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Episcopal medical equipment ministries help ease the burden of illness, mobility issues

August 25, 2026

[Episcopal News Service] A planned joint replacement, a traumatic accident, a terminal diagnosis or the challenges of an aging body can be life-changing, as well as costly. The cost of needed equipment and supplies can be a nightmare for many people. Durable medical equipment such as wheelchairs, walkers, commodes, canes, crutches and shower chairs cost hundreds of dollars, yet once people recover, most no longer need the equipment. Enter Episcopal medical equipment loan closets, operated by churches. Their goal is to provide people with the equipment and, at times, the supplies they need. Everything is free, and the equipment is returned when it’s no longer needed. The St. James Medical Equipment Ministry in Eatontown, New Jersey, loans durable medical equipment and also gives out supplies such as wound-care bandages and ointments, adult diapers, catheters, feeding tubes and ostomy bags. Donors who give equipment and money have been so supportive of the ministry at St. James Episcopal Church that it also can help other groups as near as Pennsylvania and as far away as Ukraine, according to Jeff Hughes, one of the nine volunteers who run the ministry. “You ask for it; I can probably find it for you,” said volunteer Kathy Braun, motioning to the rooms and hallways at St. James stacked high with equipment and supplies. Nancy McCormick, from Point Pleasant, New Jersey, learned about the ministry when a friend’s daughter was diagnosed with cancer and needed help. McCormick recently came to St. James to pick up a shower chair for her 97-year-old mother. “It’s been helpful to come and get all the equipment I need,” she said, adding that she returns equipment and gets other equipment as her mother’s needs change. The St. James ministry began in 2022 when parish member and retired engineer Brian Meagher met an unhoused man confined to a motorized wheelchair with battery troubles. Meagher wanted to help fix the equipment and learned about the Pluckemin Medical Equipment Ministry, operated by the Presbyterian church in Pluckemin, New Jersey, since 2010. The ministry helped Meagher get the man a newer, better motorized chair at no cost. The Presbyterian group encouraged Meagher to start the St. James ministry in partnership with them. Judy Jackson, the founder and coordinator of St. John’s Medical Loan Closet in Bandon, a town in rural southwestern Oregon, found inspiration from a different source. St. John’s Episcopal Church did not have a permanent priest in 2017 and lacked an outreach ministry. A supply priest mentioned that she had heard about medical loan closets and suggested that the small congregation consider the ministry. St. John’s started with one wheelchair and put out a call to the community for donations. Today they have close to 200 pieces of mobility equipment to loan, she said. The ministry also got some start-up money from the church and the diocese, and from a local women’s charitable organization. The ministry does not solicit financial donations, but many people want to give something in return for the help they’ve received, Jackson said. Pastoral care often comes with the equipment. Volunteers say some people cry when they come to donate items that a family member or friend no longer needs. The donors, they say, are gratified that the equipment they bring can help others, as their loved ones were helped. Laurie Friedman, who volunteers at the St. John’s loan closet, said it recently felt like “most of what I was doing at the loan closet was listening to people’s stories and holding space for what they wanted to share.” “It seemed like everyone had a story to tell about why they were there seeking some kind of medical equipment. So much of what we do is to provide needed equipment, but just as important is that we offer kindness and a way to help folks deal with their stressful situations in a concrete way.” – The Rev. Mary Frances Schjonberg is a freelance writer who formerly was a senior editor and reporter for Episcopal News Service.