Valentine, who founded the center with her sister Carol Finney 10 years ago, says day care is a extension of the black church's role educating its community. For a long time the church was the only source of education in the black community. The role of Mount Zion has evolved from primarily a place of worship to a base for community outreach. Mount Zion is used as a meeting place of groups and organizations but, more importantly, as a place where those in need can get a helping hand. For the past nine months, the church has held a Friday Fellowship, which reaches out to the young people in the housing complexes.
Volunteers work with neighborhood kids on their homework and participate in a variety of activities.
The program runs from 7 p.m. until 9 but we get kids showing up as early as 6 p.m. Opportunities for inclusion for young black people now weren't imaginable 30 years ago. Because of those opportunities, Hilderbrand says the church is called upon more to fill the role of an extended family, helping to nurture and provide resources. We don't turn anyone away. Mount Zion's helping hand has even extended beyond the borders of New Brunswick.