About Us
The Mission of the Vine is to be an ecumenical pastoral counseling center which provides services for individuals, couples, families and congregations that facilitate healing and wholeness in human life and relationships.
We are a nonprofit organization supported by 19 churches and two organizations in the greater Huntsville/Madison area of Alabama. The Vine has served people from over 100 congregations from Florence to Scottsboro/ Cullman to Fayetteville. We currently provide an average of 250 hours of service per month to people in need of growth and healing which utilizes both spiritual and psychological resources.
Our fees are set by a sliding fee scale based on gross family income. Scholarship assistance is available through the mission contributions of our supporting congregations.
History of The Vine
The original vision for The Vine Pastoral Counseling Center evolved in Board meetings of the Huntsville Association for Pastoral Care beginning in 1997. This organization began to research the need for a pastoral counseling center in the area by meeting with clusters of ministers in different parts of Madison County. It was the ministers in the Madison area that originally resonated most strongly with the need.
The Vine was officially incorporated on February 2, 1999, with the initial Board of Directors consisting of the following:
- Rev. George Wagner, Madison Christian (DOC)
- Rev. Bobby Ray Halbrooks, Madison UMC
- Rev. David E. Tew, First Baptist Church, Madison
- Rev. Carl Malm, The Huntsville Association of Pastoral Care
- Mrs. Jeanne Hightower, lay representative from Faith Presbyterian
- Rev. Robin Palmer, representing the Huntsville Association of Pastoral Care
- Rev. David Tubbs, Good Shepherd UMC, Madison
- Rev. Hugh Tobias, Trinity Baptist Church, Madison
- Rev. Jim Roberts, Hope Presbyterian Church, Huntsville
- Rev. Frank Broyles, The Huntsville Association of Pastoral Care
- Rev. Fred Webster, Grace UMC, Madison
- Rev. Michael Wilson, Trinity Baptist Church, Madison
The first day of business was March 9, 1999. Since that day, The Vine has provided over 15,000 hours of service (as of Fall 2005) to people in northern Alabama and southern Tennessee (Florence to Scottsboro / Cullman to Fayetteville). The Vine presently provides about 250 counseling hours of service each month.
