Young Dreamers: Rev. Russell May

A little more than a year ago, the Rev. Russell May chose a life focused less on material possessions and more on being open to the world around him.

May, 32, had been pastor at Hopewell Moravian Church, and he had been talking with a group of friends there who believed there was more to faith than religious services and more to life than accumulating possessions.

The group's discussions centered around the idea that their faith called them to open their lives and share what they had with the people around them.

The group members, May said, started asking difficult philosophical questions of themselves:

"How much of our lives are we willing to share with each other? Are we willing to share day-to-day, are we willing to share a house? Are we willing to share economics? And then how much are we willing to share with other people who are not in this group?" May said. "Can we stand alongside … those who are struggling economically, those who are immigrants or new to the area, to those who are currently unhoused, those who experience abuse? Can we literally stand in the same space as these folks?"

For May, who will be honored Tuesday night with the Winston-Salem City Council's Young Dreamers Award, the answer was yes.

The group discussed which neighborhood they would like to become a part of. They wanted an area that had residents who struggled with money, or crime, and they wanted to help people who immigrated to the United States. They settled on Waughtown and Sunnyside.

The pastor at Trinity Moravian Church, the Rev. John Jackman, offered them the church's parsonage house, a craftsman-style bungalow on Sunnyside Avenue.

May quit his job at Hopewell Moravian — leaving behind salary and benefits — to move to the church and start the new ministry. The group called the ministry Anthony's Plot.

They opened the house to people who were struggling financially or with substance abuse, and offered emergency shelter to families or individuals who found themselves suddenly without a home. Six people live there now, including May and his wife. Two were once homeless.

One of those residents is Mario Trollinger, a 41-year-old man who said he struggled for years with drugs and alcohol. After living at Anthony's Plot for the last seven months, Trollinger is enrolling at Forsyth Tech to earn a certificate in facilities maintenance. When he finishes, he will be certified to take a full-time job taking care of schools or other institutions. Trollinger said May's influence helps him every day.

"His character is just — I had to watch him at times and try to humble myself," Trollinger said. "I'm trying to be a positive influence going out the door."

The doors to Anthony's Plot are rarely closed. On Monday nights, neighbors come and share a meal — which May and the other members of the house prepare with donated food. Then they have a worship service in the living room. They meet on Thursday nights to go over the business and work of Anthony's Plot. Over the summer, they held art and music days for neighborhood kids who couldn't afford summer camp. They hosted a block party and gave away more than 100 backpacks stuffed with school supplies.

Brian and Amy Feezor, who had known May at Hopewell Moravian, go to a Methodist church now. But, Brian Feezor said, they consider Anthony's Plot to be where they live out their faith. They bring their three children by a couple of times a week to play and eat and help with May's work.

"This is the best Sunday school lesson they'll ever get, is walking through these doors," said Brian Feezor. "When they're here, they can put things in motion. They can take what we learn and apply it. I've seen them in the last year really develop a heart for service. They're more perceptive to needs. Getting them to ask for something for Christmas was hard. I'm proud of them for that."

Amy Feezor said May is directly responsible for that.

"It makes you want to help people too, when you see what he does," she said.

May's work and Anthony's Plot have changed the Sunnyside neighborhood too, said Katherine Smith, who lives down the block from the Anthony's Plot house.

"It seems like everybody worries about each other — like they look out for each other. They look out for Anthony's Plot, really," Smith said. "I think about people. I think about what people don't have and I'm grateful for what I have."

May, she said, "cares about people. He doesn't care about your race or your religion. He cares about people and he cares about this neighborhood."