Mercy Bridge
a work of House of Mercy, Asheville
Bridging the gap between incarceration and a new life — through mercy, community, and love.
Our Story
Mercy Bridge was born from a simple conviction held by Jane Derrick, a founding member of House of Mercy: Christ is already at the prison. If we want to know Christ better, we need to go where He is — with the people society has pushed aside, many of whom have been victims and survivors themselves.
What began as one woman's calling has grown into a thriving weekly ministry that has touched the lives of more than 300 women over more than five years.
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Every Sunday afternoon, 8–10 House of Mercy volunteers enter Western Correctional Center for Women in Swannanoa, NC. There is music, a message, and an atmosphere completely free of judgment. About 100 women gather — not to be lectured, but to be reminded of something the world too often forgets to tell them: they are beloved and worthy.
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Mercy Bridge doesn't stay inside the walls. Volunteers regularly bring women from Western Correctional to Sunday morning worship at House of Mercy, where they are welcomed as VIPs — because they are. Sitting together at a table, sharing stories with a laugh or sometimes tears. This is what belonging looks like.
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When women are released, the hard work of rebuilding begins. Mercy Bridge walks with them every step of the way:
Rides to court appearances, medical appointments, work, and church
Transitional housing support and connections
A consistent community that sees them as whole people with a future
A peer support specialist — herself a woman who walked this road — available for guidance and encouragement
We have supported more than 250 women through reintegration since the ministry began.
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Every year, Mercy Bridge brings Christmas inside. Holiday treats, gifts of practical necessities — lotion, lip balm, hats, gloves — and an abundance of joy fill the room. Every one of the approximately 350 women in the facility is included. No one is left out. It blesses the women who receive and the volunteers who give in equal measure.
Our Impact
250+
Women supported through reintegration
~100
Women attend each Sunday service
5+
Years of faithful, consistent presence
1500+
House of Mercy volunteer hours per year
< 1%
Our recidivism rate. North Carolina's is 40–49%.
350
Women included in annual Christmas celebration
Why This Work Matters:
The Big Picture
The United States incarcerates more people per capita than any other nation on earth. Prisons have increasingly become the default response to poverty, mental illness, addiction, and trauma — conditions that call for care, not cages.
In North Carolina, the recidivism rate — the percentage of people released from prison who return — is estimated between 40–49%. Nationally, some measures put the rate even higher. These numbers represent not just individual failures, but a system that releases people without the relationships, resources, or community they need to rebuild their lives.
At Mercy Bridge, we believe the answer is not more programs. It is presence. Not charity from a distance. Belonging. A recidivism rate of less than 1% among the women we have walked alongside tells us: when people are truly seen and loved, things change.
This ministry is also a Matthew 25 commitment in action. "I was in prison and you visited me." (Matthew 25:36) For our PCUSA congregation, this is not optional — it is the call.
How You Can Help
Our 1,500+ annual volunteer hours represent an estimated $50,000 in contributed labor each year. Your financial gift multiplies that investment and extends what we can do beyond the walls.
Several women we walked with started college inside prison and graduated after her release. Another came back to us after a setback and is now our peer support specialist. Many have gotten jobs and lead happy productive lives, giving back to their community. These outcomes don't happen by accident — they happen because people like you made them possible. Your gift today keeps that work going.
We take 8–10 volunteers into the prison each Sunday. You don't need any special background or training — just a willingness to show up, be present, and share. We also need volunteers for:
Transportation for women attending Sunday morning worship at House of Mercy
Rides to court, medical, and work appointments for women post-release
Transitional housing navigation and support
Get Involved
Spread The Word
If you believe people deserve a second chance…
If you believe poverty is too closely linked to the prison system…
If you believe that women who have been victimized deserve more than a cell…
If you believe we need to support people struggling with addiction rather than incarcerate them…
Then Mercy Bridge is your kind of community — and we need you.
You don't have to go to church. You don't have to have all the answers. You just have to believe that things can be different. Share our story, make a gift, show up on a Sunday. Every person who hears about this work is a potential volunteer, donor, or friend to a woman who needs one.
