The Pleasant Grove Baptist Church has long been an active participant in seeking to improve the holistic quality of life for residents of Wendell and Eastern Wake County.
The church ministries included a food pantry, employment ministry, and youth enrichment ministry. Seeing a need to expand the relationships with partners who share a common vision and aspirations for the region, the church formed the non-profit Greater Pleasant Grove Development Corporation to work with public and private entities to bring support services and resources to the area.
In January 2018, the GPGDC developed the East Wake Leadership Academy, a K-12 afterschool and summer program that provides homework help, academic skill-building, leadership training, recreation, and youth employment. The EWLA program is structured, engaging, and provides appropriate one-on-one help to ensure students get the specific help they need. Importantly, students targeted for the program were those who participated in the summer camp and in the 2017-2018 after-school program. The idea is to provide a continuum of supports to foster students' academic and overall success.