192: Bridging Mental Health and Church Care with Laura Howe

Episode Summary In this episode of Key Ministry The Podcast, host Dr. Steve Grcevich welcomes Laura Howe, a registered social worker, trainer, and founder of Hope Made Strong. Laura shares her journey from clinical mental health social work to empowering church leaders with practical, sustainable tools for care ministry. Together, they discuss the unintended harms that can occur when churches lack clear care structures, how to prevent volunteer burnout, and why systemic frameworks are essential for both small and large congregations.

Key Takeaways

• Laura’s Journey: How 20 years in clinical social work, peer support leadership, and her personal experience with compassion fatigue led to the creation of Hope Made Strong.
• Unintentional Harm in Care: The dangers of church leaders either pulling away due to insecurity or overextending beyond their level of expertise.
• Support for Leaders, Not Just Congregations: Why Hope Made Strong focuses on equipping care leaders, pastors, and volunteers rather than offering direct care to individuals.
• The Care Protocol Framework: A simple, 4-step framework for handling care needs: Receive, Respond, Report, and Follow Up.
• Scalable Systems for Every Church Size: How structured care processes benefit small, volunteer-led churches just as much as mega-churches.

Featured Guest

• Laura Howe – Registered Social Worker, Founder of Hope Made Strong, and host of the annual Church Mental Health Summit.

Resources Mentioned

• Hope Made Strong: Learn more about care leadership cohorts, templates, and administrative tools at hopemadestrong.org.
• Church Mental Health Summit: An annual online event taking place October 7–10, 2026. https://www.churchmentalhealthsummit.com/home

• • Key Ministry: Discover resources for disability and mental health ministry at keyministry.org.