"And what does the Lord require of you? To do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with your God." - Micah 6:8
GOAL (Greenville Organized for Accountable Leadership) is a growing interfaith coalition of 29 congregations located throughout Greenville County. Through the power of large numbers of organized people, we work to solve critical community problems. While all of our congregations provide direct service to those in need, our mission is to be a grassroots, direct action, multi-issue organization that gets at the roots of the problems in our county.
Our Model of Justice Ministry
We believe in the power of organized people!
GOAL Justice employs the DART (Direct, Action, Research Team) model to create impactful change. This yearly cycle fosters collaboration and empowers congregations to tackle pressing community issues.
Listen and Connect
Every year, each faith community hosts a series of Listening Sessions begining in September. Themes emerge from the stories shared and members gather at our Community Problems Assembly in November to democratically select priorities for the coming year.
Community-Led Grassroots Research
From November to March, research committees interview subject experts and comb through relevant reports. Solutions emerge by looking at the best practices in other cities, new proposals from experts, and what is achievable in our community. Findings are approved by a local board. The research phase ends with our Rally where we share the actionable solutions we identified and build power leading up to our Nehemiah Action.
Direct Action
Based on the example found in Nehemiah 5, the annual Nehemiah Action Assembly demonstrates broad public support for proven solutions. From this platform, we seek and obtain commitments and support from local officials. As needed, the organization monitors progress on the issue to ensure desired impact. System-wide changes often require a series of cycles before we can responsibly shift our focus to new priorities.
Transportation
The Problem: Greenville County ranks 14th deadliest in the nation for pedestrians, with White Horse Road leading in fatalities for over a decade. The Walmart intersection on White Horse Road is the 22nd deadliest in the country. Despite multiple SCDOT studies and proposals, necessary safety improvements have not been implemented.
Pedestrian safety is a transportation issue. Greenlink’s limited service—12 hourly routes—forces many riders to walk or bike long distances to reach a bus stop or their destination. A new $50 million bus depot was built with no new buses or drivers, and the land—originally meant for affordable housing—was taken from the historically Black New Washington Heights community.
What’s Next: SCDOT has identified safety risks but has yet to take action. Addressing this crisis will require both immediate safety improvements and long-term investment in better transportation options. Join us at our Rally, March 13th to learn more!
Affordable Housing
The Problem: Currently, more than 30,000 families in Greenville County struggle to afford their housing costs, and there is a shortage of at least 11,000 homes for low-income families. Without the necessary funding, Greenville's goal of cutting the housing shortage in half by 2030 will remain out of reach. One in three families in our county cannot afford housing while also covering basic household expenses.
According to Princeton's Eviction Lab, 24 out of every 100 renters in Greenville face eviction—three times the national average of 8%. Yet, unlike Charleston and Richland counties, Greenville County has failed to successfully launch a Housing Court Pilot to reduce the number of residents displaced due to eviction. Without urgent action, the cycle of housing instability will continue to devastate families and our community.
The Solution: Because of our Affordable Housing campaign, Greenville County Council made history by dedicating $5 million to the creation and preservation of affordable housing, marking the first time the County has ever spent local dollars on affordable housing! The city has increased its funding from $2.5 million annually to upwards of $5 million. While this is a significant victory, we will continue advocating for the full $20 million of annual funding ($10 million from the city and $10 million from the county) we originally requested which is essential to addressing Greenville’s affordable housing crisis.
Our Next Steps: Thanks to the commitment of thousands of community members, GOAL Justice is building momentum to advance statewide efforts for legislation that will provide stronger housing protections for all South Carolina residents. By organizing communities and collaborating with partners across the state, we are working to ensure policies that prevent displacement, promote affordability, and create lasting housing security for those in need.
Mental Health
The Problem: Our community is in a mental health crisis. All across Greenville County, people of every age, income and background struggle to find access to consistent mental healthcare. With wait times for services often exceeding six months, many people only receive care once they are already in crisis.
While there is a long way to go until all have access to the mental healthcare they need, one vital lifeline is the newly launched 988 crisis line. This lifeline provides a crucial alternative to calling 911, and can connect people to vital resources in the community. However, the State of South Carolina was not adequately funding it.
The only 988 call center in the state is right here in Greenville, and is operated by Mental Health America of Greenville County. When we began our research in 2023 we found that, nearly 130 people a day contact 988 and only 50 get an in-state response because of the lack of adequate staffing.
The Solution: To fully staff the call center it required $3.9 million in the 2023-24 SC Budget, one tenth of one percent of the projected surplus. GOAL called on our state representatives to ensure that everyone who reaches a point of crisis has someone on the other end to answer. Sen. Karl B. Allen, (SC District 7) and Rep. Chandra E. Dillard (SC District 23), attended the Community Problems Assembly in 2023. Both Sen. Allen and Rep. Dillard, said YES and gave their commitment to vote in support of fully funding our statewide 988 Crisis Line in the amount of $3.9 million annually. They also both gave their commitments to vote for the funding to be a recurring line item in the state’s annual budget. We also met with Rep. Bannister who said YES and gave his commitment to do the same.
Our Next Steps: We are proud that in just two year we gained $8 MM in funding for South Carolinas mental health crisis hotline. We will continue to monitor the state budget to make sure officials follow through on their commitments to keep our mental health hotline fully funded so that everyone in crisis gets the care and support they deserve.
Our Organizers
Meet the passionate individuals driving our mission forward.
Executive Leadership
Pastor Reggie Garrett is the Senior Pastor of the Historic Jubilee Baptist Church in Taylors SC. He is graduate of Furman University, Converse College and Andersonville Theological Seminary. He is an active gleaner with the Society of Saint Andrews Gleaning Initiative to feed the poor and disenfranchised in the Carolinas. He has served as a member of the Board for the Greer Soup Kitchen and Board Liaison for STEP and Tiny Homes (Greer Shelter to Empower People). He is also President of the Black Alumni Council at Furman University. He is a member of the Laurens County Interdenominational Ministerial Alliance and Chaplain of the Baptist Ministers Fellowship of Greenville and Vicinity. He is Vice Moderator of the Enoree River Baptist Association and Past President for the Enoree River Baptist Association Congress of Christian Education. He is married to Janine Bennett-Garrett.
Dr. Feliccia Smith is the Vice President of Programs & Community Engagement at Urban League Of The Upstate. Prior to this role she was a Professor of Management at North Greenville University for 17 years. She also currently serves as the Co-Chair of the Community Remembrance Project of Greenville County, which partners with EJI to raise the consciousness of our community on the racial terror and violence, which has created a legacy of racial injustice and bias in Greenville County. Feliccia is a member of Valley Brook Outreach Baptist and aspires to be a beacon in the legacy of helping to create a more just society for everyone in Greenville.
Rabbi Samuel Rose serves as the rabbi of Temple of Israel in Greenville. Prior to joining the Temple of Israel family, he served as associate rabbi at Congregation Beth Israel in Austin, TX. While attending seminary at Hebrew Union College – Jewish Institute of Religion, in Cincinnati, OH, he served as student rabbi for Congregation Gates of Prayer in New Iberia, LA, and B’nai Sholom in Quincy, IL, and The Valley Temple in Cincinnati, OH. He spent a summer as a rabbinic intern in the San Francisco Bay Area working with the Bay Area Organizing Committee and the Marin Organizing Committee. He was ordained in 2012.
Lily Wood is a native of Greenville, SC, and currently serves on the pastoral staff at Pelham Road Baptist Church. She is also actively involved in the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship of South Carolina as a member of its Coordinating Council. After a career in the finance and education sectors, Lily transitioned to full-time ministry in 2023. A graduate of Bob Jones University, Lily is pursuing a Master of Divinity from Central Seminary in Kansas. She and her husband, Jake, homeschool their two children, Elizabeth and Daniel.
He is a member of Trinity Lutheran Church and has served on a variety of Boards including the Foundation Board for the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago. He currently serves on the Board for Make-a-Wish, SC as the Vice Chair. In GOAL he has served as a Team Leader for the past three years, Chair of the Finance Committee for the past year and engages local corporations to invest in GOAL Justice. Getting actively involved in Social Justice has been a calling for Lane! Lane has been married to Jo for 36 years. Together they have two daughters and a new grandson.
Rev. Dr. Greg Dover has served as the pastor of Augusta Heights Baptist Church since 2015. He is a proud graduate of Furman University with an undergraduate degree in Psychology, and holds an M.Div. from Wake Forest University and a D.Min. from Drew University. Greg enjoys cooking and cycling, with the effects of each canceling out the effects of the other. He has been married to Suzy since 2009, and they have two children.
Upcoming Events
6:00pm
7:00pm | All team leaders join us as we report back on our network meetings.
6:30pm
6:30pm
6:30pm | All team leaders join us as we follow up after the Action and prepare for our Investment Drive.
6:30pm
Support Our Community's Future
By investing in GOAL, you are directly assisting us in tackling the challenges our community has identified and organized to resolve. Click 'Invest' to pay online or send check by mail to PO Box 757 Greenville, SC 29602.