MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Greater Community Temple COGIC is taking on a different look and purpose on Saturday.

The Memphis church was transformed into a pop-up pod which bolstered the vaccination process.

“It looks like we have hundreds of people that have gathered all down Winchester. Memphis has come out in an amazing way,” Bishop Brandon Porter, Greater Community Temple COGIC, said.

That is the idea. Bishop Brandon Porter leads the congregation at Greater Community Temple COGIC, but Saturday he was also leading by example by rolling up his sleeve for a shot in the arm.     

A shot, he’s hopeful will get things moving in the right direction.

“Our kids are ready to get back to school. People are ready to get back to work, get back to the church and whatever fellowships they can have,” Porter said.

The goal is to get back to a place of normalcy. Volunteers and health care workers, coming together to get doses into arms. The line for the vaccine stretched through the church’s parking lot, extending down Winchester.

And the church playing host to this event, Bishop Porter says was all by design.

“The church is viable and essential in our community just to give people hope and trust. Because a lot of people in our community are apprehensive on if this is something we need to do or not,” Porter said.

Undoubtedly there are some who are hesitant while others are eager to roll up their sleeves. The Bishop adds, it’s especially important during these tough times to seek guidance from a Higher Being.

“We pray over Collard Greens, let’s pray over the vaccine,” Porter said.

Pop up sites like this one are what city leaders say you can expect to see more of, during the vaccination process, especially in areas deemed a hot zone.  It’s an ongoing effort to break healthcare access barriers.

By days end, the total count from Greater Community’s pop-up pod is 656, according to church officials.