Pastors shouldn't have to carry the weight of ministry alone. Pastors Anchor provides confidential care coordination to help pastors identify their most pressing needs, connect with trusted support, and move toward greater stability in ministry and life.
A simple journey built on a relationship with one coordinator who walks with you. You make the choices at every step, and we protect your information with responsible confidentiality along the way.
We walk the journey with you, so you don't have to carry it alone
Emotional, financial, leadership, and family pressures can overlap. We help pastors identify where support would be most useful and coordinate care across those areas.
Your trust matters. We do not routinely report your participation or care information to your church, denomination, or givers. Access is limited to authorized people who need it to provide or support your care. Before care begins, we explain how your information is used, when your consent is needed, and the legal and safety limits of confidentiality.
Every piece of information you share is handled according to its sensitivity tier.
Confidentiality has legal and safety limits. These may include required reports of abuse or neglect, legal process, and immediate safety concerns. We explain these limits before participation and limit disclosures as described in our policy.
We know that trust is earned, not claimed. Every structural decision we have made, every policy we have written, and every system we have built has been designed with one question in mind: "Would a pastor who is afraid trust this?" We believe the answer is yes, and we intend to prove it, one relationship at a time. If you have questions about how we protect your information, call us. We will walk you through it personally.
We are proving the model before we scale it. Sarasota is our home base, but the Year 1 pilot serves pastors across the broader Suncoast and Southwest Florida region, from Tampa to Fort Myers.
Our first pilot begins October 14, 2026, serving eligible pastors in Florida in Sarasota, Manatee, DeSoto, Charlotte, Hillsborough and Lee counties. We will support pastors while evaluating the model and building a dependable provider network. If you know of a pastor, provider, church, or giver who needs to hear about what we're building, please help us get connected with them.
Florida combines multiple pastoral stress factors: rapid population growth, high cost of living, megachurch density, and frequent pastoral transitions. Many pastors relocate to Florida seeking renewal, only to encounter intensified expectations with fragmented local support. Pastors Anchor is beginning here because this is where our team has relationships, and where we can build and evaluate a dependable regional network of care.
Three individuals with complementary gifts united around a single conviction: We shouldn't keep asking pastors to be stronger. We should build a better system of care and support around them.
Logan and Chris are trained to provide backup care coordination when Erik is unavailable. Backup coverage follows the same responsible confidentiality standards as all of our care.
Your pastor spends their life caring for your congregation. Pastors Anchor gives them a confidential place to find care of their own, so they can stay healthy in ministry for the long haul. Pastoral transitions can bring substantial financial and relational costs. Earlier support can help churches care for their leaders and prepare for healthier transitions.
Your church can help pastors receive the support they need to stay in ministry for the long haul. One of the greatest kingdom investments you can make is in the pastors who spend their lives caring for God's people. Contact us to discuss the current sponsorship options.
Inquire About Church PartnershipYour gift supports care coordination, access to professional services, and the people and systems that make sustained support possible.
During the pilot, we will track participation, referral engagement and participant-reported wellbeing at scheduled follow-ups. The 14-day checkpoint follows up on each referral, and the 30-day checkpoint follows up after a pastor begins services. Formal assessments take place at 90, 180, and 365 days, with monthly check-ins in between. The measures below are planning targets, not results already achieved or guaranteed outcomes. We will report what we learn, including incomplete follow-up data and areas where the model needs improvement.
Your gift helps pastors connect with care and receive ongoing support through the pressures of ministry. Donations support care coordination, access to professional services, and the people and systems that make this work possible. Give once or become a monthly partner to help sustain the program.
Prefer to give by check, through your church, via a donor-advised fund, corporate matching, or a planned/legacy gift? Contact Chris Absher, Director of Development & Strategic Partnerships, at chris@pastorsanchor.org, and we'll walk you through it.
Pastors Anchor does not directly provide counseling, financial advice, coaching, or other professional services. We coordinate care through a vetted network of independent professionals, ministry practitioners, and organizations.
We are more than a referral directory. Pastors Anchor's care coordinator contacts providers first to confirm fit and availability, then the pastor reaches out to the provider directly. Pastors Anchor pays for approved services.
Note: Joining the provider network begins with an initial conversation, not an online application. Because confidentiality, fit, and reliability are central to our model, every provider relationship is carefully vetted.
Participation in the network does not guarantee referrals. Providers remain independent and are responsible for services delivered within their own professional or ministry scope.
This is the general contact form, for church partnerships, giver inquiries, provider conversations, media, and general questions. If you are a pastor seeking confidential help, please use the Get Help pathway instead.
Pastors Anchor does not accept applications for direct financial assistance or emergency cash grants. For pastors enrolled in our program, Pastors Anchor pays for approved care services within their care plan.
We do not routinely share your participation or care information with your church, denomination, or givers. Any sharing is governed by your consent and the legal and safety limits explained in our responsible confidentiality policy. Our care team aims to respond within one business day, Monday through Friday, excluding holidays. Messages are not monitored continuously.
This intake is encrypted in transit and at rest. Access is limited to authorized people who need it to provide or support your care. See our Responsible Confidentiality page for complete details.
Choose the pathway that fits your situation:
Prefer to call or text directly? (937) 823-3821, Erik Smoot, Director of Pastoral Care
This submission is encrypted. Access is limited to authorized people who need it to provide or support your care. Our care team aims to respond within one business day, Monday through Friday, excluding holidays. Messages are not monitored continuously.
We do not cold-call a pastor who has not authorized contact. Our outreach approach changes significantly based on your answer above. Your referral information is kept confidential.
Your information is kept separate from your spouse's, and your spouse cannot access your record. You are seen here as your own person, not as an extension of your spouse's ministry.
Our care team aims to respond within one business day, Monday through Friday, excluding holidays. Messages are not monitored continuously.
Your information is protected under our responsible confidentiality policy. Thank you for taking this step. It matters.
We do not routinely share your participation or care information with your church, denomination, or givers. Any sharing is governed by your consent and the legal and safety limits explained in our responsible confidentiality policy. Reach out the way that feels right — a call, a message, or a short form. Our care team aims to respond within one business day, Monday through Friday, excluding holidays. Messages are not monitored continuously.
There's no wrong way to start. Every channel below goes to the same trusted team.
To take part, you must be currently serving as a pastor in a local church that holds to historic orthodox Christianity, the core beliefs summarized in the Apostles’ and Nicene Creeds. Any pastoral role qualifies: lead, executive, associate, worship, youth, outreach, campus, children’s and others. Part-time and bivocational pastors are welcome. Pastors who have left ministry, or who serve outside a local church, are not eligible.
We serve churches that hold to historic orthodox Christianity: the core beliefs Christians have shared for centuries, as summarized in the Apostles’ and Nicene Creeds. Within those parameters, we work with churches across many denominations and traditions, as well as non-denominational churches, large and small.
Yes. A pastor’s spouse can contact us to refer their spouse or to get support for themselves. We’re developing a full spouse support pathway, which will launch in our second year. Until then, we may still be able to provide some form of care depending on the situation, so please reach out and ask.
Right now our program is open only to pastors in our pilot region: Sarasota, Manatee, DeSoto, Charlotte, Hillsborough and Lee counties in Florida. If you’re outside that area, we’d still be glad to point you to other resources that may help.
No. Church sponsorship isn’t required. You can contact us directly whether or not your church sponsors you.
In our pilot-year program, we have room for 25 pastors. If all 25 spots are filled when you contact us, we’ll add you to our waitlist. We hope to serve more than 25 pastors in our second year, and pastors on the waitlist will be among the first we contact to join the program.
Pastors Anchor is not a direct financial assistance, cash grant, or emergency relief program. Pastors cannot apply for financial assistance as a standalone service.
For pastors enrolled in the Pastors Anchor care coordination program, Pastors Anchor pays for approved care services, such as counseling and other professional support, that are part of their individualized care plan. Pastors Anchor determines eligibility and approved services as part of the care coordination process.
Our current pilot program serves eligible pastors and ministry leaders within the Suncoast region of Florida.
Pastors Anchor generally funds approved care and services identified through a participant’s care plan. We are not a general hardship fund or grant-making program for pastors.
Effective Date: September 21, 2026.
Version: 1.3
These Terms of Use explain the conditions of participation in Pastors Anchor, Inc. By agreeing to these Terms through the Pastors Anchor intake or enrollment process, you agree to the conditions described below.
Pastors Anchor provides confidential care coordination for pastors and ministry families. We help participants identify areas where support may be helpful, develop a personalized care plan, connect with vetted independent providers and resources, coordinate approved services, pay for approved care services, and review progress over time.
Pastors Anchor is not a counseling practice, medical provider, law firm, or financial advisory firm. Pastors Anchor staff do not provide therapy, medical treatment, legal advice, financial advice, diagnosis, or other professional services requiring independent professional licensure.
Participation in Pastors Anchor is voluntary and is subject to these Terms and Pastors Anchor’s eligibility, program, funding, and safety requirements.
You may ask questions, decline a particular referral, request another provider when available, or choose to discontinue participation. You agree to provide information that is accurate to the best of your knowledge and to communicate with Pastors Anchor when circumstances change in a way that may affect your care plan or referrals.
Pastors Anchor considers confidentiality foundational to its work.
Information concerning your participation, intake, care plan, referrals, needs, progress, family circumstances, financial concerns, ministry circumstances, and other information shared with Pastors Anchor will be treated as confidential.
Pastors Anchor will not disclose this information to your church, employer, denomination, board, congregation, donors, referring parties, or other unauthorized persons unless you give permission, limited information is necessary to coordinate a service you have authorized, disclosure is required by law, or disclosure is reasonably necessary to address an immediate safety concern or emergency.
A church, donor, referring individual, or sponsoring organization does not receive access to your confidential information simply because they support, fund, or refer someone to Pastors Anchor.
Our commitment to confidentiality does not prevent Pastors Anchor from using de-identified and aggregate information as described in Section 10. Such use will not include information that could reasonably identify you and does not authorize Pastors Anchor to publicly share your identity or identifiable personal story without separate permission.
There are circumstances in which Pastors Anchor may be required or permitted to disclose information. These may include an immediate risk of serious harm to yourself or another person, suspected abuse, neglect, exploitation, or endangerment that must be reported, a valid court order, subpoena, or other legal requirement, or an emergency requiring immediate action to protect health or safety.
When reasonably possible, Pastors Anchor will limit disclosure to the information necessary for the situation.
Pastors Anchor may connect you with counselors, therapists, financial professionals, ministry coaches, mentors, consultants, retreat organizations, or other independent providers. These providers are independent professionals and are not employees or agents of Pastors Anchor unless specifically stated otherwise.
Each provider is responsible for their own professional services and judgment, recommendations, licensure and credentialing requirements, privacy and confidentiality practices, scheduling, records, cancellation policies, and other professional or legal obligations.
Before adding a provider to its referral network, Pastors Anchor conducts a screening process that may include reviewing professional credentials or licensure when applicable, professional experience, services offered, familiarity with ministry context, references, availability, and alignment with Pastors Anchor’s confidentiality and program expectations. This screening is intended to support referral quality but does not guarantee a provider’s services or outcomes.
If a provider does not feel like a good fit because of the working relationship, communication style, approach, experience with your needs or ministry context, availability, or another concern, you are encouraged to contact Pastors Anchor so other options can be considered.
Pastors Anchor may contact a provider before making a referral to determine general fit and availability. When appropriate, you will then be given the information needed to contact the provider directly.
You may decline a referral or request that other options be considered. Pastors Anchor cannot guarantee provider availability, appointment times, acceptance of a referral, or a particular outcome from services.
Pastors Anchor may pay for services specifically approved as part of your participation and care plan. Coverage may depend on the type of service, approved provider, program guidelines, available funding, approved sessions or services, duration of participation, and other conditions communicated to you by Pastors Anchor.
Services or expenses that have not been approved by Pastors Anchor are not covered and will be your responsibility unless Pastors Anchor agrees in writing before the services are provided.
Approval of one service does not automatically authorize additional or future services.
Independent providers may maintain their own cancellation and no-show policies. Unless Pastors Anchor specifically agrees otherwise, you are responsible for cancellation or no-show fees charged under a provider’s policy.
Providers are expected to communicate their applicable cancellation or no-show policy before or at the beginning of services. If a provider does not communicate this policy to you, please ask the provider for that information before services begin, as you remain responsible for any applicable fees.
Any counseling, therapy, medical care, financial planning, legal services, coaching, or other professional services are provided directly by the independent provider.
Pastors Anchor does not direct clinical decisions, diagnoses, treatment plans, financial recommendations, legal recommendations, or other professional judgment exercised by a provider.
Pastors Anchor helps coordinate access to support but cannot guarantee a particular personal, professional, financial, relational, ministry, or health outcome.
As a condition of participation in Pastors Anchor, you understand and agree that Pastors Anchor may use information collected through your participation for program evaluation, improvement, analysis, reporting, and research.
This information may include data collected through intake assessments, milestone assessments and surveys, care coordination activity, referrals, provider engagement, goals, program participation, program completion, and outcomes.
Before information is used for aggregate reporting, external analysis, or research, Pastors Anchor will remove or exclude your name, direct contact information, church or ministry name, and other information that could reasonably identify you.
Pastors Anchor may use de-identified and aggregate information to measure program effectiveness, improve services, better understand the needs of pastors and ministry families, identify trends and patterns, prepare annual impact reports, provide board, grant, donor, and organizational reporting, develop educational resources and presentations, and conduct or support research related to pastoral wellbeing, ministry sustainability, care coordination, and related topics.
Pastors Anchor will not publish, distribute, or present aggregate reporting or research in a form that could reasonably identify an individual participant.
Agreement to these Terms does not give Pastors Anchor permission to publicly identify you or tell your personal story. Separate permission will be obtained before Pastors Anchor publicly uses your name, photograph or likeness, church or ministry name, personal testimonial, identifiable quotation, identifiable story, identifiable case study, or other information that could reasonably identify you.
Pastors Anchor is not an emergency or 24-hour crisis-response service.
If you are experiencing an immediate medical or mental health emergency, believe you may harm yourself or another person, or believe someone is in immediate danger, contact an appropriate emergency resource. This may include calling 911, calling or texting 988, going to the nearest emergency department, or contacting an appropriate licensed medical or mental health professional.
Do not rely on routine Pastors Anchor communication for emergency assistance.
You may choose to discontinue participation in Pastors Anchor at any time.
Pastors Anchor may also pause or conclude active care coordination when appropriate. Reasons may include an extended inability to reach you, lack of engagement with the care coordination process, repeated missed Pastors Anchor meetings or scheduled check-ins without reasonable notice or response to follow-up attempts, loss of program eligibility, misuse of program resources, conduct that prevents safe or reasonable service, program capacity or funding limitations, or other circumstances that prevent Pastors Anchor from reasonably coordinating care.
When reasonably possible, Pastors Anchor will communicate with you before active participation is concluded.
Ending participation in Pastors Anchor does not necessarily end an independent relationship you have established with a provider. Any continued services or payment arrangements should be discussed with the provider and Pastors Anchor as applicable.
Pastors Anchor may update these Terms as its program, practices, or legal requirements change. Pastors Anchor will maintain an effective date or version number for the Terms.
If a material change affects active participants, Pastors Anchor may provide notice and request acknowledgment of the updated Terms when appropriate.
These Terms are governed by applicable federal law and the laws of the State of Florida.
By electronically agreeing to these Terms through the Pastors Anchor intake or enrollment process, you acknowledge that you have had the opportunity to review these Terms of Use and agree to be bound by them, including the provisions regarding confidentiality, independent providers, approved services, cancellation and no-show fees, and the use of de-identified information for program evaluation, reporting, analysis, research, and program improvement.