From Boutique to Blessing
Erasing $3.1 Million in Medical Debt
POP’s Treasures is one of the most exciting new ministries of Prince of Peace Evangelical Lutheran Church. Since its start in 2023, it is a monthly “boutique” staffed by church volunteers. All the items for sale are donated by members of the surrounding community, and each month POP’s Treasures brings in between $3,000 - $5,000. But it’s not a fundraiser for the church; rather, the leaders of this ministry have committed to giving most of their profit away to outreach ministries.
In its two years, POP’s Treasures has grown well beyond our wildest dreams. Part of this was through the unbelievable response from the community, both for donations and purchases. Part of it was also through the help of Witness and Service grants from the NEPA Synod to help purchase some much-needed trailers for storage.
A sizeable portion of POP’s Treasures’ profit in 2025 was given to an organization called Undue Medical Debt. Nationally, more than 100 million people are burdened by medical debt to the tune of $220 billion. Medical debt is the leading cause of bankruptcies in the US. People with medical debt are also three times more likely to experience mental health burdens like anxiety or depression and significantly more likely to skip or delay mental healthcare. Simply getting sick is a stronger predictor of medical debt than insurance status or poverty.
Undue Medical Debt is an organization that works to change that. It is a national nonprofit that acquires medical debt belonging to those least able to pay in large, bundled portfolios for pennies on the dollar, while also shining a light on the broken system that creates medical debt. Through donations, they are then able to get that debt forgiven.
The POP’s Treasures Committee found out about Undue Medical Debt through an article in the news, and contacted the organization. They discovered that with a donation of $20,000, they could erase over $3.1 million worth of medical debt, which would free 1,975 people, all in Northampton County. The committee decided to make this donation, and the people who received this debt relief have now received letters telling them that their debt is paid in full, and that is was done through a gift from POP’s Treasures, a ministry of Prince of Peace Lutheran Church.
It’s mind-boggling. With a donation of $20,000, POP’s Treasures has eradicated three million dollars of medical debt, almost all the medical debt in Northampton County. I’m reminded of the story of Jesus feeding 5000 people with only five barley loaves and two fish. John’s gospel tells us that these loaves and fish were provided by a boy (John 6:1-14). Just like that feeding, this debt relief is a miracle to people who need it most. I think of the people of Prince of Peace, and the people of the Bangor community, as the boy in the story.
In the story, when the boy brought his meager loaves and fish to Jesus, they became something far more. When the boy faithfully offered what he had to Jesus, Jesus transformed them, and performed a miracle. Jesus still does this with us. Whenever we faithfully offer what we have to Jesus, he can use what we have (which might seem so meager to us), and transform it into a miracle that changes the world.
POP’s Treasures and Undue Medical Debt have done this in a very visible way, and we celebrate that! God can do this with everything we have. All we are asked to do is to share it faithfully.
Thank you, Georgia and Prince of Peace, for allowing us to share your story
Prince Of Peace Lutheran Church
