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Trinity Church Outreach Mission Statement To open the way for the Spirit of God to transform us, and the world, In a recent series of congregational meetings, the members of Trinity strongly stated that outreach is the most important thing that Trinity Church does. The congregation has generously supported many programs and projects over the years - with money, with time and with sweat. To be part of Trinity is to have an acute understanding of the blessings of giving - for those who receive and for those who give. Noon Lunch Program - Trinity volunteers and crews from twelve other churches serve a hot meal to people in need every weekday. Volunteers prepare food for and serve twenty to forty people per day from the Trinity kitchen and parish hall. Donations and the proceeds from the cookbook Table Grace are used to support the program, and it is registered to shop at the local food bank. We also receive leftover food from local schools and supermarkets. Food Pantry - The Church maintains a food pantry from which people in need can get one bag of canned food a month. The food is donated by members of the congregation. Missions to Honduras Since 2003, Trinity has sent an adult mission group once a year to work in Honduras, the 2nd poorest country in the western hemisphere. In 2006 we also sent a youth mission group. We currently plan to send another youth group in summer 2008, while continuing the annual winter trip for adults. We are working under the auspices of the Episcopal Diocese of Honduras, whose Bishop, the Rt. Rev. Lloyd Allen, has ambitious plans for building churches throughout Honduras. To date we have assisted, financially and physically, in the building of the Church of the Holy Spirit (Iglesia de Espiritu Santo) in Santa Rita de Copan, and the Mission Church of San Nicolas in El Quebracho, Copan. The Department of Copan, in the mountains adjoining Guatemala, is home to 36 small Episcopal congregations and is referred to, within the diocese, as the “Mayan Region”. They share one priest, Fr. Arnoldo Mejia, and are, for the most part, isolated communities with lay leaders and little or no financial resources and no worship space. In many cases the people walk for miles to attend worship service. When a church is constructed, it quickly becomes not only a place of spiritual celebration, but a center for community activity, including educational and health programs and possibly micro-enterprises. In addition to church construction, the diocese has a non-profit agency called Angladiche which carries on home improvement projects in remote villages were many people die or are sickened by poor sanitation, smoke from unventilated indoor fires, contaminated water, insects and molds from thatched roofs and dirt floors. Our work has been mostly construction, and more construction. It is hard work, of the most primitive kind. It is pick and shovel, hand wired rebar, cement mixed on the ground and carried by the bucket, rocks passed person to person up or down steep slopes. But it is work done with joy, with purpose, and in communion with our brothers and sisters in Christ. Sometimes we are able to spend time doing simple craft and game activities with the children. We seem to be the equivalent of the circus coming to town, there is so much enthusiasm for anything we offer. We are now known and welcomed as part of these two communities and to worship with them has become the highlight of our trips. What we give to this mission work is our time, our money, and our labor. What we get from this mission work far surpasses the value of all that we give. The people of Santa Rita and Quebracho do have one resource in abundance and that is a spiritual joy which they have generously shared with us. This is what we are called to do by the Gospel. The need is great, in Honduras and all over the world, including here in our own country. The world is both big and small, local and far away. We are called to serve in the world. Millennium Development Goals - In response to the resolution of the 2006 General Convention, Trinity has made a commitment to the concept of designating .7 % of its operating budget to support of programs which further the Millennium Develop Goals. (See links to the left for information about how we will provide monthly support of the individual goals from October 2007 through May 2008) We have allocated a portion of our .7% commitment from funds previously designated to outreach. Our goal is to incorporate the full .7% into our operating budget without drawing from non-operating funding. We are also working to educate and encourage individuals to make a personal commitment to give an additional .7% of their income toward the fulfillment of the goals. Katrina Relief - Adult groups have gone to Long Beach, Mississippi to work on materials distribution and the rebuilding effort there. In June 2007, a youth group went to New Orleans to rebuild. The Outreach Committee -The Outreach Committee is dynamic! The various activities, programs and ongoing events sponsored by Outreach include a diverse approach to helping out in our community. The Trinity Outreach Committee sponsors the following: The Booker T. Washington Community Center, once the all-black high school in Staunton, has been an organization that Trinity has had an ongoing relationship with for over a dozen years! Parishioners have tutored, painted, planted, repaired, mowed and scraped and celebrated with our neighbors at Booker T. to make it a thriving neighborhood treasure, with after-school activities, practice areas, basketball courts, and a stage and meeting place. The gift of a van from Trinity to Booker T. some years back is still in use, needed to transport children and others to and from activities at the Center. Christmas Eve Outreach Dinner – This event is anticipated by members, families and guests: The entire congregation gets involved and many count this event as the one that ‘makes’ Christmas for them! A ‘Giving Tree’ is placed in the back of the Church on the first Sunday in Advent, with tagged ornaments placed there with names of folks in need who might not otherwise have a Christmas gift at all! Congregants bring their gifts, wrapped and tagged with the name taken from the tree, and Christmas Eve, a turkey dinner with all the trimmings is held in McCracken Hall. Santa comes, (of course!) and gifts are distributed to the guests. Everyone helps and the smiles and laughter that issue from every corner of that hall is amazing to behold! The Holy Spirit is clearly in that space. Benedict Days – The modified Rule of St. Benedict is honored by those who feel called to enjoy our quarterly “Benedict Days”. Held on a Saturday, participants are invited to come early for Morning Prayer, a light breakfast is then served as we observe silence and listen to selected readings. Following the meal, the group adjourns to the task(s) at hand: yard work, painting, cleaning, writing Christmas cards for our shut-ins or tags for the Giving Tree (see above). At noon, lunch is served, more readings/prayers and we end about 1 pm. It is restful and yet productive, a rich experience for those who participate. Other opportunities to serve |
