Serve – In The Community

Disaster Relief Response… Lean into Love 2.0

In 2020 during Lent, the Mission Committee determined that increased demand for local hunger and crisis relief assistance due to onset of the pandemic’s economic impact required a shift in focus of our Lenten project. The Disaster Relief Fund was established to receive funds for distribution to local hunger and crisis relief agencies, and “Lean into Love” became the theme of the project, which resulted in donations approaching $30,000 dollars to those local agencies.

Today, demand for local hunger and crisis assistance persists at increased levels due to pandemic restrictions, again taxing the ability of local relief agencies to respond. As a result, the Mission Committee decided that this year’s Lenten project should follow last year’s pattern, and “Lean into Love 2.0” became this year’s theme. The Disaster Relief Fund will once again receive donations, which will be earmarked to support the following local hunger and crisis assistance agencies: Hunger and Health Coalition, Hospitality House, Casting Bread/Travis’s Lunchbox, WeCan (Western Crisis Assistance Network), and Rumple Presbyterian/Blowing Rock Cares.

More will be said of this effort as we approach and enter Lent, but please pause to reflect on the scriptures that undergirded last year’s effort as you begin prayerfully deciding how to respond to Lean into Love 2.0:

“’You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: you shall love your neighbor as yourself.’”
Matthew 22: 37-39.

“There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear.” 1 John 4:18.

“And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’” Matthew 25:40.

 
 

Resources…

FOOD NEEDS:
 
 
Click HERE for a list of Churches, Organizations, and Schools that are addressing the food needs of our community.
 
 
 
OTHER NEEDS:
 
Community Care Clinic – Free clinic for low income and uninsured: https://ccclinic.org/
 
Hospitality House – Hunger Relief & Housing WeCan – Western Crisis Assistance Network https://www.hosphouse.org/wecan
 
Hunger and Health Coalition – Hunger Relief & Prescriptions: https://www.hungerandhealthcoalition.com/
 
Blue Ridge Energy — Assistance Funding Info: https://www.blueridgeenergy.com/news-center/coronavirus
 
 

Food 4 Families 2020

Due to the Coronavirus, Food 4 Families will look different this year… find out more HERE: Food 4 Families

HELP US FEED OUR NEIGHBORS AND THEIR CHILDREN during the SUMMER! More than 50% of the children at Bethel, Cove Creek, and Mabel Schools receive Free or Reduced lunch during the school year. In the summer the free and reduced lunches are not available…that’s where the Food 4 Families mission project comes in and we would love for you to join us! Here are some ways that YOU can help feed children in Western Watauga County this summer…

  • Come together to PACK Food boxes of kid-friendly food every 2 weeks this summer
  • LOAD the church bus
  • DELIVER food to our partner churches
  • PRAY that God will lead each of us to do our part to help feed the families that need it the most this summer.
  • Serve on the F4F Planning Team
Questions??? Fill out the contact form below.
 

GATHERING to SERVE August 10, 2019 postponed until 2021

All ages will have the opportunity to be the hands and feet of God in our community on Saturday, August 11! A dedicated group of project leaders would love to have you on their team and serve alongside you in one of many projects to choose from.

Here’s what to expect: 8:00am… DEVOTIONS! Everyone meet at FPC for morning devotions

8:20—11:45am… PROJECTS (Find 2018 Project DESCRIPTIONS here)

NOON… LUNCH! Everyone meet at FPC for a delicious lunch prepared by the meal team… followed by a time to share experiences and give thanks to God for the opportunity to serve Him and the community
 
Childcare will be available throughout the morning for those too young to participate.
Questions? Fill out the contact form below.
 

Helping Hands Wood Lot

HELPING HANDS WOOD LOT – a dedicated group of men and women from FPC and Grace Lutheran meet weekly year round to collect, cut and split wood which is then stock-piled in a lot adjacent to the Hunger Coalition. The purpose is to help offset the cost of heating homes for those who cannot afford to buy wood.
Interested? Fill out the contact form below.

Hospitality House / WeCAN

HOSPITALITY HOUSE / WeCAN serves as a clearing house of benevolence assistance and crisis services for Watauga County residents. Hospitality House provides emergency shelter, transitional and family housing and permanent supportive housing for those in need. Bread of Life Community Kitchen provides 3 meals a day to all residents and any community members in poverty and need. The meals are managed by their food service coordinator and prepared by churches, civic organizations, and volunteers. For more information go to HOSPITALITY HOUSE.
 
Overflow Shelter at the Hospitality House… During the cold months of the year, we provide volunteers one day a week to sign in people who come in for the night to have a warm place to sleep. If you would like to help out, fill out the contact form below.

Hunger Coalition / Western Watauga Food Outreach

WESTERN WATAUGA FOOD OUTREACH (WWFO)… Over 61% of the children at Bethel Elementary are enrolled in Free and Reduced Lunch. Many more would qualify but will not apply. A trip for someone who lives in the Bethel area could easily take two hours plus the cost of gas to get to and from the Hunger and Health Coalition. This is a significant barrier for many in western Watauga County which is considered to be a food desert, to get food. 
 
On the FIRST Thursday of every month from 4:00 – 6:00pm, First Presbyterian provides a team of volunteers for WWFO at the Community Center in Sugar Grove. Those who come to WWFO can take home bread as well as in season local produce and meat and / or eggs when available. Bags of food are given every 2 weeks to those who qualify through the Hunger Coalition system. A community meal is served every Thursday evening. Want to get involved? Fill out the contact form below.
 
HUNGER COALITION provides food and pharmacy assistance to the High Country. A collection basket for non-perishable food items is located at the bottom of the stairwell on the first floor. Find out more about the Hunger and Health Coalition HERE.

One Day With God Prison Ministry

A group from FPC volunteers in August at Avery Mitchell Correctional for a One Day With God Camp. The camps are sponsored by the High Country Prison Ministry in collaboration with Forgiven Ministry based in Taylorsville, NC.
The “One Day with God” Camps began with a vision of one day inside prison walls where parent and child could reconcile with one another and spend time together with God-anointed mentors working beside them. The day includes games, crafts, lunch, music, clowns, an illusionist, face painting, and a parent and child quiet time. It is a divinely appointed time for both child and inmate where both can experience the love of God and find forgiveness and reconciliation. If one child could have a Christ-centered Mom or Dad return home from prison, there would be a joyous change in that home forever, and it could change the path that child takes in life.

Interested? Fill out the contact form below.

For more information: FORGIVEN MINISTRY

Operation Christmas Child 

                     “Therefore go and make disciples, of all nations….”      Matthew 28:19a

Each fall, Circle 1 invites you to pack Operation Christmas Child Shoeboxes with toys, toiletries, school supplies, books, and small articles of clothing AND to include messages telling children God loves them and you are praying for them.  There will be OCC Shoeboxes and packing information at the OCC Center in the Gathering Space, along with some donated items and toys made by our FPC kids that you may include in your shoeboxes.
   
What Goes in My Shoebox? 
 *Start with a quality item like a stuffed animal, soccer ball with pump, or clothing outfit that will capture the child’s attention the instant he or she opens the box.                                                                              
*Pack other fun toys, hygiene items, and school supplies to fill the shoebox.                                        
*Pray for the child who will receive your gift and send a personal note and photo.                                       
*Include a donation of $9.00

RISE Against Hunger 2019 postponed until 2021

Rise Against Hunger’s meal packaging program is a volunteer-based initiative that coordinates the assembly line packaging of highly nutritious dehydrated meals comprised of rice, soy, vegetables, and 23 essential vitamins and minerals. The program was created to give dedicated individuals and organizations the opportunity to participate in a hands-on international hunger relief program and to become educated, engaged advocates for the world’s hungry.
On Sunday, March 31, in the multi-purpose room, we partnered with ASU’s Pi Kappa Alpha fraternity in the fight against hunger to pack over 17,000 meals! If you have any questions about Rise Against Hunger or would like further information, please contact the church (828) 264-3906.
When we rise together, we can create a world without hunger.