Here are some outreach ministries we are or have been involved with recently:
A.L.I.V.E.! — (ALexandrians InVolved Ecumenically) serves over 12,000 Alexandrians annually with shelter; low-cost early childhood education and childcare; financial help for rent, utilities, medical care and other critical needs; emergency food; and deliveries of donated furniture and housewares. More than 700 volunteers a year from nearly 42 religious congregations (including Washington Street) help ALIVE! fulfill the mission to put faith and love into action. (For questions about any of the below ways to volunteer for A.L.I.V.E.! through Washington Street Church, contact Deborah Patterson.)
A.L.I.V.E.! Furniture Delivery – One month of each year we are responsible for providing 4 strong persons to move furniture on a Saturday morning from 8:00 a.m. until noon. Volunteers will have direct contact with the Alexandria families they are helping.
March and August are the two months that WSUMC is responsible for helping fill the food pantry of A.L.I.V.E.! (although we send food and household items at other times of the year, too.) Items that are especially needed are: baby formula, baby food, canned meat (tuna, chicken, any protein), peanut butter, dried beans, cereal, canned fruit.
Walk for a Good Cause…………..Annual Walkathon in early May to benefit the ALIVE! Child Development Center (CDC), a full-day preschool serving children of low-income working parents. Step Alive! walkers gather at the First Christian Church, 2723 King Street, at 2:00 p.m. for a five mile walk through Old Town (enjoy entertainment on Market Square)followed by a picnic. There are registration fees for adults and for seniors and youth. (There is no fee for children under 12.) Walkers are encouraged to raise additional funds through pledges of support from friends, family and associates. Pledge forms and additional information about the event are available on-line at www.alive-inc.org or by phone at 703-837-9300.
Last Saturday in the Month A.L.I.V.E.! Food Distribution at the Cora Kelly School Recreation Center (Commonwealth & Reed Avenues) to distribute food from the National Capital Area Food Bank and the USDA Food Program. Starts at 9:00 a.m. with a time commitment of 2-4 hours. This event does not occur in November and in December on regularly scheduled last Saturdays.
Turkey Trot, in 2011 for the first time, ALIVE’s Alexandria Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving morning (November 24) will start at George Washington Middle School (1005 Mount Vernon Avenue in Alexandria) and not the Cora Kelly Recreation Center. Runners support ALIVE! by bringing nonperishable food to donate. Volunteers are needed at 8:15 a.m. to help collect, sort, and box the donations for delivery to our food warehouse. For more information or to volunteer, please contact the ALIVE! office at 703-837-9321 or alivetoo@aol.com. http://www.visitdelray.com/turkeytrot.
Carpenter’s Shelter — On the 2nd Saturday of each month (this date is a change for WSUMC in 2012), we work with the Carpenter’s Shelter, a local homeless shelter at the corner of Henry and First Streets in Alexandria. Meal volunteers are responsible for providing, preparing, serving and cleaning up meals for approximately 75 people. The time commitment is usually 11:00 a.m.-1:00 p.m. Join in this meaningful outreach. Erin Lee or Kelli Back can tell you more.
In celebration of the 10th year of the Cook-Off, Carpenter’s is making a weekend of it with all proceeds benefitting the Shelter and its work on behalf of homeless individuals, children, and families.
• Saturday, April 28, 2012, 8:00 a.m., the Run for Shelter 10K and One Mile Fun Run — the only race in Alexandria dedicated to the commitment to end homelessness. The course, starting at Eisenhower Avenue and Swamp Fox Road in Alexandria, will have music and entertainment for the whole family. 10K =$40; Fun Run =$20. Info and registration: www.runforshelter10k.com.
• Sunday, April 29, 2012, noon to 3:00 p.m., 10th Anniversary Cook-Off Celebration, The Birchmere, 3701 Mt. Vernon Ave., Alexandria including 30 of the area’s best restaurants offering samples of their finest food, plus a live auction offering attendees the chance to bid on trips, tickets, meals and more. Tickets: The early-bird ticket registration price of $35 is in effect only until February 15. Then tickets are $40 (adults) and $10 (children under 12). Info and tickets, visit www.carpenterscookoff.com.
For general inquiries, contact Alex Stevens at , 703-548-7500, ext. 204, or on Twitter @cookoff2012.
Christ Church’s Lazarus Ministry — We collect food for a Thanksgiving food pantry, send monetary donations from our Pastor’s Discretionary Fund, and regularly refer those who come to our doors in need to this ministry.
Carolina Cross Connection — Every summer youth and adults from Washington Street Church travel to western North Carolina to join with other church groups in Carolina Cross Connection’s summer mission program.
Meals on Wheels — WSUMC began providing volunteers for the M-O-W program soon after the program began in 1965. The program was initiated by the Alexandria Council of United Church Women in cooperation with the Alexandria Health Department. The program provides meals for ill, convalescent, handicapped, or elderly people who are unable to provide well-balanced meals for themselves. Clients pay a small weekly fee for the service. The program is under the Senior Services of Alexandria; meals are delivered by volunteers.
Our church helps with the volunteer services one the third Monday of each month. On our assigned day, teams for the six delivery routes arrive at the designated pickup point at 10:20 a.m. to pick-up the meals and start deliveries. Easy to follow directions are provided for each route. Route deliveries take approximately one and one-half hours. Empty containers are returned to the pickup point.
Although we have several dedicated, reliable, volunteers, we need more. In addition to “regulars,” we need several substitute volunteers. You may volunteer for a specific job or for “Anywhere needed” duty. Contact the church office if you are interested in helping with this program.
Nation Children — Our 18 big bags of new and used shoes joined with donations from other churches in Northern Virginia to be trucked from the churches to their warehouse and then on to Haiti in early February 2010.
Operation Christmas Child — brings joy and hope to children in desperate situations worldwide through simple, gift-filled shoe boxes and the Good News of God’s love. For three years now the Washington Street church congregation and Preschool families have packed shoe boxes and prayed for children around the world.
“The power of a simple gift —When they open their shoe box gifts, the harsh world around them fades and their hearts fill with wonder and joy as they see the treasures within. Yet the impact of Operation Christmas Child goes far beyond smiles and laughter. These simple gifts become Gospel opportunities, opening hurting hearts to experience the transforming power of Jesus Christ.” – OCC
Rising Hope United Methodist Mission Church is our United Methodist mission church serving primarily the poor who live and work along the Route 1 corridor south of Alexandria. Over the years Washington Street Church has strongly supported Rising Hope’s ministries with the poor collecting
• angel tree gifts to fulfill Christmas wishes for children and parents
• staple food goods and warm clothing and blankets
Our members are also “delivery angels” transporting these donations from our church to Rising Hope. The WSUMC bins fill up quickly with your generous donations.
Sara’s Open Table — WSUMC has launched Alexandria’s only walk-in breakfast program, The Open Table on Monday mornings from 6:00-8:00 a.m. Click here for more information on the program and what donations are needed right now. Contact Rachel Miller.
UMCOR (The United Methodist Commitee on Relief) — UMCOR is the humanitarian relief and development agency of the United Methodist Church, a worldwide denomination. Compelled by Christ, UMCOR responds to natural or human made disasters—those interruptions of such magnitude that they overwhelm a community’s ability to recover on its own.
UMCOR maintains a corps of trained disaster response specialists for quick reinforcement of local efforts, and it keeps a supply of relief materials in warehouses for dispatch when and where required.
When disaster strikes outside of the U.S. — whether a natural or human-made disaster — UMCOR serves as the primary channel for United Methodist assistance. UMCOR moves in concrete ways to ease human suffering and do whatever possible to restore normal life.
Specific ways Washington Street gives to UMCOR:
•donating money for relief supply kits
•benefit concerts and direct donations of money for specific advances
•One Great Hour of Sharing offering during Lent
