Outreach & Wider Mission

Overview

Our Baptismal Covenant asks that we “seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving your neighbor as yourself” and that we “strive for justice and peace among all people and respect the dignity of every human being.” Both questions strike at the very heart of what it means to follow Christ.

The purpose of our Outreach & Wider Mission ministry area is to build on the Christian mission of Christ Church by doing God’s work in the world and reaching out to our neighbors—those nearby, as well as those far away. We do this by focusing the human and material resources available to us. We desire and pray that everyone in our parish will participate in one or more of our many outreach opportunities.

Grants Committee

Comprised of parishioners, the Grants Committee manages funds set aside each year by the vestry for distribution to worthy local and national charitable organizations. In addition, 0.7% of Christ Church’s total operating budget is designated for international programs designed to meet the Millennium Development Goals as outlined by the UN and supported by the Episcopal Church USA and the Diocese of Easton. Parish members are encouraged to have deserving organizations submit a request for support to the Committee or contact the committee directly with suggestions.

Local Initiatives

Back To School Project

For a significant portion of families with children at St. Michael’s Elementary School, it is a struggle to afford school supplies. Each year, beginning in the summer months, Christ Church solicits funds from our Sunday morning congregations. The generous donations from members of Christ Church help ensure that no child is without the necessary tools of learning.

The Children’s Home Foundation

The Children's Home Foundation provides scholarships to students on the Eastern Shore. The scholarships are for students attending vocational or technical schools and are based on financial need. The CHF also provides “camperships” to needy children. The board of directors meets with guidance counselors at local high schools to find students who may qualify for scholarships.

Community Youth Initiative

On Wednesday afternoons during the school year, young people in grades 6 through 8 (middle school) gather in Etherton Hall from 4 to 6 PM for games, a warm meal and an organized activity or program. Open to all children from the Bay Hundred community, the Wednesday Youth Group is a joint venture of Christ Church and the St. Michaels’ Community Center. The parish funds the program through our operating budget and parishioners are asked to take turns preparing meals for the young people. During the summer months, the activity moves to the Bay Hundred Community Pool for a weekly “Splash Party”.

Habitat For Humanity

Since its establishment in 1992, the Talbot County affiliate of Habitat for Humanity has built 39 houses and currently has two under construction. A guiding goal of the organization is “to eliminate substandard housing in partnership with God’s people in need.” Christ Church was the first church in Talbot County to participate in the Apostles Build Project, a joint effort of local churches to assist in the building and funding of a Habitat house in Unionville. The Apostles Build Project served to renew interest in Habitat for Humanity at Christ Church and we remain connected to the organization and dedicated to supporting its ongoing efforts.

St. Michael’s Community Food Bank

The Community Food Bank provides nutritious, non-perishable foods for needy families of the Bay Hundred area. Located in the Parish House, across from Lea Library, the Food Bank is open between 9:00 AM and 4:00 PM, Monday through Friday and is operated by volunteers. Before Thanksgiving and Christmas, additional volunteers make up baskets of non-perishable goods and frozen turkeys. Members of Christ Church and St. Luke’s Methodist Church provide additional support. Also, food and monetary donations are made by the St. Michaels’ Food & Wine Festival and by citizens and other organizations in Talbot County.

United Thank Offering (UTO)

UTO collects and contributes funds to the diocese for support of worthy causes and organizations. Parishioners participate in UTO by keeping a “mite box” to which they add money over a six-month period. Twice a year, on Sundays as announced in Tidings, church members turn in their mite boxes.

National & International Initiatives

El Hogar de Amor y Esperanza (The Home of Love and Hope)

Located in the capital city of Tegucigalpa, Honduras, El Hogar is an Episcopal orphanage and school. In the fall of 2004, members of Christ Church began supporting El Hogar. El Hogar consists of an orphanage, a primary school and two secondary schools—a technical school and an agricultural school—serving 220 boys. In 2006, the Board voted to begin a pilot program for girls to be integrated into the school. Several members of the congregation have traveled to El Hogar on one of the annual work team trips sponsored by Christ Church. Others in the congregation have sent donations and raised funds to support our work at the school. In addition, a parishioner may sponsor a child at the $50, $75 or $125 level.

Episcopal Relief And Development (ERD)

ERD is a church-wide ministry dedicated to relief, rehabilitation, and longer-term development assistance. It currently works in 29 countries and the U.S. in food security, primary health care, HIV/AIDS and disaster assistance. Each parish has a representative who is the spokesperson for ERD in their congregation to encourage support of ongoing or emergency needs. Activities include an ERD Sunday, sales of specialty coffee and Gifts for Life, and encouragement for various church organizations to identify fundraising opportunities.

Honduran Dental Mission & Clinic

In 2007 Christ Church opened a dental clinic on the campus of El Hogar in Honduras. Parishioners of Christ Church raised $40,000 to build and outfit this facility with new, high-quality dental equipment. Each year, we sponsor and send two dental teams to treat the boys and girls of El Hogar. This ongoing work is funded through a line item in Christ Church’s operating budget.

Mississippi Mission: Camp Coast Care

In the aftermath of the devastating hurricanes that struck the Gulf Coast and devastated the city of New Orleans and parts of Mississippi and Alabama, our Diocese began an ongoing relationship with the Diocese of Mississippi to provide materials and volunteers to help rebuild along the coast. Beginning in April 2005 the Diocese sent work teams to Mississippi to Camp Coast Care, with several volunteers from Christ Church. (Camp Coast Care works with the communities of Gulfport, Long Beach and Pass Christian.) Work trips are scheduled in late April and late September of each year. Volunteers can go either week or stay for both. For more information, speak with one of the clergy, or with the Diocesan Coordinator, Skip Wrightson, fwrightson@bluecrab.org, or 410.822.0205.