Current Mission/Volunteer Opportunities
How to Help:Our church partners with Alcott Elementary School in Pontiac, MI. There are many facets to this partnership, including: tutoring, Media Center activities using the school's mobile library, weekly shopping for 15 - 20 families (called Shop N Drop - see below), Baskets of Love (non-perishable food baskets given to families at Thanksgiving and Christmas) among other activities. If you are interested in helping with the Alcott partnership during this school year (2022-23), please contact Stephanie Kummer at szkummer@yahoo.com.
Become a Shop 'N Drop Volunteer! Shop 'N Drop is done in 3 easy steps:
1. One shopper each week will shop for 20 families, spending $275-300 each. That's a total of around $15 per family. 2. Deliver your groceries to Alcott on Thursday morning. 3. Turn in your receipt to Martha Smith at FPC to reimburse you for your $275-300 in groceries. Click on the button above for more information and to sign up. Baldwin Center is a comprehensive human service agency with a mission to feed, clothe, educate and empower the men, women and children of the Pontiac Community. They need volunteers to prepare meals for distribution, run their Holiday Store before Christmas, prepare food baskets for Pontiac families, sort donated clothing, tutor/mentor youth and offer after-school activities, counsel at Summer Enrichment Camp, offer poverty training for organizations, and assist clients with laundry and obtaining essential donated items. Contact: Dave Duey, Volunteer Coordinator, dduey@BaldwinCenter.org.
PRESBYTERIAN DISASTER ASSISTANCE - Donations to help victims of flooding in Kentucky or refugees of Ukraine.
Lighthouse Volunteer Food Box Packing—Every week Lighthouse packs boxes of food for people in our area who are food insecure. We have members who help on Fridays from Noon-3pm and they have reported back that Lighthouse is in need of more help. Packing days are Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays with shifts from 9am-noon and noon-3pm. You can sign up online using the link above or contact Pastor Bethany to get connected.
PRAY FOR FOSTER CHILDREN: You can make a difference by selecting one of the picture postcards of our Michigan kids hoping to find a forever family. You’ll see a basket of cards in the Welcome Center. Take one, post it where you can see it each day, and pray for this child’s well-being. You can also check out the YouTube video that highlights some of our Michigan kids: Michigan Adoption Resource Exchange Heart Gallery 2021 Video To learn more or to see all the children on-line, you can visit the Michigan Adoption Resource Exchange at www.MARE.org
St. Joseph Mercy Home Care & Hospice is looking for volunteers for their hospice program. Please click on the button above for more information.
Things to DONATE:RETURNABLE BOTTLES AND CANS
On the First Sunday of every month, we will collect returnables. The Scout Troop and Youth group are teaming up to do a monthly can collection. We have decided to split the funds 1/3 for Youth group, 1/3 for Troop, 1/3 for Foster Care Coalition. On the first Sunday of each month we will ask members to bring in their returnable cans/bottles and place them next to their car in the parking lot. Youth from the church will collect the bags and store them in the troops travel trailer out back. The Troop will then return the cans and submit the money for distribution. HAVEN Urgent Needs List Food boxed cereal, bottled water, sweet & salty snacks; Clothing and Toiletries boy’s underwear, women’s leggings (esp. plus sizes), women’s underwear (small & medium) body lotion Home Goods full size sheets, white twin size flat sheets, pots and pans, silverware, reusable plastic cups, bath towels, paper towels, bathroom tissue, laundry soap, disinfecting wipes, kitchen/bathroom cleaner, bleach Thank you! THE WELCOME INN: They need jeans, waist 36+ and length 32+ or cash donations for clothing. The Furniture Bank of SE MIchigan: Please consider making an in-kind donation of any lightly used basic furniture items including but not limited to dressers, mattress/box springs, sofas, dining tables or a monetary donation to 'Furniture Bank of Southeastern Michigan. There are more than 150 families close by who are on their waiting list to receive basic furniture. All types of donations are tax-deductible. Please call (248)332-1300 or use the button below to make a donation. The Furniture Bank is also looking for a full time truck driver for pick-up/delivery of furniture. Our Community PartnersIt's hard to stay on top of ALL the amazing things our community partners have going on. Check our their websites to see everything they have coming up.
Welcome Inn is a low barrier day center for people experiencing homelessness in our area. They have a donations list on their website, volunteer schedule, and a sign-up to pre-make casseroles for their feeding program. Welcome Inn Has Particular Clothing Needs. Please place the following in the Welcome Inn bin in the Donation Center Shed: T-shirts (2x and 3x), men’s jeans 36x36 and 36x34. men's shorts 38 and 40 waist. Good quality size 12 men’s wide shoe, such as Reebok or New Balance (sturdy shoes).
Become part of the Casserole Club! Welcome Inn is looking for volunteers to prepare delicious and nutritious meals to be served daily as part of Welcome Inn's lunchtime offering. Call Mary Johnston to get a recipe, prepare a delicious casserole(s) and drop it off chilled or frozen. They have foil pans you can use. They need 6 casseroles per day and are running low, so call Mary for more information at 248.399.0935. Save the Date! SWIRC is running the Detroit Marathon on October 17 as a team and needs runners and helpers. Click on the button above for more information.
Micah 6 Community seeks to bring affordable fresh produce to the Pontiac area. They have community gardens, a mobile food truck, and community events that could use your help.
Forgotten Harvest recovers food that would be thrown away and redistributes it to people in need. Their volunteer sign-up process is easy and the work is always a good time.
HAVEN seeks to eliminate domestic violence and sexual assault across Oakland County and the surrounding communities by empowering survivors through advocacy and social change. Click here for a list of items that HAVEN is requesting in September from FPC.
Common Ground is a 24-hour crisis services agency dedicated to helping youth, adults, and families in crisis. Through their crisis line and in person, they provide professional and compassionate service to more than 80,000 people each year.
Click here for an Amazon wish list of items that Common Ground is requesting. |