The Outreach and Advocacy Ministry Team meets monthly to plan and implement important community, state, national, and world programs.
2007 projects include:
Children of Peru Food Fund
A group from Central traveled to Huancayo, Peru early this summer to construct a shelter for women and children and offer medical assistance. The shelter has been finished thanks to the money you donated and the workers who traveled there. We have discovered the shelter does not have enough money to provide a reliable and regular meal for the children. Currently they are receiving a meal just once a week. Our goal is to raise $20,000 in 2008 to provide two meals per day for the children. It costs just $40 per day to provide a meal each day for fifty children, less than $1.00 per day per child. Send your contribution to the church office or place it in the offering plate and mark on the memo line or the envelope, "Children of Peru Food Fund."
April Sylvester, Recipient of the
2007 Mission Volunteer of the Year Award
April was an important member of Central's mission
trip to Picayune, Mississippi this spring.
Congratulations!
Mission to Peru
Click here to view a slide show of pictures of the building in Concepcion, Peru, which Central sent a team to assist in building and has worked to fund. The building is complete and feeds 100 needy children from that community each day. It also serves as a worship center and has other functions throughout the week. It is our hope that a second-story may be added one day that will serve as a safe-house for women and children escaping abuse.
Going Green At Central!
The "Going Green" task force had their first meeting recently. Seven persons are participating in this important area of ministry with great enthusiasm. We have identified our purpose as follows: As a beginning expression of our care for God's good creation, we will examine practices, facilities and activities of Central United Methodist Church to discover ways we can be more environmentally friendly. We identified a number of practical areas where Central's ministries and facilities can be more environmentally friendly. These include:
- An "Energy Audit" by Progress Energy
- Reducing the number and use of flourescent bulbs in less critical areas
- Placement of recycling bins in strategic areas of the church for plastic, cans, and paper
- Find a way to sell our recycled cans and us the proceeds for mission needs
- Recycle used ink cartridges
- Look for ways, in conjunction with the city, to recycle glass and paper
- Work with the city in securing a date, time, and place to drop off hazardous waste such as batteries, old paint, etc.
We hope to put these and other ideas into practice in mid-August. If you have ideas, or would like to participate in our task force, please contact the office!
- Darfur Educational task force: This group works on keeping members of the church and community informed about the atrocities in Darfur, and suggests ways that people can help. Frequency: Ongoing
- Monthly small group construction team: This small group meets monthly for reflection, prayer, and work to improve living conditions for a local resident. Frequency: Monthly
- Yard of the Week: This program seeks to build morale and improve living conditions in some of Florence’s most difficult neighborhoods by rewarding homeowners who take care of their yards. Area master gardeners work wit this group. Frequency: Yearly-May-June
- Santahatchie Christmas Work Team: Middle School and Senior High School students work the week after Christmas repairing homes in the Florence area. They sleep and eat during that week at the church. Frequency: Yearly, week after Christmas Day
- Alternative Gift Giving Program for the Christmas Season to benefit Habitat for Humanity, The Heifer Project, Palestinian Christians in Bethlehem and other local ministries. Frequency: Yearly: Thanksgiving through Mid-December
