The summer quickly draws to a close and we find ourselves back in our “normal” routines – kids are back in school, there are buses to catch, lunches to make, meetings and choir rehearsal to attend, back to work and whether we realize it or not we are already starting to brace ourselves for fall and winter.
A quick look back to summer with all of its fun, family, barbecues and vacations will also give us a peek into all that our Deacons continued to do. The Food Pantry continued to operate every other Saturday and delivered upwards of 10,000 pounds of food each month. There were times the Pantry was short staffed because of vacations but they managed with the help of other volunteers and got the job done. Please pick up a Food Pantry schedule in the Gathering Space and let one of our Deacons know if you are interested in helping. We even need people to pick up Panera Bread the evening before Pantry days.
We are pleased to report that the Yorktown Lions Club made a check presentation to our church during the intermission of one of the summer concerts at Veterans Memorial Field last month. Carl Anderson has reported that the Lions Club contributed a total of $2,800.00 over the last year to our church for the Food Pantry efforts and Diaper Ministries through cash donation and gift cards from stores in the area like Stop and Shop and Walmart.
Chuck Radke reported that “Beanie Babies” and sports cards were given away to the delight of the children of Food Pantry clients during August. You should have seen the children’s faces light up when they were told they could choose these items to take home.
August was also the month for School Supplies which were donated in age appropriate kits to children. Debbie Hager reported that there were over 60 kits dispersed for children in grades K2 and over 75 kits dispersed to children in grades 35. That’s amazing! And the school children were absolutely delighted. Thank you ALL for your donations, support and efforts to make this happen. If you check online on our website at fpcyorktown.org you’ll see that the Fed Ex delivery truck arrived with all the supplies just ahead of the storm.
The fall and winter promise to be as busy and exciting. The Deacons continue with their Diaper Ministry supplying those in need each month. You can help by making donations of any amount to the Deacons and indicating “diapers” on your check or memo line of your online contribution. There will be a “Hat, Scarf and Mitten” tree set up in Advent to accept all of your donations of purchased and hand made items. These will be delivered during Food Pantry days during December. Remember – we need your help. Check with any Deacon to see how you can give of your time, money and talents!
The Food Pantry item of the month for September is CANNED FRUIT. Todd reports that it seems canned fruit has been hard to get. You can leave cans of fruit, or any other item for that matter, in the basket located in the Gathering Space next to the bulletin board. Oh! The Pantry always needs plastic grocery bags. You can bring them to Room 2 or just leave them in the basket with the canned goods. As always, we praise God for the work we are able to do through all of your many efforts and we thank you for all of your caring and loving support. God Bless you.
~Carol E. Thorne-Gaetani for the Deacons