Outreach

Outreach at St. Andrew’s continued to prosper in 2021. We found creative ways to reach out and bless others in need. We once again did a modified spring Service Worship in keeping with Session’s protocols. We made Easter baskets for families with children who have severe physical disabilities as well as Easter baskets for the foster children in La Frontera’s care. We met with To Go Christian Church and handed out lunches to the most vulnerable living on the streets. It was an awesome experience to see that church in action! We collected over 650 food items and supplies for our friends on the Navajo Nation and made another trip to deliver it all in May! And finally, we began reaching out to our friends in our own congregation who needed to know that we were thinking about them. What a blessing to deliver those Easter boxes and bags!

We helped plan the Jim Toole 1K and provided snacks, water toys, and bubbles for the children. Some of our mission partners joined in the fun, and the day was a blessing for us all.

RuthAnn continued to participate in Ward 5’s Homeless Coaltion meetings and presented to their team in July. Ward 5 and Richard Fimbres bring different organizations to the table to better serve the homeless needs of the community. St. Andrew’s is the only church represented and continues to bring ideas on how the faith community can partner with the city.

Serve Our Schools was rained out, but that did not stop the Lord from delivering our blessings after the fact. We made our first connection to a new school, Maldonado Elementary, which is out on the Pascua Yaqui Reservation. We are the first church to support them! The principal is a very gracious and kind woman who was very grateful for the blessings we provided: playground balls, lots of snacks for hungry children, and encouragement items for the staff! We were also able to bless them in the fall with fifty 12 Days of Thanksgiving bags and Santa cups in December which were all made during Serve Our City! We once again blessed Butterfield and Mountain View High School with our amazing desserts. We are quite famous for those! We helped Oyama with some difficult outdoor projects and supplemented their STEM program. We made 40 boxes of blessings for health care workers in the Amphi School District, and blessed our own members who are hard-working in our schools!

We participated in the second city-wide service day, Serve Our City, in cooperation with a planning team from Pantano Christian Church, Hope City Church, and Desert Hope Lutheran. This event had 1400 volunteers and involved 17 different churches and organizations. We are blessed to see Pastor Jim’s vision come to fruition: Service Worship in the city growing from a spark to a bonfire.

We made Christmas blessing bags for our friends who might need a little extra love at this time of the year. We worked with ADM and CDM to make this happen during Cookies, Carols, and Cocoa! Those who attended the Christmas Women’s Brunch donated just under 100 ornaments to go into the bags. The beauty and thoughtfulness of the ornaments was absolutely amazing to see! We added lights, three different treats, hope bookmarks, and cards to the bags as well!

We are looking forward to 2022 and to what the Lord has in store for the new year! Save the date for Pastor Jim Toole’s Service Worship, January 30! We have three new ministries presenting - each being completely different than the other.

We are thankful to the Lord for always providing, and for St. Andrew’s members who are led by the Holy Spirit to give time, prayer, and donations so generously. It is with deep gratitude that we continue to be a light for service in our city. Thank you!!!