Outreach Programs
We are inspired and motivated to love and serve our neighbor - who is sometimes just down the street, sometimes in a neighboring town and sometimes in another country. We lead a number of vibrant ministries as well as partner with a variety of established organizations. For us, serving alongside our brothers and sisters in Christ is just another way we grow in God's grace.
Gleaning
CROS Ministries gleaning continues for the new season! Changes have been made to adapt to the coronavirus pandemic to make for a smaller, safer, and hopefully more efficient gleaning experience. This is a description and summary of the main changes to the gleaning program from CROS and also an outline of the St. Michael gleaning mission as it partners with CROS. The St. Michael guidelines will be in bold face.
There are two gleaning methods in the new system:
1. Team Gleaning - The team will include 10 persons plus 2 supervisors. Masks and gloves are required. Supervisors will set up the gleaners' positions and duties. Once 10 people are signed up for an event it is closed for sign-up.
2. Row Gleaning, A row can be picked by an individual or multiple persons of the same household. Masks and gloves are required.
Both methods require the gleaners to wear gloves, masks and follow social distancing and handling guidelines set up in the field.
Different crops and dates determine if we are doing team or row gleaning. In either case it is necessary that we have an exact number of sign-ups and are committed to that number. Therefore it will be necessary that anyone wanting to glean needs to notify me by the Saturday before the event. First come, first serve for sign-ups until we reach our full team size. Additionally, if you are signed up but must cancel let me know as soon as possible so that slot can be made available.
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Children 5+ are allowed to glean but must be near their supervising adult. There is no upper age limit for adults.
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We will meet at the church parking lot at a time to allow us to be at the field at 8:30. Carpooling will be allowed but not required. Non-family members carpooling should respectfully wear masks while together in the car. Please be respectful of anyone who does not wish to carpool.
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There are now two waivers to sign for each event which you attend. I will email those to you before the event. Please bring them with you on gleaning day.
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The following dates have been selected for us to glean. These are subject to change if they conflict with other church activities. We can add additional dates if we have more gleaners than spaces available. An event may be cancelled due to weather or crop availability.
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Please offer any suggestions regarding dates or operations. If you would be willing to serve as team leader let me know, it would be great to pass that around. Looking forward to a great gleaning season with all of you!
Vernon Thornton
781-985-8376 (voice or text)
Palanca Food Kitchen
St. Michael has an ongoing commitment to support the meal outreach program at Holy Redeemer Episcopal Church on Kirk Road in Lake Worth. In partnership with, and through financial support provided by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans, our 3 rotating teams of volunteers prepare and serve hot meals to those in need each third Friday of the month. Approximately 90 people, many homeless and/or destitute, a number of families and some physically impaired are served. Additional volunteers shop for food and supplies and cook pasta in advance. New volunteers are always welcome to this very fulfilling ministry.
Village of Hope
Village of Hope Lazarus Project provides financial support to ministries in Haiti as well as
opportunitees for short term mission teams to serve those ministries. Our support is for these three beautiful children who attend the Village of Hope (VOH) School in Bonnette, Ganthier, a resource poor, and rural farming area approximately 15 miles from Port au Prince, Haiti. We've had three mission trips to the school by members of the congregation.
We Sponsor 3 Students in Haiti. The cost to sponsor these children for a year is $420 each/ $35 a month each. You can make an offering towards their support using the designated line on our offering envelopes or electronic donation system.
Lutheran World Relief
Responding to need with a respectful helping hand in remote and rural regions of the world’s poorest countries, millions of people are suffering, struggling to break out of the cycles that prevent them from being healthy, productive and self-supporting. Most often, all they need to break the cycle is a boost, a helping hand to provide a resource they have not been able to access on their own.
Lutheran World Relief responds to that need. They work with local partners in rural areas and provide necessary resources and support — financial, professional or educational — at our partners’ request. With respect, professionalism and commitment, we accompany our partners in projects that strike at the root causes of poverty and help to cultivate conditions where peace and justice can flourish.
St. Michael supports this ministry through offerings to World Hunger.
Lutheran World Relief is also part of the effort to completely eradicate malaria. In the past, we have supported these efforts around Lent with our "noisy offerings." This incredible graphic shows the impact of our campaigns: in just 15 years, the use of bed nets has grown from almost zero percent to widespread use. Click to see the graphic.
Interfaith Outreach
We at St. Michael believe in the commandments of Jesus to love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength, and to love our neighbors as ourselves (Mark 12:29-30).
Yet we understand that, in our highly diverse and modern world, our neighbor does not always look, act, or believe exactly like us. Therefore we participate in several local interfaith organizations to engage our neighbors, whatever their faith, to work together to address issues facing our communities.
We open our space to the Church of God of Prophecy congregation on Sunday mornings.
We participate in our local Wellington Interfaith group, which meets monthly and organizes Wellington-based events such as food drives, movie nights, and the "Trunk-or-Treat" safe alternative to Halloween.
We also participate in the Palm Beach Interfaith Gender and Sexuality Coalition, which advocates for justice and equality for LGBTQIA people within the many faith communities in Palm Beach County. Learn more at interfaithlgbtq.org.