Outreach

Our Vision: As partners in service Reach Team will support our community, both financially as well as volunteering, to actively become a part of our neighbourhood.

Our Vision Statement was started with the big picture of Hope’s Mission statement (To Know and Show the Love of Jesus).

In doing so chose the two goal statements that apply to Reach Team best:
        • #2: LOVING RELATIONSHIPS – Our goal is to help people genuinely care for one another and show their love to others through fellowship,            kindness and reconciliation.
        • #4: NEED BASED EVANGELISM – Our goal is to help people actively witness to the love of Jesus by serving the needs of their community.

Background:
Delta Team is the formal name for our Outreach Missions group and the name not changed but rebranded as Reach Team

Our mandate is two-fold:
1) to promote the cause of local & global missions
2) to mobilize local & global mission groups to show the love of Jesus in word and in deed
         • Attended Fresh Expressions webinar Sept 2020, which basically said that we needed to go out in the community and become a part of it.
         • Then came the ‘Welcome to the Neighbourhood’ 7-week webinars, which you all read Cheryl’s great summary on in the March newsletter.

Goals identified:
Various goals were identified and presented to the congregation at a meeting in March. We are currently working on sponsoring a child through Watoto Sponsorship. Watoto is a Christian led organization ‘Celebrating Christ, Caring for our Community’. https://www.watoto.com/

Meet Marvin
It’s official and Marvin is now a Hope Church child that we will sponsor going forward.
Marvin Lukumeri is age 8
Location: Bbira, Uganda
Birthday: 10-Dec-2012

Creative and hardworking Marvin had to get involved in casual income generating activities, like selling snacks to help make ends meet at home. Marvin’s mother sells dried fish and sweeps the city streets to make some money, but together they never raised enough for all their meals or even school fees. Marvin hardly went to school. After being identified by the Watoto Neighbourhood program, Marvin was given the opportunity to receive free education and medical support as his mother is discipled and trained in business skills.
Marvin is overjoyed at the opportunity given to attain wholesome education at the Watoto school. He especially enjoys English classes and dreams of becoming a doctor. Marvin willingly helps with chores at home like fetching water. In his free time, Marvin loves playing football. His favorite meal is rice and beef.
Marvin enjoys singing praises to God and does so every Sunday at his local church. While at the Watoto village, he loves attending the Watoto church on Sundays. Please pray that he grows in his love for Christ.
We are looking forward to getting to know Marvin as he grows and thrives in his love for God and his goal for becoming a doctor.

Other initiatives in the works, waiting for the Covid clearance, are:

Meet the Neighbours – walk around the neighbourhood and do survey asking the five questions from Neighbourhood webinar; start with Hope & Prince Albert community, with volunteers from Hope and/or partner with kids from PPH (to help get their community hours).

Meals on Wheels – Community Care Durham provides clients and their caregivers with the security of knowing they can live independently in their own home through the delivery of affordable, tasty hot / frozen meals. Our goal is to form a team who can deliver meals, on a rotating basis, to our local community.
Our first initiative in December 2020, during the despair of Covid, was to reach out to Prince Albert Public School thinking it would be a neighbourly gesture to spread good cheer to our school community, to help the kids have some fun just prior to the Christmas holidays, so we organized a movie day (each class got to pick a movie appropriate to their group) and we provided the popcorn, drinks and treats. Food Basics VOS were very generous in their donation of gift cards which we used towards purchase of drinks and treats. With funds left over on the gift cards we were able to buy to help support the school’s food drive.
In addition, we are looking forward to other events scheduled for the fall as our community opens up and we are able to meet and welcome others.

Thank you for your continued support with this important ministry.

Matthew 28:19
Thank You for Your divine Word. I pray our church does not just bring people to You, but pray that we keep them in Your presence. Let us make Your people disciples, not mere acquaintances of You. I pray that we never become content with our community outreach, but let us continuously strive to do better, Amen.