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One of our church school children drew a flow chart to express how our church helps. He said, “ I like the church because it helps give money to poor people,” and he captured his thought process as follows:
I’ve learned the many ways our church helps others --through Habitat for Humanity, making Food Baskets for Avon’s Needy Families, giving gifts and funds to the Interval House families, giving funds to Food share, the Fuel Bank, Back Bay Mission-- and many more. A Faith Lesson. Service projects can strengthen your faith. For the past six years I have been involved with a seemingly magical creation that takes place once a month in our church kitchen. Through what we call “Stone Soup” we make a meal that is delivered to the Loaves and Fishes soup kitchen in Hartford. It is an act of faith when you make a commitment to gathering and preparing food for 150 people every month. Many people donate items to cook. There is a group of 10 who dedicate their Saturday morning to assembling and cooking the meal. A beautiful, nutritious meal is made, delivered, and receives rave reviews from the staff at Loaves and Fishes. When I see the generous donations of ingredients, and we are chopping, peeling, stirring and cleaning-up, I really do see the light of God in the faces of these faithful cooks. Another experience that truly made me believe in the love that abounds in this church was when we committed to helping resettle a refugee family who had fled from Afghanistan. It is unpredictable exactly when the families will gain permission to come to the US. For one of our first families we received notice that they would arrive in the US in 10 days! Our job was to outfit an apartment for a family that was coming with only a few suitcases of clothing. We made a sign-up list of needed items, made announcements, and emailed it to our church family on Sunday. Every day that week I received phone calls and emails with donations of beds, couches, desks, and more. By Friday a true miracle had happened: Our Fellowship Hall was filled with everything a family would need to outfit an apartment, from furniture, TVs, bedding, kitchen and bath items, to clothing and thoughtfully gathered first aid kits, sewing kits and tool kits. When I saw all of the donations I had tears in my eyes, a big lump in my throat, and an unforgettable lesson in my heart about what it means to have faith. Another youth member captures the spirit of ACC in a few words. “I like my church because we care about people who do not have much and everybody is so kind in every way. They care about others by giving money, giving food, clothes, and that is why I like to come back. “ |
My
name is Alice Noyes. I’ve been a member of Avon Congregational Church for
about 17 years, and thought I would share some thoughts about what the
church means to me. I have been mesmerized by the "leaves" on the Giving
Tree in Fellowship Hall. I’ve found that my deep feelings about the church
are shared by others…what a delight! One leaf on the tree explains what drew
me to the church in the beginning. “Our church is a church of actions, not
just words. Our members don’t just preach about Jesus, they follow his
example of how to live a meaningful life.”
