Faith in Action is continuing a Lenten tradition of hosting a donation drive during the Sundays of Lent. This year’s theme is The Challenge of the Desert: Being the Connection.
In addition to asking congregation members to donate to selected organizations each Sunday, we will host a Service project with Casa de Paz. Announcements about the type of donations for each group will be announced before each designated Sunday collection. See the list of organizations below, and keep an eye out in your midweek announcements for the types of donations we will be collecting.
On January 10, the Faith in Action Board selected three organizations that we have had a relationship with and that are connecting displaced people with resources. As all of us experience the Colorado winter and the uptick of immigrants/refugees to our metropolitan area, we wanted the Lakewood UCC community to make a connection with organizations that are meeting the needs of women, children, transgender individuals experiencing homelessness, and resettling refugee/immigrant families.
The Schedule is as follows during the Lenten Season:
Sunday, February 18: Lutheran Family Services Rocky Mountains-Refugee and Asylee program- hygiene baskets
Sunday. February 25: Lutheran Family Services Rocky Mountains- Refugee and Asylee program-hygiene baskets
Sunday, March 3: The Gathering Place, Travel-Sized Toiletries
Sunday, March 10: The Gathering Place, Travel-sized Toiletries
Sunday, March 17: African Community Center
Sunday, March 24: African Community Center (Palm Sunday, final collection)
About the organizations:
Lutheran Family Services Rocky Mountains
In 1975, Lutheran Immigration and Refugee Service (LIRS) contacted LFSRM to begin resettlement of refugees. Since that time, the LFSRM Refugee & Asylee Programs have helped people who have been uprooted by persecution and violence work towards self-sufficiency through essential resettlement services, including: housing, employment, English language, and cultural orientation.
Gathering Place (TGP) is the only agency in metropolitan Denver specifically dedicated to serving women, transgender and non-binary individuals, and children who are experiencing poverty and homelessness. TGP provides choice-based supportive services spanning a continuum from crisis stabilization and basic needs to longer-term needs such as comprehensive wellness support, employment assistance, and community building. TGP’s mission is to provide a community of safety and hope where positive relationships, choice, and essential resources transform lives.
The Gathering Place
The Gathering Place (TGP) offers services to combat poverty and address the impacts of marginalization and oppression that are often contributing factors to poverty or homelessness. By offering low-barrier access to a broad range of basic necessities and wrap-around care options, TGP guides women, transgender and non-binary individuals, and children living in poverty from a place of crisis and instability to one of stability and security.
How you can participate: We are collecting The Gathering Place’s requested travel-sized toiletries: NEW Deodorant, Razors, Lotion, Toothpaste, and Kleenex. There will be collection baskets on the Lenten Donation Table on the Sundays of March 3 & 10. Bring your items to church and drop them in the designated boxes. Thank you for making the Donation Drive a part of your Lenten journey.
African Community Center
Is a non-profit resettlement agency whose mission is to help refugees and immigrants rebuild safe, sustainable lives in Colorado. ACC was founded in 2001 as a branch office of our parent organization, the Ethiopian Community Development Council (ECDC).
With a diverse staff and the help of faithful volunteers and interns,they conduct educational and social service programs that help newcomers rebuild their lives in their new community, navigate U.S. systems and cultures, achieve economic self-sufficiency, and become confident, thriving, integrated members of society.
Casa de Paz (House of Peace)
Casa de Paz (House of Peace) welcomes guests who are released from the immigration detention center in Aurora, CO. They provide guests a safe temporary space to go to so they can connect with their loved ones and make it to their final destination.
This lent we will be hosting Cartas de Paz, a letter-writing session as a community to connect with people in Detention. The purpose of this outreach is to offer hope to people who often feel alone and forgotten
