St. George's Episcopal Church

Give Online
You are here: Home / Archives for Grace in Action

Grace in Action

The Table at St. George’s Receives a Generous Grant by The Honeywell Charitable Fund of the Community Foundation

by Leave a Comment

The Honeywell Charitable Fund of the Community Foundation awarded The Table at St. George’s a $25,000 grant to support its ministry to provide fresh fruit and vegetables to those challenged with food insecurity in the city of Fredericksburg and surrounding counties. This generous grant came at a time when The Table was grappling with operational constraints and the increased needs of its clients due to COVID-19.

In April 2020 when no longer able to safely distribute food from St. George’s parish hall, The Table leadership quickly expanded an initiative called The Table in The World (TITW), which provides low-contact deliveries of fresh produce, eggs and cheese directly to community sites and organizations that serve diverse clients in need. Many individuals who receive free food from TITW have health issues, transportation challenges, and/or mental health issues in addition to limited finances. Making healthy food easily available helps to alleviate additional stress caused by the pandemic.

The Table gratefully acknowledges the valued support from The Honeywell Charitable Fund of the Community Foundation. This fund has provided financial support for the Table since 2013. The cost of operating TITW far exceeds the costs of operating the normal indoor food pantry. The Honeywell grant most recently awarded went toward fresh food TITW delivered in November 2020 through January 2021. This grant ensured the continuation of food deliveries directly to those in need and strengthened St. George’s food ministry as it prepares to reopen The Table in downtown Fredericksburg’s Market Square on May 4, 2021 from noon to 2:00 pm. This socially distanced food pantry will provide fresh fruits and vegetables to neighbors in need.

In 2020, The Table and TITW gave away approximately $118,000 worth of food. Those served include the young and aged, the able-bodied and the physically challenged, the unemployed and many who are working one or two jobs but are unable to earn enough to adequately nourish their families. Food provided by The Table/TITW and other such food operations can make a significant difference in the amount of food available to the people of our community, many of whom receive food stamps through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).

The Table is grateful for the generosity of the Honeywell Charitable Fund of the Community Foundation and all who support St. George’s efforts to improve the lives of people living with food insecurity. More than 90% of funding for The Table comes from awards, donations, fundraisers, and grants. In-kind donations are provided by corporations and local businesses.

For more information, contact Laurel Loch at 540.373.4133 or Laurel Loch.

Visit The Table at St. George’s Facebook page at facebook.com/thetableatstg.

https://youtu.be/vqVIRPtcdts

The Table at St. George’s Receives a Power of Change Grant

by Leave a Comment

Photo by Tina Jackson Photography

The Table at St. George’s recently received a $15,000 Power of Change grant from the Rappahannock Electric Cooperative (REC) to fund purchases of fresh food to be distributed through The Table in the World (TITW), an initiative of the church’s longstanding food ministry to the city of Fredericksburg and surrounding counties.

In March, COVID-19 concerns shuttered the church’s well-established market-style food pantry known as The Table at St. George’s. In response, the ministry’s leaders quickly decided to shift food distribution from a weekly indoor gathering where clients chose from a selection of fresh foods and nonperishables to a low-contact system. The Table fostered healthy eating by making fresh fruits and vegetables available throughout the year in an atmosphere that welcomed all in need. Continuing to serve in this capacity was imperative to the church’s mission to serve its neighbors. Building on the TITW initiative begun in 2017, the leadership implemented a plan to have fresh food delivered by two local farmers and a wholesale supplier directly to sites around the community. Each site stepped up to organize safe distributions to their constituents.

“In this time of national and local disruption, the ministry leaders of The Table faithfully opened their hearts to find creative ways to respond to the rising levels of food insecurity,” said Rev. Areeta Bridgemohan, St. George’s Associate Rector. “They chose to turn challenge into opportunity. While we feel sad about the loss of the community that gathered every week around food, we have gained friends through the new partnerships that have been established and we are reaching into the community on a larger scale. This generous Power of Change grant will support our expanded outreach.”

Over the past 10 months, TITW’s food distribution has grown significantly, as has the number of those challenged by food insecurity in the wake of the pandemic. Weekly deliveries totaling approximately 4,000 pounds now include much-needed fruits, vegetables, eggs, and cheese to eight sites that serve seniors; low-income families; people with mental health, substance use and developmental disorders; and a nonprofit focused on assisting the Latinx community. An additional site receives monthly deliveries. The Power of Change grant provides funding for nearly five weeks of deliveries.

The Power of Change receives its funding from REC members who volunteer to have their electric bill rounded-up to the next highest whole dollar. If Rappahannock Electric Cooperative (REC) provides your power, we ask that you consider supporting The Power of Change to help others in need. Once enrolled, the extra change from your electric bill will be dedicated to charitable causes. Members can sign up by visiting REC’s website (https://www.thepowerofchange.org) or by calling 800.552.3904 for more information. The average member contribution is approximately $6.00 per year and is tax deductible. An annual statement of your charitable contribution will be mailed to you.

For more information, visit The Table at St. George’s Facebook page: www.facebook.com/thetableatstg.

Advent 2020 – Let There Be Light

by Leave a Comment

This Advent, we wait for the birth of the Messiah: our unfailing light. We’ll seek a love that dispels the shadows of night. We’ll follow a star and trust that it shows us the way. We’ll proclaim that God has the power to make us new each day.

Here are some ways to help you seek the light of Advent:

Advent Practices Brochure

A Sanctified Art Advent Calendar

Way of Love Advent Calendar

Praying in Color

If you have questions about Advent and how you might get involved, please fill out the form below. If the form isn’t displaying correctly, please click here.

 

The Table at St George’s Awarded Grant by MAFRAC

by Leave a Comment

TITW

The Table at St. George’s has been awarded a $15,000 grant by The Mid-Atlantic Food Resilience and Access Coalition (MAFRAC) to help fund its Table in the World (TITW) initiative that distributes fresh food from local farmers to Fredericksburg area communities experiencing food insecurity.

Every week TITW distributes at least 4000 pounds of fresh food including vegetables, fruit, cheese, and eggs. This grant award will cover five weeks of distribution at ten local sites: Hazel Hill, Healthy Generations, Heritage Park, LUCHA Ministries, Inc., Madonna House, Mayfield, Mill Park Terrace, Rappahannock Area Community Service Board (RACSB), Stafford Food Security, and Stafford Junction. The sites benefit seniors, low income families, people with mental health and substance use disorders, developmental disorders, and a non-profit focused on assisting the Latinx community.

“The mission of The Table is to feed the mind, body, and spirit,” noted St. George’s Acting Associate Rector, the Rev. Will Dickinson. “As we continue to find new ways to be the Body of Christ during the pandemic, this generous grant from MAFRAC will help us continue to reach out in love to our neighbors in need.”

Founded in 2012 as an alternative to the church’s emergency food pantry, The Table at St. George’s is a weekly market-style food pantry where all are welcome. In 2017, The Table expanded into the community through its Table in the World (TITW) initiative that provides produce to seniors and others experiencing food insecurity. Due to concerns from the COVID-19 pandemic, The Table ceased operating in person in March. Since then, the TITW model was expanded to safely bring weekly deliveries of fresh produce to 10 sites in the Fredericksburg area using low contact distribution.

The Mid-Atlantic Food Resilience and Access Coalition is a diverse group of more than 25 partners across the Mid-Atlantic region coming together to keep communities fed, farmers harvesting, and local businesses operating. They are mobilizing farmers, schools, food hubs, food banks, commercial kitchens, rideshare services, food service workers, and more to form a supply chain that brings nutrient-dense, locally sourced food to those in need while simultaneously keeping those people involved in the supply chain meaningfully employed.

For more information, visit The Table at St. George’s Facebook page: www.facebook.com/thetableatstg.

Our Commitment to Racial Justice and Reconciliation

by Leave a Comment

The events of the past week or so have shaken our entire country as well as our local community. The killings of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, and Ahmaud Arbery in recent weeks have showed us, yet again, how African Americans fight daily for their dignity and sometimes for their very lives, because of racial injustice. St. George’s stands by our welcome statement: “You are welcome at St. George’s regardless of race, nationality, sexual orientation, gender expression, or tradition.” Under-girding that welcome is our Baptismal Covenant which asks us: “Will you strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being?” Our response is always, “I will with God’s help.”

In order for our welcome to be genuine we must acknowledge the realities of inequity which are the opposite of welcome. We follow Jesus on the way of love, which means we speak up when our neighbors are unjustly treated and under attack. When one of us suffers, we all suffer. We reject the sin of racism in all its forms as part of our baptismal rejection of the “evil powers of this world which corrupt and destroy the creatures of God.” We pray for repentance as well. We have often left undone those things we ought to have done to change the systems which unjustly tip the scales in favor of white people in our nation.

A statement came from our Diocesan leaders yesterday. Presiding Bishop Michael Curry issued this word to the church over last weekend: As rector of St. George’s, I wholeheartedly embrace these statements and commend them to you. I also preached an additional sermon this past weekend. These are all summaries of where I stand and where I hope we as a parish can stand together in all our diversity of opinions and backgrounds.

There are young people leading peaceful protests in our community, and I call us to lament with them, listen to them, and ask how we can help. I applaud our city police yesterday for marching with them and pray for police who are also traumatized by the actions of their counterparts elsewhere. Largely in response to these young people, our city council yesterday adopted a resolution condemning racism and affirming that black lives matter. I was present at a march last Saturday and have tried to be a non-anxious and supportive presence at protest events in Market Square this week. They are literally in our backyard, and if we say we are welcoming, we need to be attentive. This is a moment for evangelism, to proclaim to our neighbors, by word, but mostly by example, the good news, through our actions of love.

I am asking some members of our racial reconciliation book group, which has been meeting for over a year, to share some of what they have learned about how we might continue our work. I will open up a space where parishioners can speak and hear each other without judgment. We will pray together for the whole human family. We will not try to fix each other or assume there is one right way.

Our conversation follows many previous ones. It will not be the last one, and there will be more to say. This is long, hard work. Lord, have mercy upon us and help us.

 

Your rector and brother in Christ,
Joe+