by Pat & Lyn Bevis, Local Missions Committee Co-Chairs

We have had a busy summer as we:

• Continue to collect food and books for distribution through the Frenchtown community which is less than one mile from the church, so truly “our neighbors.”
• Support our IRC Team which is working with our 9-person family of Syrian refugees on a regular basis. This is a most rewarding and challenging experience for the team.
• Collect gift cards for the adults at the Madison Youth Ranch who will be taking the resident’s youth on local field trips.
• Glean the final crops at Lott’s Community Garden to benefit Second Harvest Food Bank and our hungry neighbors in the Big Bend area.

Looking forward:

• In September we will be welcoming a speaker from Tallahassee Bail Fund, a non-profit organization that the committee is supporting this year with financial seed money. This is funding part-time staff to enable them to stay in better contact with the individuals they have out on bail. We are excited about this group’s mission to bail people out in time to avoid the interruption of jobs and families that frequently occurs when people of limited financial resources are jailed for an extended time on minor, non-violent charges prior to trial.
• November and December will bring a return of the Angel Tree with a few new twists so watch for that.
• After a successful Meals on Wheels experience in May, we have signed up for Trinity’s old slot on Martin Luther King, Jr. Day. We will again need cold food packers and drivers to deliver meals. Please mark your calendar for January 15.
• The committee continues to meet monthly and explore more ways we can work in the local mission field. We are exploring options to serve the homeless community, either through an existing shelter and their programs; or perhaps starting a new ministry here at Trinity. We are in the early days of exploring what that might look like and welcome all ideas.
• Please get in touch if you have suggestions about any local mission project or are interested in joining the committee. We need more ideas and people to help carry them out.