Christ Church Outreach News: April 9, 2026
- Christ Episcopal Church
- 12 hours ago
- 4 min read
Inviting You to Join Our Monthly Outreach Meeting next Monday, April 13
Learn many ways to help others by joining us remotely for the Outreach Commission meeting next Monday at 7:30 p.m. Our mission addresses many areas of need and spans local, national, and international levels. The meeting will open with a guest presentation by Dr. Liz Trimnell of Living Above Limitations Charity Foundation, which helps the blind in Nigeria.
It's a tough time for many individuals and families, so if you feel called to assist in any way, we can help get you started with a ministry that speaks to you. We hope you'll join us for a brief time next Monday evening - email outreach@christchurchcolumbia.org for the Zoom details.
LEMS Kindness Pantry for April
School is back in session after spring break, and it is time for us to ask you to contribute items to the Kindness Pantry at Lake Elkhorn Middle School. These donations are needed by next Sunday, April 19th, as the next Pop-Up Pantry is on Wednesday, April 22. Please visit our SignUpGenius link to select the necessary supplies, and place your items in the blue bins in the New Brick Narthex. Thank you so much for your kindness and generosity!
This is a wonderful promise from God to those who assist the hungry:
If you spend yourselves on behalf of the hungry and satisfy the needs of the oppressed, then your light will rise in the darkness, and your night will become like the noonday. The Lord will guide you always; he will satisfy your needs in a scorched land and will strengthen your frame. You will be like a well-watered garden, like a spring whose waters never fail. Isaiah 58: 10-11
Order Tickets by April 15 to Enjoy a Harbor Cruise that Benefits the Baltimore International Seafarers' Center
Get a fresh view of Baltimore’s skyline during the Annual Harbor Cruise on Wednesday, April 22, to support the Baltimore International Seafarers’ Center, a program of the Episcopal Diocese of Maryland. The center provides spiritual care and hospitality to mariners, who are working far from their homes and loved ones around the world.
Tickets are $75 each. Organizers urge participants to purchase their tickets here by next Wednesday, April 15. The cruise offers spectacular views of the harbor, as seen by a group from Christ Church in 2023. Plan to board the “Catherine Marie” promptly at 4:45 p.m. at Baltimore Finger Piers, 555 Light St., Baltimore. Once aboard, you’ll enjoy an all-you-can-eat buffet while exploring the working Port of Baltimore from the water. Guests usually disembark at approximately 7 p.m.
The Women of Christ Church have long supported the Seafarers with its holiday collection of woolens, magazines, and other items for mariners. Many more people became aware of the center in 2024 after the tragic collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge. The director of the center, the Rev. Joshua Messick, has continued to minister to members of the crew of the disabled container ship that struck the bridge.
The ship has long since departed, the bridge is being demolished, and the state is working toward a replacement. But several members of that crew remain in Baltimore for legal reasons, as described in a March 26 article in The Baltimore Banner.
Help Grassroots by Providing Food for the Homeless next Monday, April 13
On the second Monday of each month, Christ Church serves a hot midday meal at the Day Resource Center (DRC), operated by the Grassroots Crisis Intervention Center. We last participated on March 9.
A team led by Outreach member Shahra Toth makes side dishes and desserts that we serve in person after car-pooling to the Leola Dorsey Center in Jessup. To help on Monday, April 13, please check our DRC online signup form, which describes the procedure. Drop-off time is 12:45 p.m. in the parking lot near Old Brick.
Another way to help our hungry neighbors is to shop for the pantry at the DRC and Grassroots’ two other sites. We welcome in-kind donations of items such as canned meats and hearty soups, peanut butter, and fruit cups to be dropped off that day or ahead of time in the Parish Hall kitchen for delivery on the second Mondays. Find Grassroots’ monthly needs list on our signups under “Related Files.”
Starting this month, Christ Church resumes providing the evening meal at Grassroots’ Emergency Shelter, which had altered routines during the winter months to accommodate Code Blue users. Parishioners who cook or shop for that meal are asked to arrive between 3:15 and 3:30 p.m. in the Old Brick parking lot, where a volunteer picks up the food for delivery to Grassroots. Its staff handles serving the evening meal to shelter residents, who currently include nearly 40 children.
Get details in our Grassroots online signup form. It’s efficient to provide for both venues on the same day, feeding more than 150 people in total. Your donations and Vestry-approved funds pay for the fried chicken entrees. Thank you!
Bring Items for FISH/CCC, and Consider Volunteering to Take Calls from Home
FISH and Columbia Community Care (CCC) partnered last year and merged their pantries. CCC continues to hand out food at three sites on Saturday mornings and deliver it to Howard County residents. For information, go online to Get Help. Find CCC updates, including an anniversary celebration on March 14, on its Facebook page.
FISH continues to pick up donated goods from Christ Church and others. Please put non-perishable food and personal care products in the altar basket or in a bin just inside the Parish Hall. Look for a combo label “FISH/CCC”. Please bring baby wipes and diapers, especially large sizes.
FISH will continue to provide telephone support to Howard County residents, offering guidance and financial assistance, because the personal touch is very important when people are in crisis. For information, ask parishioner and FISH treasurer Andy DeLong (see photo) or email him at andydelong.fish@gmail.com.
You could be the one to lend a helping hand by lending an ear! As a phone volunteer, you can help from your home by giving just one day a month to assist those who could benefit from FISH's financial assistance. Training is provided. Thank you always for your support.
In general, if you have suggestions about ways to help the community, if you want to get involved, or if you need assistance, please email Christ Church Outreach at outreach@christchurchcolumbia.org. Your help is greatly welcomed and appreciated. Thank you.
