Mission & and Outreach - Food For Life/Family Mission Night

The third Monday of each month, we gather in Fellowship Hall (lower level) to live by words of Christ and serve our neighbors. Starting at 7 p.m. we cook hot meals, pack candy, cookies, and health kits, or write letters to those who need our support.

There are kid-friendly activities and crafts, so you can bring the family. When the work is done there are snacks to share.

Food For Life

This is the original project on the mission night, which has been underway for many years. The team cooks a hot meal which is delivered the next morning to First Presbyterian Church of Chicago, on the South Side. This is part of our First To First with Love program detailed on our Chicago Mission page. First Pres. of Chicago serves up the hot meal at their Food For Life program the next day. The meal is directly served to people in need who otherwise would not have a hot meal for the day. During the summer months, ham and cheese sandwiches are prepared.

Other activities include packing up candy for the Food for Life dessert and cookies distributed by the Night Ministry, an organization that serves the homeless in Chicago's downtown and North Side.

Family Mission Night

In 2005, we expanded the Monday Food for Life night to include other projects that members of all ages could work on. Activities range from packing kits for local and world-wide distribution to writing letters and making crafts. Kits are made to the specifications indicated by Church World Service which accepts and distributes a variety of kits. These include health kits, containing basic

Some past activities have included:

• Packing over 70 flood buckets for hurricane victims. These were delivered to the Methodist Church collection point in Naperville for distribution in the South. Dozens of church members donated the relief supplies.
• Assembling hundreds of health kits for CWS distribution. These are basic health supplies, such as toiletries, provided to disaster victims around the world.
• Writing letters to our sponsored Palestinian Children.
• Packaging hygiene kits for distribution to the Chicago homeless through the Night Ministry.
• Making Meal-In-A-Bag-For-One, providing a meal for someone who only has access to hot water.
• Assembling school kits of basic writing and craft supplies in hand-made canvas bags. Many members of the congregation provided bags and supplies.
• Packaging kids kits of small toys, art supplies, and a stuffed doll for hurricane victims who lost everything or were temporarily living in shelters.

The work continues after Mission Night is over. The supplies must be purchased, organized, set up, and then packed and mailed. If you can't come on Mission Night, there are still plenty of ways you can help. Financial donations towards Mission Night can be made by making a donation to the Benevolence Fund. Contact the church office to get the current contact information.

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