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St.
Augustine had the privilege of being involved in
several outreach projects in the area. We were one
of the 25 churches in the Aiken community to help at
the Apple Fest, raising proceeds to give to ACTS
(Area Churches Serving Together) for their 20th
Anniversary. ACTS serves the needy In the Aiken
area, in Jesus’ Name. From our inception, St.
Augustine has been pleased to be a member church
that supports this great organization. Our students
have worked at ACTS during their Spring Break,
sorting donated clothes. They loved working with the
people at ACTS and the ACTS folks loved having our
students there with them. Early on, we collected
donations of food to donate to ACTS. Later, they
found it more practical to buy food from the Food
Bank. We continue to support ACTS out of our loose
offerings on the fourth Sunday of each month.
We
have a close relationship with Jefferson Elementary
School and have supported them at the beginning of
each school year and again at Christmas. There are
many families that are not able to buy adequate
school supplies for their children; St. Augustine is
delighted to help them. Long before school begins,
we begin collecting various school supplies, such as
book bags, paper, crayons, glue sticks, etc. These
items are then delivered to the school and
distributed to those in need. Around
Thanksgiving, the folks at Jefferson compile a list
of school children from families of limited means.
Ordinarily, these children would receive limited
Christmas gifts, if anything at all. The children
give us a “Wish List” as a guide for us in our
purchases. The volunteers of St. Augustine buy and
lovingly wrap the gifts. They are delivered to the
school before the Christmas holiday. It is a
wonderful experience to see the face of a parent (or
grandparent) when they arrive and see the gifts.
What a great joy to share our God given blessings
with others!
For
several years, we have held an annual event known as
"An Evening of Art and Wine". This year, St.
Augustine made a commitment to give the proceeds to
Mississippi victims of hurricane Katrina. We stepped
out on Faith and made this year’s event a bit more
expensive, adding more food and more auction items.
At first, there was some concern about
profitability, due to an increased ticket price. In
the end, our Faith was affirmed, and we were
delighted to send $2000 to the Katrina victims. God
was so good in His provision. St. Augustine was
overjoyed to be a part of that effort for others in
such dire need.
St.
Augustine conducts Yard Sales throughout the year,
utilizing the proceeds for various community needs.
We continually support some worthy organizations,
but we also try to help individuals within
our community, should they encounter unforeseen,
temporary needs. We address these on a case-by-case
basis, as God brings them to light..
We
know that the Bible says to love the Lord above all
else and to love our neighbor as ourselves. It is
our desire to grow in our love for both God and our
neighbor and to be used by God to provide for
others, in His Name. |
