Ministries: Outreach & Mission

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Outreach & Mission Service

As you reach out you'll meet interesting people...
see different places... and MAKE A DIFFERENCE!

Vision To engage everyone in our congregation in ministry beyond St. Andrew to meet critical needs and instill hope in others so that they grow in self-sufficiency and we grow in discipleship.

Mission To lead the congregation to greater awareness of human needs and social inequities and to engage St. Andrew in ministry in God's world.

Team Purpose The Ministry Area Leadership Team (MALT) exists to lead, orchestrate and manage the outreach ministries of St. Andrew United Methodist Church.

Social Justice Committee - Learn about current and vital social justice issues and actions you can take to address the root causes of injustice. All are welcome to attend our regular meetings on the 2nd Sunday of each month, 4:30–6:30pm. For information, please contact Leigh Murray.

50th Anniversary Outreach Challenge

Some folks seem to be born wanting to go out and help the less fortunate.  Others are just starting to think about what that might look like.  Some people volunteer on a weekly basis; others pitch in when they are asked; others are looking for a way to become involved. Wherever you are, I invite you to join us as we encourage each other to “pick just one” way of helping others during this 50th anniversary year at St. Andrew.

To celebrate St. Andrew’s 50th Anniversary the Outreach Team has developed a list of 50 Outreach Opportunities.  Pick up our materials at Base Camp, or check out the list with full descriptions on the website.

Pick Just One - 50 Ways to get “Out of the Pews and Into the World”

Some folks seem to be born wanting to go out and help the less fortunate. Others are just starting to think about what that might look like for them. Some people volunteer on a weekly basis; others pitch in when and where ever they are needed; others are looking for a way to become involved. Wherever you are, we invite you to join the Outreach Ministries’ 50th Anniversary Campaign and “Pick Just One” as a way of helping others in need. (By the way… it’s OK to pick two!)

Pick up materials at Base Camp and check out the list with full descriptions of each opportunity on the St. Andrew website and then Pick Just One 

  1. Abrahamic Initiative
  2. Afghan Refugee Relief Association
  3. Bread for the World
  4. Bridgeway Home
  5. CASA - Court Appointed Special Advocates for Children
  6. Colorado AIDS Project
  7. Colorado Coalition for the Homeless
  8. Colorado Interfaith Power and Light
  9. Dalit Freedom Network
  10. DenUM (Denver Urban Ministries)
  11. Denver Children’s Advocacy Center
  12. Denver – Nairobi Sister City Program
  13. The Denver Hospice
  14. Denver Rescue Mission,  Family Rescue Ministry
  15. Douglas County Libraries
  16. El Centro Humanitario
  17. Ethiopian Mission Trip
  18. Fair Trade Products at St. Andrew
  19. Family Homestead
  20. Food Bank of the Rockies
  21. The Gathering Place
  22. Grant Avenue Street Reach
  23. The Green Team Project
  24. Habitat for Humanity
  25. Heifer International
  26. Interfaith Community Services
  27. Interfaith Hospitality Network (IHN)
  28. Jeffco Action Center 
  29. Just Faith Ministries
  30. Kibera Sanitation Education
  31. Kids Against Hunger
  32. Kiva.org
  33. Littleton Immigrant Integration Initiative
  34. Love, Inc.
  35. Motown Mission Experience
  36. New Beginnings Church
  37. No More Deaths/ No Mas Muertes Mission Trip
  38. The ONE Campaign
  39. Project Angel Tree
  40. Project CURE
  41. Project Glean with COMPA Ministries
  42. Reconciling Ministries
  43. St. Paul's Soup Kitchen
  44. Third Way Center 
  45. TLC Meals on Wheels
  46. Urban Peak
  47. Warren Village 
  48. Women’s Bean Project
  49. Women’s Crisis and Family Outreach Center of Douglas County
  50. Youth Mission Trips

Outreach Challenge Activities

Challenge Opportunities by Type

Challenge Opportunities by Volunteer type.

Click Here to download a full list of Opportunities in PDF format

Outreach Opportunities

Mission Trip to Ethiopia As part of our 50th anniversary celebration, St. Andrew is mounting its first-ever mission trip to Africa. We will assist with library development in the Ethiopian home village of a St. Andrew member, as well as visit many of Ethiopia’s most historic Christian sites. Our Ethiopian-American members, assisted by Dr. Peter Van Arsdale, will be our guides. Please contact Jeri Dwyer, Director, Outreach, if you are interested.

Motown Mission Experience Join Jerry Herships and Jeri Dwyer on an urban mission trip to Jerry’s home town Detroit. We’ll stay at a downtown church (with showers!), be fed by local church ladies every evening and experience some great Motown culture. We’ll do some construction, help develop urban agricultural projects in neighborhoods that have been abandoned and feed poor and hungry people. Trip dates are June 27 – July 3. Cost is $350 plus airfare. We’ll do good work in a town that has experienced economic disaster, grow spiritually and have a great time together. Check at Base Camp on Sunday for more information, or contact Jeri Dwyer, Director, Outreach.

Bringing Peace to the Holy Land: What We Can Do  Tuesday, March 9-7pm. St. Andrew will host Warren Clark, Executive Director of Churches for Middle East Peace and former US Ambassador as he brings us his perspective on US public policy and how it affects peace in the Middle East. Churches for Middle East Peace is supported by the United Methodist Church through the Board of Church and Society and the General Board of Global Ministries, Women’s Division. Check out their position statement and advocacy goals at http://www.cmep.org/.

Making Choices - Want to do more with your life?  Help women in prison make life-changing choices,  Are you looking for a meaningful ministry that is not a year long commitment? Here is a great opportunity. Making Choices is a program that REALLY is successful for women in prison. They learn  to love and respect self and others,  to develop the skills to return successfully to community,  to be more effective parents. We have heard several testimonies from incarcerated women who have completed the Making Choices 8-week course and it has changed their lives.  It also has the advantage of being only 8 weeks plus one weekend of training, so it can fit into a busy person's schedule. You can be a teacher, a mentor or a prayer sponsor.

Remember, Jesus endorsed prison ministry when he said, "Whatever you do for someone in prison,  you do it for me."  The training will take away any fear that you might have.  Making Choices is a team effort.  You don't do it alone without help.  Come and find out if this ministry is for you on Sunday, January 30, 2010 from 2:00 pm to 3:30 pm at Loretto Center, 4000 S Wadsworth Blvd,  Lakewood CO.

GREAT REWARDS FOR YOU AND THE WOMAN YOU SUPPORT.
RSVP TO:  Mary Kay Brannan
Mkbrannan@lcdenver.org or 303-882-6642

Hearts Across The Miles is an all-volunteer, nonprofit organization whose goal is to ensure deployed United States Service members from all branches of the military and their families are not forgotten. Hearts relies on community support in order to help lift morale and provide our deployed troops with a better quality of life while they serve to defend our country and freedom. Ways we can help:

  • Donations for postage
  • Volunteers to assist during inventory/packing days
  • Letter writing campaign
  • Donations of needed items (see website)

Hearts Across the Miles, P.O. Box 47129, Aurora, CO 80047, 303-575-1005, Reprice2357@cs.com, http://www.heartsacrossthemiles.org, or contact Jill Burbach at St. Andrew.

Food Share America at St. Andrew! (formerly SHARE Colorado) - Who wouldn’t like to save money these days? Food Share America is here at St. Andrew, ready to serve up discounted groceries. It’s a highly effective way to fill your pantry every month and save 40% to 50% off the retail price. These wholesome foods include frozen meats and entrees, fresh vegetables, and quality canned and dried foods, just like you get at the local supermarkets, but at up to half the cost. Order by the 2nd Friday (except for Aug 7) and pick up at St. Andrew the 3rd Saturday of each month at the lower parking lot from 9-10am. Easy! Order online at www.sharecolorado.com at your convenience and pay by credit card or call 303-428-0400 to order, using cash, check, a credit card or food stamp card/EBT card. Another feature is that St. Andrew receives a rebate of up to 6% of total purchases which can be used to buy gift certificates for our own members and friends who need help putting food on their tables. Please share the word with other families you know, especially those who may be having trouble stretching the budget. “If you eat, you qualify.” For more info, pick up a flyer at base camp or visit the website at www.foodshareamerica.com.

Pay-It-Forward - You can support four Food Banks (Colorado AIDS Project, DenUM, InterFaith Community Services and Denver Inner City Parish) by leaving nonperishable food, personal care items, and paper goods in the food shelves in the upstairs Foyer or on the table near the current downstairs main entrance, at any time. In addition, resuming in January 2010, you can purchase a Pantry Box (formerly Pay-It-Forward box) for $10 (a $17 retail value!) and place it on the donation shelves yourself. It is full of nutritious, non-perishable food, ready for quick distribution at the food bank. Outreach Ministries has purchased them at wholesale from Food Share America and can pass the savings on to you.

Holiday Giving Opportunities

UMCOR Disaster Relief

The United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) is one of the most effective ways of contributing to disaster relief both nationally and internationally. 100% of all designated contributions go directly to disaster relief, as the operating budget for UMCOR is covered under the operating budget of the UMC.

Some of the current projects include:
Hurricane Katrina - Advance #982523
Hurricane Rita - Advance #901323
Pakistani Earthquake - Advance #23200
Central America (flooding and mudslides) - Advance #501300

If you wish to contribute please make your check payable to St Andrew with UMCOR and the project # noted in the memo field.

The Agencies we serve.

Inter-Faith Community Services Assists adults and children in their struggles to attain, or maintain, a lifestyle that is self-sufficient and free of public or private support.

Inter-Faith Shed Offers you an opportunity to deposit your “slightly used” clothing for distribution to IFCS (Closet is located in the outdoor storage building inside the walled area between the playground and the Youth Entrance. Please get the key in the Front Office.)

Denver Urban Ministries DenUM offers resources, food, clothing, furniture and services to inner city individuals and families in crisis.

Family HomeStead Supplies emergency and transitional housing as well as supportive case management to homeless families with children.

Urban Peak Provides shelter, counseling, job training, schooling, medical care, food and family support to over 800 homeless youth (ages 13-20) each year.

Warren Village Helps single-parent families break the cycle of poverty and government dependency by providing transitional housing and day care while parents attend school; and offers supportive case management.

Bridgeway Provides education and support to pregnant and parenting teenagers to build new lives.

Street Reach Offers meals to the homeless every Monday. Located at St. Paul’s Lutheran. St. Andrew provides desserts, plastic containers and clothing.

Colorado AIDS Project Works to improve the lives of those affected by HIV and AIDS, and supports efforts to prevent HIV infection.

Food Banks The four food banks supported by Outreach Ministries (Colorado AIDS Project, DenUM, IFCS and Denver Inner City Parish) supply non-perishable food, personal care items, and paper goods to those in need. You may leave goods or monetary donations in the food shelves by the front doors. Shopping List

Holiday Alternative Gift Boutique - Unique and wonderful gifts are available from nonprofits around the world and your purchase provides assistance to people from Denver to far-flung countries. Among the twenty groups represented will be: Global Girlfriends, Women’s Bean Project, UNICEF, People of Hope, Logo Books, Pink Ribbon Creations and Girl Scouts. The craftsmanship from artisans is incredible to see, and the products include jewelry, spa products, fair-trade food, Christmas ornaments, handmade pillows, books, purses, food mixes, cards, water color paintings and more.

Denver Street School Founded in 1979, The Denver Street School serves students within its system of four different academies. In order for the students to benefit from the quality education offered, it also provides career-counseling, childcare, mentoring and more.

St. Paul’s UMC Sunday Morning Meal Offers breakfast to the homeless every Sunday; you have an opportunity to serve the breakfast on the second Sunday of the month.

Social Action Engaging in activism that addresses the root causes of denial of the basic rights of all persons. (i.e. Bread for the World, letter writing campaigns, education on issues, etc.)

Interfaith Hospitality Network - Volunteer to assist with housing homeless families in our church for a week, four times a year. Opportunities: cooking, hosting, transportation, tutoring, playing games with children.

Blood Bank Offers you a chance three times a year to give the "Gift of Life."

St. Andrew World Mission Offers you a chance to participate in a work/mission project in either a foreign culture or here locally, thus, creating an opportunity not only for work but also for significant personal relationships with people from different walks of life.

PuraVida (Pure Life) Located in rural Guatemala, they offer short-term mission trips several times each year. Your financial support aids this impoverished area by assisting the local orphanage and with educational scholarships.

Alternative Gift Market Honor a friend or relative by giving an alternative gift in their name. Gifts of food, medicine, shelter or agriculture are sent to poverty areas in the United States & overseas. For each person you buy for, you receive a card that explains what you purchased and how it helps.

Holiday Baskets Provides Christmas dinner and gifts for up to 80 families in our community; names are supplied by IFCS, Colorado AIDS Project and other groups.

Habitat for Humanity Works in partnership with God and people from all walks of life to build simple, decent houses in which people can live and grow into all that God intended. Opportunities to participate in monthly builds. No experience necessary.

Doctors Care - A short-term program to give medical assistance to the uninsured in Arapahoe, Douglas and Elbert Counties.

Project Angel Tree Prison Fellowship ministry. Offers Christmas gift baskets to children of prisoners.

More ways to serve

  • Clean up/fix-up projects
  • Foreign work teams
  • Holiday projects
  • Local work teams
  • Senior Citizens Luncheon
  • Transportation pool
  • Wesley Foundation

For more information on opportunities to serve please contact

Terri Lowe, Outreach Co-Director
Jeri Dwyer, Outreach Co-Director

Outreach Ministry Roles and Responsibilities

Ministry Team:  Outreach Ministries

Vision: To engage the people of St Andrew in ministry beyond the walls of our church to meet critical needs and instill hope in others in such a way that they grow in self sufficiency and we grow in discipleship.

Mission: To lead the people of St Andrew to greater awareness of human need and social inequity, to engage St Andrew in ministry to others with emphasis on serving the Denver Metropolitan area as well as underserved areas in need throughout the United States and the world.

Primary Responsibilities/Activites: The goals to accomplish this mission are 1. To provide information and learning experiences relating to Outreach ministries. 2. To recruit, guide and direct St Andrew volunteers in Outreach ministries. 3. To promote a tithe of the St Andrew budget to outreach ministries. 4. In addition to serving urban outreach agencies in the Denver metropolitan area, the Outreach MALT will support work teams and coordinate opportunities for individuals to volunteer in missions serving locally and throughout the United States and the world.

Ministry Activities

  • DenUM
  • InterFaith Community Services
  • Warren Village
  • Family HomeStead
  • Urban Peak
  • Denver Street School
  • Colorado AIDs Project
  • Doctor’s Care
  • Food Bank Support
  • 2nd Sunday Service
  • Alternative Giving Boutique
  • Christmas in July
  • Adopt-a-Family
  • Blood Drives
  • Street Reach
  • Project Angel Tree
  • Habitat for Humanity
  • Alternative Gift Market

Ministry Programs

  • Social Justice
  • Mission Trips – local, US and International
  • InterFaith Hospitality Network

Members on Ministry Team: Vince Long and Anne Purvis, Co Chairs, Terri Lowe and Jeri Dwyer, (Outreach Co-Directors), Diane Yokel Smith, (Staff Secretary), Mason Lynass and Kris Bradley, (Youth Representatives, rotates annually) Pam McCormick, John Mann, Joann Savacool, Carol Harr, Pat Ling, Amy Wade,(Compassion Ministries), Bev French, (Alternative Gift Market coordinator), Mary Kritenbrink, (Interfaith Hospitality Coordinator), Steve Risley, (Project Lighthouse Coordinator)

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