| Taking seriously our call "to be
servants in the service of the whole human family", Eastgate Congregational
UCC reaches out to the world in a variety of ways.
Each month the Christian Outreach Committee
packs and delivers nine medium bags of food to the Emergency
Feeding Program (EFP). We also provide two Infant Bags each
month. One bag contains specific infant foods, and the other contains
iron-enriched formula. Most of these bags stay in the local Bellevue
community.
Used clothing collected from members
of the congregation is sorted and passed on to Mary's
Place, a day shelter for homeless and formerly homeless women
in Seattle.
Each summer we collect"Kid Friendly"
food for the EFP and school supplies for the local Congregations
for Kids organization to help low-income students get off to a
good start in the new school year. Since 2003 we have participated
in a Habitat for Humanity
build with Together We
Build, a local coalition of Protestants, Catholics, Jews,
and Muslims. We continue to work with these three ecumenical partnerships
in 2010.
Our 2009 Christmas Eve Offering was
split between the UCC
Christmas Fund and The
Sophia Way. In January 2010 we participated in the Souper
Bowl of Caring collection of soup and monies which were donated
to the Emergency Feeding Program.
In May 2010, several friends and members of Eastgate walked in
Bellevue's 9th Annual CROP
WALK. This ecumenical event was the result of efforts by members
of the five sponsoring congregations--Eastgate being one. The
10th Annual CROP WALK
is planned for Sunday, May 15th, 2011.
In addition we participate in our denomination's
special offerings for One Great
Hour of Sharing, Neighbors
in Need and Strengthen the
Church, and a percentage of our income is contributed to Our
Church's Wider Mission (OCWM).
Other groups using our facility on a
regular and ongoing basis include the Seattle Oriental Mission
Church (a Korean congregation), the Russian Center for Spiritual
Enrichment (a Seventh-Day Adventist congregation), the Eastgate
Cooperative Preschool (part of the Bellevue Community College
Parent Education Program), Alcoholics Anonymous, and the Girl
Scouts.
Thanks to the many generous members and friends of the Eastgate
congregation who make all of these outreach efforts a success.
|