Good Shepherd Family Support Center:

 

Good Shepherd Family Support Center supports the mission of the church by:  Offering relief and support to those in need; Raising parish consciousness of local and global relief needs and of peace and justice issues;   leading the congregation in advocacy for peace and justice. 

 

The parish became able to offer this community ministry, when the Reverend Jose Martinez became available to us for fulltime employment. The center operates on alternate Fridays from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm.  We serve about 100 families each time.

 

The center has begun to receive generous financial support from outside the parish including the following organizations:

·         The Hartford Deanery

·         The Diocese of Connecticut’s Trinity Fund

·         Largely because of its high regard for this aspect of our parish program, the diocese of Connecticut increased its grant to the parish for 2008

·         The Bishop’s Fund for Children

 

The center offers the following services, among others:

·         Foodshare’s distribution in our parking lot, two Fridays per month by both services

·      Clothes, coats, baby clothes and other household items, which were donated by St. John’s in West Hartford, Old St. Andrews, Bloomfield, and individuals from our parish, including Armsmear.

·         A coat drive for 2007, co-sponsored by St. John’s West Hartford and some other churches within the Hartford Deanery

·         At Thanksgiving we distributed 6 thanksgiving baskets and helped two families from the discretionary fund.

·      At Christmas we distributed Christmas baskets, each with a food certificate to 7 families.

·      On Epiphany (January 6) the church distributed toys donated by parishioners and by our friends and supporters at St. Andrews, Rocky Hill.  Toys left over were shared with Misión San Marcos in New Britain by Fr. Martínez.

·      A Library Mobil Unit is coming now to Good Shepherd grounds a few times a year.

·      Family Day Program: In late summer we took a trip to the Connecticut River. 57 people, (24 families, adults and children) were part of this fun trip, which included a meal. Again both services were well represented from Good Shepherd and other residents of the community.

        On November 24 we took a trip to the Statue of Liberty.   38 people (adults and children) were part of this fun and cold day. Good Shepherd parishioners (participants who attend both services) mingled with many other residents of the community.  Please see pictures in the Web Site.

 

Good Shepherd’s Weekend Emergency Food Bank

Thanks to the generous support which Old St. Andrews, Bloomfield, gives to this program we were able to help about 40 families received emergency food during 2007.  This program is not in competition with any other program:  It serves only our parishioners and operates on the weekend when nearly all other food banks are closed.

 

 

The Reverend José L. Martínez, Curate