Opportunities to Serve
The following ministries are actively
supported by our congregation.
◊ Christian Assistance Ministry (CAM) - Provides emergency assistance to the poor and the homeless. Volunteers help with the food pantry, clothing distributions and warehouse, preparation of lunches to be distributed, and client interviews. Contact Roxane Darnell, (210) 733-7156.
◊ Church under the Bridge - This ministry serves food and distributes clothing to the homeless from their near downtown location. Laurel Heights participates in serving the evening meal on the first Thursday of each month. Volunteers are needed to bring sandwiches, cookies, and/or fruit as well as people to help serve the food at the site. A group leaves from the church at 5:30 and returns around 7:00. Contact Judy Davis, (210) 733-7156.
◊ CROP Walk - This annual event raises money to benefit organizations that promote self-help and address the root causes of poverty, and specifically hunger. In San Antonio, the CROP Walk is held the first Sunday in March at Mission County Park. Each walker recruits sponsors who pledge per mile walked. Contact Judy Davis, (210) 733-7156.
◊ Habitat for Humanity – A Christian organization which helps families who otherwise would not be able to afford their own home. Each family works hundreds of hours in “sweat equity” on their own home and on those of others in the Program. Volunteers are needed to help in construction. No experience or tools needed. Habitat provides experienced house leaders who supervise the construction and all tools necessary to do the work. It takes 12 work days to build a house. No matter what your skill level or experience, there are things you can do, even providing lunch for other volunteers. Contact Ted Bailey, (210) 804-1626.
◊ Handicap Ramp Construction - This program originally was part of Habitat for Humanity, but is now part of San Antonio Alternative Housing. Trained personnel lead volunteers who provide the labor. No experience, tools or materials are needed. Contact Ted Bailey, (210) 804-1626.
◊ Kairos - An ecumenical, lay run Christian prison ministry. For 3 days, 42 prisoners gather at tables for a short course in Christianity. Each of the 7 tables is guided by 3 Kairos team members, 2 of which are lay persons and 1 is clergy. Each 9-person group soon takes on the characteristics of a sharing family. For many prisoners, this will be their first experience in a listening, loving, family environment.
The primary objective of the 3-day short course is to prepare specifically selected residents (prisoners) for the ongoing Christian community of Kairos in the prison. Kairos is a continuing ministry. Besides this course, held twice a year, there is also a 2-day mini-retreat held twice a year for all Kairos residents in the prison. Kairos team members and Kairos residents gather monthly, usually on a Saturday, for a resident-led program. On a weekly basis, Kairos residents meet in a quiet place in Share and Prayer groups led by resident leaders and supported by outside Kairos volunteers.
Kairos teams are made up of volunteers, mostly financed by volunteers. There is a small staff administering Kairos, both nationally and internationally. Kairos serves in men’s and women’s prisons, a new program for youthful offenders, and a program for families of those in prisons.
At Laurel Heights, there are several ways volunteers can be involved. They can help by 1) baking cookies (each weekend 3000 dozen cookies are needed for distribution throughout the unit); 2) writing letters to participants, 3) making placemats, 4) participating in the prayer vigil during the weekend, and 5) serving on teams, in and out the prison. Financial contributions are always welcome, too. There are, however, very specific guidelines and requirements. For more information, contact Liz Hughes, (210) 733-7156, or visit the Kairos website: www.kairosoftexas.org.
◊ Laurel Heights Youth Center - “Shaping the hearts, minds and futures of San Antonio’s youth.” The LHYC is a collaborative effort between the San Antonio Youth Centers and Laurel Heights. This Program provides year-round youth development opportunities for inner-city children living in the Alta Vista neighborhood or attending Agnes Cotton Elementary School. The Program targets youth ages 6 to 12 who may be at-risk of participating in crime and delinquency during the out-of-school time when juvenile crime and delinquency peak.
The LHYC provides a safe environment with caring adult role models 5 days a week. Here, children participate in a variety of activities including tutoring, social skills training, computer training, arts enrichment, music lessons, recreation, sports leagues, meals, and more. The LHYC seeks volunteers who can provide tutoring. Volunteers must complete a volunteer application, pass a criminal background check, provide 3 references and complete a brief orientation. Interested volunteers should contact Linda Cherry, (210) 223-3131.
◊ Southwest Texas Regional Blood Bank Blood Drive - Receives donations of blood for persons in need in the Southwest Texas region. Several times a year the church has a blood drive, giving interested persons the opportunity to donate blood. Contact Judy Davis, (210) 733-7156.
◊ The BreastCancerSite.com - This website was founded to help offer free mammograms to underprivileged women nationwide – women for whom early detection would not otherwise be possible. Each year, 182,000 women are diagnosed with breast cancer and 43,300 die.
Since The Breast Cancer Site began in 2000, together we have funded free mammograms for more than 16,000 women in need! In 2006, visitor clicks funded 2,612 mammograms! Visitors who made a purchase at The Breast Cancer Site store funded an additional 2,955 mammograms for women in need! All in all, in 2006, your caring actions at The Breast Cancer Site funded a total of 5,567 mammograms. Together we can do even more in 2007! Visit: The Breast Cancer Site.
◊ The ChildHealthSite.com - This website focuses on saving children’s lives and improving the quality of their health. Over 200,000 children die every week from preventable causes, and many millions more suffer from preventable disease, curable blindness, landmines and other crippling accidents. In 2006, visitor clicks funded basic, critical health services for 474,417 children around the world. This is slightly down from the 2005 click totals -- please click daily and tell your friends, family and colleagues about The Child Health Site, too!
Visitors who made a purchase at The Child Health Site store helped an additional 154,291 children! All in all, in 2006, your caring actions at The Child Health Site helped 628,708 children in need. Together, we can do even more in 2007! Visit: The Child Health Site.
◊ The HungerSite.com – TheHunger Site is an online activism site, and 100% of the sponsor advertising fees on the site go to charity. Visitors click on the yellow “Help Feed the Hungry” button on the home page. Once you click you are moved to a “Thank You” page where you see small ads from various sponsors. Those sponsors pay to have their ads on the thank you page. The revenue from their ads is used to purchase food that is distributed to food banks throughout the United States.
There is no cost to you! You can click once a day, every day of the year. Clicks are counted, and the ad sponsors will pay for one click, per person, per calendar day. The more people who click, the more cups of food that can be distributed.
Additionally, there are several other tabs off the main site where you can click to support other charities, such as children’s health and literacy.In 2006, visitor clicks funded 47,849,341 million cups of food. This is slightly down from the 2005 click totals — please click daily and tell your friends, family and colleagues about The Hunger Site, too!
Visitors who made a purchase at The Hunger Site store funded an additional 4,170,800 cups of food! All in all, in 2006, your caring actions at The Hunger Site funded a total of 52,020,141 cups of food to the hungry. Together we can make sure 2007 is an even stronger year of giving! Visit: The Hunger Site.
◊ Woman at the Well House An interdenominational, residential community for formerly incarcerated women, Woman at the Well House promotes their emotional, spiritual, and intellectual growth to facilitate a successful transition into the larger community. The program meets the essential living needs of each participant by coordinating and providing housing, food, clothing, healthcare, transportation, scholarships, education, job training, job counseling and job placement. Volunteers are needed in all areas of service. Contact Judy Davis, (210) 733-7156.
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