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Moment for Mission
Back Bay Mission
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by Rick Greene
As a ministry of the United Church of Christ, the Back Bay Mission in Biloxi, Mississippi, draws on a national network of support. It brings a network to bear on poverty and marginalization on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. Through the UCC, it draws on supporters who are invested in serving the people of the area. Christian values are the basis for a loving, respectful approach to serving the poor and marginalized. It is now celebrating its one hundredth anniversary on the Gulf Coast and has started a 100-year Capital Campaign to remain relevant for the next 100 years. More information about the campaign is available on YouTube.
The Mission began in the 1920’s and has been active in the community continuously since that time. In 1962, the Mission began hosting integrated activities. In 1963, Mission staff and volunteers were arrested at the final wade-in on Biloxi’s beaches. In 1963, the Mission hosted the Annual Ministerial Banquet of the Mississippi State Conference of the NAACP and was subjected to attacks for several months afterwards, including a cross burned at the Mission.
The Back Bay Mission has a simple mission. It
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strengthens neighborhoods through ministries like education and empowerment programs and housing rehabilitation programs;
- seeks justice by helping the people they serve become more involved in their communities, educating people about the realities of poverty, and advocating on behalf of marginalized people in the community;
- transforms lives, whether they’re helping a homeowner keep their home, mentoring a single mother as she plans her path out of poverty, or working with an intern who is thinking about a career in social work, it’s making the lives of the people the Mission serves better.
Its values permeate everything it does, including the ways that it addresses poverty. The Mission’s statement of belief captures the way that these values inform its services. It believes that all people, regardless of how they come to Back Bay Mission, are first and foremost the children of a loving God and, as such, it have a religious, moral, and social obligation to help the people who come to it to the best of its ability; that all people make sensible decisions given the circumstances they face and the resources that they have; that poverty is best understood as a lack of access to the things a person needs to be treated as a full member of society; and that the best course for helping people out of poverty is a three-tiered approach, involving helping people meet their immediate needs, intensive case management to help them meet new challenges, and peer support networks so that people can receive guidance from others who have faced similar challenges. This approach involves helping people meet their immediate needs, providing intensive case management to help them meet new challenges, and developing peer support networks so that people can receive guidance from others who have faced similar challenges.
The Mission offers a variety of ministries including education and empowerment, emergency assistance, housing rehabilitation, mission trips and internships, and supportive housing. In addition, the Mission’s Micah Day Center provides a safe and hospitable place for homeless residents to gather. For people who cannot make it to the Micah Day Center, the Mission offers homeless outreach services. This Center is unlike homeless shelters in that it is not an overnight shelter but a community resource facility that includes a day center for homeless individuals and families equipped with showers, laundry services, mailboxes, computer and telephone access, and other basic services. It is a Center where people may find respite from the outdoors and attend to personal hygiene while also connecting with vital, mainstream social services, all under one roof.
The Back Bay Mission in 2021:
- sheltered 282 people with basic needs,
- helped 45 clients, at risk of becoming unsheltered, were able to remain housed,
- served 111 people served with 51 projects with housing rehabilitation and weatherization projects,
- distributed 2,662 food items, in addition to serving guests through the Emergency Assistance Program, aid with utility relief, and filling prescriptions,
- provided opportunities for 3,381 clients for showers, 2,003 guests for computer access, 1,730 loads of laundry, 2,134 pieces of mail dispersed, and 3,200 pieces of clothing distributed,
- helped with 85 clients through Housing Rehabilitation Program,
- housed 81 unsheltered clients,
- served 12 veterans served through its Veterans Only Programs.
First Community Church has had a close relationship with the Back Bay Mission for over 30 years, often sending small groups to work at the Mission. A trip has been scheduled for January 2023. Members of this congregation have often supported this Mission, including serving as members of the Board of Directors. (Currently, Crystal Allen of First Community is the Chairperson.) Prior to the COVID pandemic, our church also sponsored annual Shrimp Boils for several years, raising needed funds for its operations. This year, the Mission Council will work on a project with Midweek Missions (see below).
If you would like more information about Back Bay Mission, First Community Church, its other Mission programs, or are interested in joining the Mission Council for 2022, please email us at mission@fcchurch.com.
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K-5 Help for Back Bay
Hygiene Kit Project
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by Joy Converse
And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased. Hebrews 13:16
By sharing basic needed items with the Children attending Midweek Mission you can also help those at the Back Bay Mission in Biloxi Mississippi. How you ask? By bringing items to fill hygiene kits! These kits will include face towels, wash clothes, deodorant, soap, razors, toothbrushes, toothpaste, and a plastic soap container.
These items are badly needed by those homeless in the area when they visit the Micah Day Center and use the showers as well as other facilities to job hunt, seek assistance, and visit the food pantry. Why can’t they do these things at a shelter? Sadly, it is currently illegal to provide temporary shelter to those homeless in this part of the coast, so Back Bay Mission does the next best thing, giving those neighbors an opportunity to get clean, have items laundered, and use computers with internet access to contact loved ones, job hunt, and fill out applications.
Can’t do a whole kit,? Any contributions to the boxes at both the North Campus and the South Campus can be just a few items (new please). These will then be used to make the hygiene kits by the children attending Midweek Missions! And you can check out Dollar Stores, Big Lots, Marc’s and other low cost venues for the items to score great deals.
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Art Lovers for Missions
a fundraiser by Brian and Connie Johnston
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First Community Church member Brian Johnston is a talented and prolific artist. Although his past as a technical illustrator at North American Rockwell employed his artistic skills, in 1992 he started to paint full time in his art studio/converted garage. Numerous workshops from well known artists added to his proficiency in oil and acrylic realistic and abstract works.
If you don’t know Brian, chances are you know his wife, Connie. Since joining First Community in 2006, Connie has been involved in some way with every aspect of the church. She has been everything from Governing Board Chair to Heart to Heart volunteer, Mission Council Chair to prison ministry volunteer, Thursdays at Ten facilitator to Community Justice Team member, as well as part of a Friendship Circle. To say she knows First Community well is an understatement.
Perhaps that is why, back in 2015, the Johnstons decided to hold an art show in order to benefit the missions of First Community. With a touch of foreshadowing the “Art Lovers for Missions” show was held in Brownlee Hall. The event raised an impressive $6,200 in donations towards First Community Missions.
In the years that followed, the Johnstons continued to support Missions in so many ways. During the pandemic, with no gallery shows to prepare for, Brian continued to paint. He found satisfaction in offering his paintings in exchange for a contribution to Missions.
As Brian finished paintings, Connie posted them on her personal Facebook page. Friends would ask for the works, and the only stipulation was that the purchase price (of the person’s choosing) would go directly to First Community Missions. Connie made arrangements to get them to the interested parties. Many went to people who live locally, but others were shipped to Florida, Georgia, Virginia and North Carolina. Brian has accepted no money for the art itself, only reimbursements for some heftier shipping costs. From 2020 to present, $9,200 has been donated to First Community church as a result of this effort. Both the Refugee Task Force and Heart to Heart food pantry have been the recipient of these donations.
As you can imagine, everyone they know probably has an original Brian Johnston in their home, and that includes me! While Facebook connects people far and wide, Connie has been limited to those she is directly connected to on the platform. As Brian continues to paint, we have found a way to bring his work to a greater audience.
The Facebook page for First Community now has an Art Lovers for Missions event, where you will be able to see Brian’s art as it is finished and becomes available. Click the button below to access the event.
No words can express our gratitude for the over $15,000 given to Missions so far in exchange for the privilege of owning a piece of his art. Brian’s work is a gift not only to the church, but to the owner of each of his original paintings.
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In the Garden
Share and Learn Garden Updates
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The Share and Learn Garden at First Community North sits on the property behind the Mary Evans Child Development Center. All the produce grown in the garden comes directly to Heart to Heart. The garden is managed and harvested by a small but mighty and fun group of volunteers. Master Gardeners Cheryl and Loren VanDeusen, and their daughter, Kate Paulson, are the group's leaders. Kate has been sending weekly emails with beautiful photos since before the growing season began. The group has reconvened again every Tuesday morning, weather permitting.
We receive weekly updates from Kate Paulson. Below we share excerpts from those recent emails.
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August 26, 2022
Hi friends & gardeners!
I just returned from harvesting. It was very fun…the daycare kids are SO excited about plants! (And eating the cherry tomatoes, lol 😂)
Looking around the garden, I have some Ideas for 2023, (and autumn 2022). I am brainstorming ways to increase yield without greatly increasing effort. Seeing how excited the kids are about nature and plants, we need to make sure there is more for the kiddos to touch and eat. After all… that is how you get a gardener for life…you start young!
Have a great weekend!
Kate Paulson
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August 21, 2022
Good morning gardeners & friends!
Last week was a productive harvest!
This week we will of course harvest and the major chore is removing the cucumber vines and supports. The cucumbers are finished and the final harvest was this past Saturday (yesterday).
In upcoming weeks when the temperatures cool down, we will replace the cucumbers with cabbage plants.
The zinnia/cosmos bed continues to produce beautiful flowers that have attracted bees and butterflies, including the endangered monarch.
See you soon!
Kate
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August 13, 2022
Hello gardeners & friends,
Last week was a productive harvest week. The garden is producing away and despite it being August, we still have productive months ahead!
Last week we planted additional collards and repaired row covers to protect them.
This week will be harvest, harvest, harvest!
Enjoy the attached photos!
Kate
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August 7, 2022
Hello gardeners & friends,
We are into harvest time!
Yesterday, (8/6) Loren and Kathleen Lennon harvested tomatoes 🍅 and cucumbers 🥒 (I weighed & packaged at home, and will bring Tuesday)…many thanks to both of them for the extra harvest. As an aside, the cucumbers and tomatoes are absolutely beautiful this year. 💥
This week’s work will include harvesting tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, herbs and planting the new collard plants. If time permits and there are enough hands, row covers need repaired to cover the new collard plants.
See you Tuesday!
Kate
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Deep Griha
Thriving Post-Pandemic
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by Kitty Rohrer
During the early days of the pandemic, daily life in India changed drastically, as it did in the rest of the world. As a result, the activities of the staff at the Deep Griha Society (DGS) changed to meet the basic needs of residents. While most of the usual programs were curtailed, the DGS staff kept busy tending to the nutrition and health needs of the community. Now that life has begun to stabilize a bit, the DGS staff are returning to some previous activities while simultaneously modifying and developing new ones to address the current needs of the residents in the slums and rural areas of Pune, India in which DGS operates.
On April 23, 2022, Deep Griha USA, The Friends of Deep Griha (UK), and Deep Griha Society in Pune, India presented the Second Annual Celebrate Deep Griha Webinar via Zoom. The program was a good mixture of speakers, images, and information from the global support system. Deep Griha’s Director, Ashlesha Onawale, gave an update on many of the things that are happening at Deep Griha, demonstrating the breadth and depth of the agency’s reach in the community. In addition, Angela Aram, the Director of Deep Griha Academy, an English-medium school located in the rural area outside of Pune, gave an update on the school which is now fully back in session. Some of the teachers were interviewed, then there was a Q & A session to close out the program.
The enjoyable and enlightening Celebrate Deep Griha Webinar can be accessed for viewing on YouTube.. In addition, further details about the many DGS projects can be found in the Quarterly Report on the Deep Griha USA website.
The Student Scholarship Program, Adhar Kendra, currently has 294 students in the program, but 30 more at-risk children remain on the waiting list awaiting sponsors and funding. The website offers the opportunity to establish Student Scholarships as well as to make donations to other areas or to the “Area of Greatest Need”. Please consider supporting this very vital social outreach program in Pune, India!
| The Mission Council voted to award $10,000 to Deep Griha at our August meeting. This funding will be used toward rebuild the floor in their outdoor cooking area. The council looks forward to a virtual visit from Ashlesha during our September council meeting. | | |
Healing Art Missions
Hard Times in Haiti
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by Amy Caskie
On August 8, I exchanged emails with Tracee Laing, Founding Director of Healing Art Missions. She electronically introduced me to their new Executive Director, Connie Skingle. Tracee also updated me about the deteriorating situation in Haiti, and we received a received a grant application to our Mission Council shortly thereafter.
On August 13 we received email letting us know that the clinic in Dumay, outside Port-au-Prince, would have to temporarily close for the safety of everyone involved in the mission throughout the area. Included is an excerpt from Medical Director, Dr. Jean Fritz Jacques
Healthcare providers have a moral duty to provide services to people
when they are needed, but also have a responsibility to protect workers…. Since personnel and medical specialists working at Healing Art Missions cannot safely perform their duties, we are closing the clinic until
we feel this situation is resolved.
We were saddened to hear this news, of course. However, pleased to hear that HAM's other programs, the Charles Solomon Primary School, and clean water program in Demier, and the Nippes Surgery Program—remain operational at this time. a
At the Mission Council meeting last week, a grant of $13,000 was awarded to Healing Art Missions. This money will go toward funding their surgery program in Nippes for six weeks. The council is pleased to be able to help this organization during a very difficult time.
We look forward, hopefully very soon, to news that the clinic in Dumay can safely reopen and resume operations for the people in that area. In the meantime, we will keep them all in prayer. We continue to be grateful for HAM's work caring for the people of Haiti and we are honored to support this work.
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by Charlie Jacob
Charlie and Ann Jacob have collected used eyeglasses for several years. There are collection boxes at North, South, and in the stairs leading down to the Trading Post. The prescription eyeglasses go to SVOSH at Ohio State. The reader eyeglasses are given out locally.
The next local give-away will be September 24, 2022. Reader eyeglasses, and sunglasses will be given out at the Good Neighbor Picnic. Hopefully, all homeless attendees will get the reader glasses they need. Plus, they will likely get a glasses case for each pair of reader or of sunglasses.
Many eyeglasses have been generously donated by First Community attendees. The readers and sunglasses are much needed, and much appreciated by the homeless.
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Tandana Foundation Updates | |
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August 26, 2022
Hi Amy,
Thanks to the support of the Church’s Mission Council, the reservoir in Moe, commune of Wadouba, has been completed!
Please share these photos with your kind friends at Church, with our sincere gratitude.
Continued blessings,
Richard J. O’Hara
Development Director
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August 7, 2022
Dear Scholarship Supporter,
I hope this finds you and yours doing well!
I'm delighted to report--and thought you would like to know--that the following 17 high school scholarship students passed their final exams and graduated at the end of July:
1. Danny Steeve Tituaña Muenala
2. Ñayeli Soleydi Fuerez Perugachi
3. Ruth Nohemí López Perugachi
4. Elisa Johana Yacelga Pichamba
5. Steven Fabricio Yamberla Fuerez
6. Blanca Rocío Muenala López
7. Ronnie Patricio Fueres Perugachi
8. Sisa Yarina Perugachi Almagor
9. Malke Kaelt Perugachi Gualsaqui
10. Ñusta Yarina Perugachi Gualsaqui
11. Alexis Eduardo Perugachi Perugachi
12. Sulay Nahomi Cachimuel Moran
13. Kevin Santiago Quilumba Saransig
14. Diego Armando Oyagata Perugachi
15. Alex Geovanny Panamá Quilumba
16. Ingrid Vanessa Males Gualsaqui
17. Evelin Mishelle Panamá Panamá
Here are a few photos that capture their graduation day:
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In-person summer school has also begun with 20 new students, all provisionally accepted as recipients of Tandana support.
All of this wonderful news is such a clear demonstration of the IMPACT your generosity and partnership with Tandana are having in young people's lives. We are profoundly grateful!
With best wishes, as always,
Richard J. O'Hara
Development Director
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Ministry of Presence
Prison Ministry
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by Amy Caskie
If you have participated in, are currently involved, or have expressed interest in the prison ministry with First Community Church, please read below to provide us feeback about this volunteer activity.
As you may know, the past few attempts to meet as a large group have been unsuccessful. We recently chatted to discuss what the future looks like for this group- how to get involved with new opportunities, how maintain the aspects of the ministry that are working, and how to best support the volunteers. We decided to ask everyone to give us feedback on these topics so we can plan for the next steps. This will ensure we are making informed decisions that best reflect the needs of the group.
Please complete this survey regarding your interest and participation with this ministry. If you'd like to be added to the email dsitrbution list, or would like to talk to a current volunteer, please email mission@fcchurch.com.
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Trading Post
Unique Items, One-of-a-Kind Art
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by Beth Hanson
When clerking at the Trading Post, we are often curious about why someone is buying a particular odd or unique item. But instead of blurting out “What in the world are you going to do with that?!”, we bite our tongues, put the item in a bag, and squelch our burning curiosity. Of course, sometimes shoppers will share their intentions, which was the case with one of our regular shopping couples, Mary and Russell. The other day, they brought in some of the things they have been making over the years with supplies procured at our shop. We were simply gobsmacked when these works of art were unfurled. They have been making these banners (which they hang in their house) and these are the three they brought in to show us:
If you look closely, you will see all kinds of unique fabrics (including some upholstery samples), jewelry, napkin rings, buttons, men’s ties, fringe, ribbon and other odds and ends. They compose the banners together and then Mary does the final sewing (with thread also purchased at the TP). Aren’t they creative?! Perhaps you recognize something you donated?
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The following week, they brought in some dolls they have been making for a crèche scene. The garments on the dolls standing up are made out of table napkins, their hair is from yarn and their heads are made from some wooden pears we had for sale. The wise men, with papier-mâché heads, are more colorful and are made with many of the same bits and pieces used in the banners. | |
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With school upon us, keep in mind that the Trading Post has school/office supplies including 3-ring notebooks, pens, crayons, folders, envelopes, markers, spiral notebooks, hole punchers, staplers, notebook paper, etc. Perhaps you are involved in providing backpacks filled with supplies for students who need them? We can help you fill them.
If you are curious about whether we have a certain item for sale, or if you have questions about a donation you are interested in dropping off, please give us a call at 614-488-6564. We are open every Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 10 am-4 pm. We are also open the first Saturday of every month, including next Saturday, September 3. Additionally, we will be open on Labor Day, Monday, September 5. We are located in the brick annex building at the back of the parking lot at First Community South. The shop is in the basement and donations can be left in the first floor hallway.
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Upcoming Events
Mark Your Calendars
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August 29- September 9 Trading Post blue tag sale
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September 3 & 5 Trading Post Open 10 am - 4 pm
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September 5 Heart to Heart closed
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September 12-16 Heart to Heart closed
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September 12- 25 Trading Post $8 bag sale
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September 18- 25 Back Bay Mission hygiene kit drive
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September 22 Heart to Heart Volunteer Night
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School Supply Success
Back Pack Drive for Heart to Heart
| Thanks to the generosity of our church and community, Heart to Heart received donations of 148 backpacks in time for the new school year to begin. These were filled with school supplies (and then some) for families living near the Riverview International Center. The kids and parents were extremely grateful for the donations. Thank you to everyone who donated, to First Community Church's K-5 program and Heart to Heart's Pop-Up Pantry volunteer team for making this happen! | |
Did you miss the last issue of On a Mission! blog? There's a great story from the Trading Post. View it, and all past issues, by clicking the link below. | |
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Did you know Heart to Heart is on social media? Click the buttons below to follow us. We also have a blog! Read the weekly blog posts at h2h.FCchurch.com/blog | | |
Did you know Trading Post is on Facebook? Click the button below to follow us. You can also sign up for the email list for occasional announcements, sales, and events. | |
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