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This year, The Apostles’ House, a social services agency in Newark, is celebrating its 40th anniversary of providing invaluable services and shelter for thousands of women, children, and families facing homelessness.
A founding church of The Apostles’ House
Since the inception of The Apostles’ House, Christ Church has provided support to the agency’s mission of helping those in need. In the early 1980s, The Rev. James Snodgrass, father of Christ Church’s rector, Rev. Bowie Snodgrass, was rector of House of Prayer Episcopal Church in Newark. He realized the pressing need for shelter for the disenfranchised women and their children who would appeal to him for help. Enlisting the aid of five other Episcopal churches in the Newark Diocese, including Christ Church in Short Hills, Rev. Snodgrass assembled a team to find some solutions.
At the time, a building on Grant Street in Newark, close to House of Prayer, had been taken over by the City of Newark for back taxes and was available at a very low price. Rev. Snodgrass’ task force raised funds to purchase and rehab the building as a shelter, and The Apostles’ House was born.
The needs have grown
Over the years, The Apostles’ House has grown in size and in services. The organization now owns four buildings on Grant Street: three shelters for homeless women and their children, which can house up to 100 residents, and an administration building. The shelter residents are provided with meals and an intensive program guiding them toward self-reliance, job readiness, and independent living skills, The agency also owns a 15-unit apartment house on Avon Avenue in Newark, where families live a more independent lifestyle while transitioning to self-sufficiency. Required case management, counseling, and recreational activities for all clients of The Apostles’ House cultivate their confidence and stability.
The Apostles’ House serves the community as well. Its recently renovated food pantry, run by agency staff and volunteers, supplies nutritious food and household staples to 160+ community residents each week. This program is a crucial resource for many Newark residents.
Christ Church’s Continuing Support
Christ Church, through numerous Outreach Grants, has aided The Apostles’ House through its 40 years of service to the needy.
When The Apostles’ House opened its third shelter on Grant Street last year, Christ Church responded to the agency’s “Adopt-A-Room” initiative with a generous grant that enabled church volunteers to purchase bedding and decor to create a beautiful, welcoming room for a mom and her children arriving at the shelter.
Every holiday season, members of Christ Church participate in the “Embrace-A-Family” program to make Christmas a bit brighter for The Apostles’ House clients. Shelter residents provide a “wish list” of a few gifts they would like to receive, and participating church members make sure those Christmas wishes come true. Packages are festively wrapped and delivered to The Apostles’ House. For some residents, those are the only gifts they will receive. This past Christmas more than 30 women and children living in the shelters had a happier holiday thanks to the generosity of Christ Church.
If you would like to be involved in supporting The Apostles’ House, please contact the church office.
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