Missions Committee Annual Report ~ 2007
In 2007 the Missions Committee met regularly on a monthly basis. We discussed and reviewed
possible candidate mission projects and decided that our list of recipients should include areas of need in our local community along
with historic beneficiaries. We also felt it was important to support the youth of our church with encouragement and finances
in mission projects they wanted to pursue. The following missions resulted:
- In March a special offering
was taken for "One Great Hour of Sharing"
- In April we supported 6 youth from our church with a special offering
to help finance their mission
trip to the Dominican Republic where they donated their time and
energy to build homes in a rural
community.
- In May we collected on "Blanket
Sunday" to support Church World Service. The amount collected
equates to 40 blankets that would
be given to people in areas ravaged by war or disaster.
- In June members of the committee baked cookies for
the Synod that marked the anniversary of the
UCC.
- In July our generous
congregation donated enough toiletries and toys to fill 12 "Heart to Heart" kits
for displaced
children. The kits were given to Covenant to Care for needy children in our local area.
- In August
church members again reacted to our appeal and donated school supplied which filled 8
backpacks.
The packs were given to Covenant to Care for needy children in our local area.
- In September we supported
Katie Layman with a donation from the mission budget to help fund a
misssion trip to Honduras.
Katie left for Honduras in January with a group of students and faculty
from Boston University
to provide health care and supplies to people in desperate need of medical
attention.
- In October church members and friends gave a special offering taken to support mission projects
that Ann Davidson has taken on in South Africa. Claudia and Woody personally presented the
director of Emmanuel Day Care Centre with our gift while visiting Malcom and Ann in Cape Town.
- Mission Committee
members survived The Empty Bowl Dinner in November! Our church members
and friends worked
together to raise over $3000 to support Oxfam America and Heiffer International
in their efforts
to fight world hunger.
- In December our Coat Drive produced 30 winter coats. The Hat and Mitten Tree
was beautifully
decorated with 64 hats, mittens, gloves and scarves. These gifts of warmth
were donated to FISH
in Torrington.
- Over the year we collected 20 pair
of eyeglasses, 700 Campbell Soup labels, non-perishable food
and prepared and served 5 meals to
the homeless at Loaves and Fishes.