Deuteronomy 10:12
What does the Lord your God require of you? Only to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways, to love Him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul.
What does the Lord your God require of you? Only to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all His ways, to love Him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul.
Lafayette's Mission Work
In keeping with God's requirements of us and in alignment with Lafayette's mission statement, funding and/or hands-on services are provided to a number of local, regional, and out-of-country ministries and missions. All are listed, as follows, and a few are highlighted below. If you would like to learn how you can help, please call the church at 850.877.4428 between the hours of 8:30 AM and 2:30 PM, and ask to speak to Matt, Chair of the Mission Committee.
- Dogwood Acres (regional)
- E.C.H.O. (Emergency Care Help Organization) (local)
- Gideons International (local, out-of-country)
- Habitat for Humanity (local, regional)
- Malawi Missions (out-of-country)
- UKirk Tallahassee (formerly Presbyterian University Center [PUC]) (local)
- Presbytery of Florida (regional)
- Refuge House (local)
- Scouting (local)
- Theological Education Fund (national)
- The Shelter/Shelter Meals (local)
- The Thornwell Home for Children (regional)
- Montreat (local, regional)
UKirk Tallahassee (Presbyterian University Center [PUC])
Lafayette wholeheartedly supports UKirk Tallahassee, the Presbyterian Ministry for FSU, FAMU, and TCC--financially, through Board representation, through service projects, and through occasional provision of dinners on Thursday nights, just prior to UKirk Tallahassee's "Listening Point." To learn more, visit PUC's website at www.ukirktallahassee.com or call the church office at 850.877.4428 between the hours of 8:30 AM and 2:30 PM, and ask to speak to Pastor Steve, our Board representative.
Dogwood Acres Camp and Retreat Center
Dogwood Acres is the outdoor ministry of the Presbytery of Florida. The mission of Dogwood Acres is to provide a retreat environment in which individuals and groups can grow in faith, and enjoy wholesome recreation and Christian fellowship in a natural and unspoiled part of creation. View the website or, better yet, visit in person to experience first-hand the beautiful gift that is Dogwood Acres. Contact Ben Powell, Camp Director, for more information and to schedule retreats. You may also contact Kay Lachat at Lafayette Presbyterian Church for volunteer opportunities, including serving as retreat host for scheduled groups or participating in workdays and year-round projects at the camp.
Buddy Bench Ministry
Sammie's Buddy Bench Project is inspired by a 9-year old in Fort Wayne, IN. This project collects bottle caps to be turned into Buddy Benches for schools. The benches, in Sammie’s words, are there “if someone is lonely, they can go sit on the bench and others know to go up and ask them to play.” She doesn’t want anyone to feel alone and at times would have used it herself. Also, it’s a place for new kids to sit and for those feeling left out or wanting to make a new friend.
Anyone can collect caps to have a bench made, so many organizations throughout the country needed caps for their benches. We delivered approximately 60 pounds of bottles for a bench to be made for a school in south Florida with no postage costs! Our researching also provided an option for recycling #5 prescription bottles that we initially collected.
Gimme 5 Recycling, with the help of Whole Foods Market, accepts #5 bottles for recycling into common household kitchen accessories, which through their program helps the homeless. For some time now, we have been dropping off bottles at Whole Foods Market who provides a special bin for collecting these.
So now in combination with The Buddy Bench Project, Gimme 5 Recycling, and Waste Pro USA, we have a good program to provide bottles AND caps for various uses.
WHAT TO COLLECT:
- Clean plastic bottle caps of any type for Buddy Benches.
- #5 prescription bottles for Gimme 5 Recycling.
- Other bottles that are not #5 or the labels won’t come off.
Our Lafayette ministry will be helping the disadvantaged, children who need friendship with the help of a simple bench, as well helping the environment.
Anyone needing caps for their bench project can contact Lafayette Presbyterian Church for a donation of caps.
E.C.H.O. (Emergency Care Help Organization)
Lafayette members regularly donate items to the E.C.H.O. center on S. Gadsden St. in Tallahassee. These donations help those who need immediate assistance of food, clothing, and furniture. A bin is provided by the sanctuary doors in the Narthex (entry) for your donations, which are delivered to ECHO 2 or 3 times each month. To learn more about this very successful ministry, please visit: http://echotlh.org/.
SHELTER FOOD : THE END OF AN ERA
With the move to the new shelter facility, now called the Comprehensive Emergency Service Center (CESC), the Mission Committee feels Lafayette can best continue its support by donating the funds we spend on meal ingredients to the Center. Center personnel are able to purchase the ingredients they need from Second Harvest, thus getting more for each dollar spent. This is our NEW mission.
The CESC is in need of on-site volunteers to help, as they now serve three meals per day to approximately 300 occupants. If you can volunteer at CESC, please let them know by contacting Bill Schack at bschack@TallahasseeLeonShelter.com, or by phone at 850.228.0114. Thanks again to all of our members who have been so dedicated in supporting this mission of Lafayette Presbyterian Church.
The CESC is in need of on-site volunteers to help, as they now serve three meals per day to approximately 300 occupants. If you can volunteer at CESC, please let them know by contacting Bill Schack at bschack@TallahasseeLeonShelter.com, or by phone at 850.228.0114. Thanks again to all of our members who have been so dedicated in supporting this mission of Lafayette Presbyterian Church.
Crafts for Missions/Prayer Quilt Group
This group of caring ladies crafting handmade items for missions developed out of our Prayer Quilt Group. The Prayer Quilt program is currently inactive, but an occasional lap quilt or pieced pillow has been created.
The Crafts for Missions group currently meets on the fourth Thursday of each month. They meet in our Christian Education Building at 1:30PM. The meetings are very informal and fellowship is a large part of the meetings. The group provides items for several different missions. The different missions are focused on in a rotating basis, depending on current need. New craft ideas and missions are always encouraged.
Currently the group contributes to the following missions:
The Crafts for Missions group currently meets on the fourth Thursday of each month. They meet in our Christian Education Building at 1:30PM. The meetings are very informal and fellowship is a large part of the meetings. The group provides items for several different missions. The different missions are focused on in a rotating basis, depending on current need. New craft ideas and missions are always encouraged.
Currently the group contributes to the following missions:
- Operation Christian Child Shoe Boxes is one of our major missions. Some of the items that are crafted for the boxes include loom knitted hats, jewelry, crouched items of various types, jump ropes braided from T-shirt strips, sunglass cases, various toy animals, small skirts and shorts, and many other items.
- To PSUSA Disaster Assistance the group sends flannel baby blankets, fleece baby and youth blankets, loom knitted hats, and various layette items.
- Courage Through Cancer is a local mission and the group provides soft loomed knitted hats for chemo patients.
- Little Dresses for Africa is a mission that sends simple but very cute dresses to under developed countries.
- Westminster Oaks is a mission close to our hearts. Adult dinning scarves are provided to residents, especially in the Health Care Center.
- Thornwell Children’s Home has been sent colorful pillow cases designated for children that come to Thornwell in a crisis situation.
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