Volunteering at St. Georges
It’s impossible to list all the ways St. George’s parishioners reach out to others, but we've assembled some of our long-standing ministries below. Want to get involved? Check out the St. George's Bulletin for the latest volunteer opportunities, or subscribe to our Weekly Update, located in the dark purple box on our home page.
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Warm Nights—Hosting the Homeless at St. George's
In partnership with Community Crisis Services Inc. (CCSI) of Maryland, St. Georges participates in the Warms Nights program. For one week in around the beginning of winter, we open our doors to homeless families in the area. Besides providing sanctuary, our volunteers prepare and serve meals and provide services such as homework help to our guests. There are a variety of ways that a parishioners can help, including preparing and serving the meals, donating items that will be needed throughout the week, greeting guests as they arrive, or setting up and tearing down the space at the beginning and end of the week-long program. |
Food Pantry
St George’s supports a food pantry located at Trinity Moravian Church in New Carrolton run by the county organization Help by Phone. Throughout the year, our parishioners bring donations of non-perishable foods such cereal, canned products, pasta, peanut butter, jelly, and rice to St George’s, and each week volunteers deliver these foods to the pantry for distribution to families in need. |
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School Supply Drive
St George’s conducts an annual parish-wide school supplies drive for the students and teachers at Gaywood Elementary School. In July, we get an updated list from Gaywood of the many supplies that students will be expected to provide for themselves and for the classroom, and parishioners donate supplies from this list as they are able. Volunteers organize and deliver these supplies to Gaywood just before the first day of school. |
Lenten Offerings
During the season of Lent, the outreach and social justice team (St. George’s Justice League) identify an organization for us to support and parishioners give a little bit each day, bringing their offering on Easter Sunday. Some past organizations that the church has given to include the Gaywood Elementary School library, Doctors without Borders, DC Diaper Bank, and KIND (Kids in Need of Defense). |
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Warm Clothing Drive
The International Student Admissions & Enrollment Office (formerly known as the International Student Counseling Office or ISCO) of the Prince George’s County School System registers newly arrived refugee and immigrant children who are enrolling in Prince George’s County schools. Every year, we host a warm clothing drive throughout the month of November to meet the needs of these children and their families, many of whom come from warmer climates and don’t have appropriate clothing for Maryland winters. Parishioners donate new and gently used coats and jackets, gloves and mittens, hats and scarves, as well as Target gift cards which the ISCO can use to purchase other items individual students may need, such as boots, socks, and uniforms. |
Gaywood Food Program
St George’s operates a year-round food support program in partnership with Gaywood Elementary School. The Gaywood food program provides assistance in the form of monthly food boxes and grocery gift cards for students and their families identified as having critical food needs. Once a month, St George’s volunteers pack up food that parishioners have donated. During the school year, these boxes and grocery gift cards are delivered to Gaywood for distribution to the families, and during the summer months, we interact directly with the families so they can continue to receive assistance when school is not in session. In addition, we periodically hold special drives for supplies these families need that are outside the scope of the food program, such as toiletries, laundry detergent, and diapers. |
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