Centre
Congregational Church
United Church of Christ
We Welcome Everyone: An “Open & Affirming” Church
Handicap Accessible
Phone:
(781) 334-3050;
Fax:
(781) 334-6463; Email:
[email protected]
5
Summer Street, Lynnfield, Massachusetts 01940
Outreach and Mission at Centre Church
What do we mean when we talk about outreach and mission? Outreach includes all the things that we do to help those who are struggling. We donate money to organizations seeking to alleviate/end hunger, poverty, and homelessness. Mission includes anything that we do to introduce people to Christianity or help them grow in their faith.
In addition to the organizations listed below, the Outreach and Missions team is committed to providing financial support for mission trips taken by our members. Centre Church members have traveled to help rebuild areas hit by natural disasters in Joplin, MO, in New Orleans, LA and in areas of New York and New Jersey. We have also done construction and maintenance work more locally on housing projects run by Habitat for Humanity and H.O.M.E.
We believe that these trips are wonderful hybrids of outreach and missions – the participants have an opportunity to grow in their faith together as they provide help to others.
Lynn Shelter Association (LSA)
A homeless shelter and human services agency in Lynn, MA. The LSA's goal is to rebuild the individual and family from the inside to achieve independent living. The LSA operates an Emergency Shelter and Day Center for individual men and women; the Bridge House Transitional Family Shelter, and the Transitions program.
Through its subsidiary corporation, Housing Opportunities and Management Enterprise, the LSA also owns and operates four apartment houses with SRO (single room occupancy) apartments, transitional housing, and permanent affordable housing opportunities.
Nevins Farm – MSPCA
An animal shelter and adoption facility in Methuen, MA. In this economy of unemployment and foreclosures, more families are finding the need to give up their pets and livestock because they are no longer able to provide them with adequate care. We recognize that we need to expand our community outreach to include these animals in need. Our choice, Nevins Farm (MSPCA-Angell), provides direct hands-on care for thousands of animals each year.
Nevins Farm, in Methuen, is a unique 55-acre animal care complex that provides shelter and adoption services for both farm and companion animals. An open admission, they will never turn an animal away that needs their help regardless of age, health, or behavior. They are an independent non-profit charity, relying only on donations.
A Different Christian Voice
A startup church in Middleton, MA. We support Rev. Marie Lucca’s church because we are hopeful that through her ministry Rev. Lucca will introduce people to Christianity in a non-intimidating environment – complete with comfy sofas, discussions of the gospel, and a strong commitment to outreach.
Bread & Roses
A soup kitchen in Lawrence. Since 1980 Bread & Roses has fed hungry people and responded to the needs of those suffering in the Merrimack Valley. The soup kitchen volunteers greet as many as 160 men, women, and children each night. Bob Lanzoni writes:
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“We’ve become more than a soup kitchen. We find a warm coat for a cold person. We will find shelter for a guest on a frigid night. We reach out to them in their time of need to help them to find the right resources, with compassion, respect, and dignity.”
Journeys of Hope
A non-profit organization that serves homeless young adults, ages 18-23, in Salem, MA. Through programs and community outreach work, Journeys of Hope strives to meet the basic needs of homeless young adults. They provide assistance with shelter, food, clothing, and referrals for medical service. Their programs are designed to support homeless young adults as they move from homelessness to healthy futures.?
Haven From Hunger
A soup kitchen and pantry in Peabody, MA. Haven From Hunger provides a variety of assistance programs on a by-need basis. All those who have proof of need are helped by this organization. Homeless people as well as people on unemployment, elderly trying to live on Social Security, families on welfare, and the working poor who do not have enough money for food after paying rents or mortgages are all helped.
Haven From Hunger provides:
- A food pantry
- An evening meal program, serving 1,200 families a month from Peabody, Salem, and Lynnfield
City Mission Society
A multi-service agency in Boston, MA. City Mission Society’s programs include:
- Boston Urban Outreach – This program offers customized immersion experiences for groups of all ages. Overnight groups live in community at a local inner city church and learn how they can become agents of change to impact social issues.
- Homelessness prevention – “The Emergency Needs Network” assists some of Greater Boston’s most vulnerable individuals and families who are in crisis due to illness, unemployment, low income, or sudden emergencies. “A Lift Up” serves female-headed households, supporting them on the path to economic self-sufficiency.
- Youth Peace Empowerment – This program exposes young people to positive role models while learning useful life skills and participating in training about job readiness, conflict resolution, self-esteem and empowerment, and community-building.
Heifer International
A development organization with projects in the USA and around the world. Heifer works to end hunger and poverty by providing training and livestock to struggling families here in the US and around the world. The families become healthier, thanks to the milk, eggs, meat, or cheese from the animals. They also work to become self-reliant, selling things like eggs, milk, honey, or weavings. They can then use this money for essential needs like medicine, food, clothing, and school. Each person who receives animals from Heifer is required to Pass on the Gift – to pass on training in things like animal care and organic farming, and to pass on the first-born offspring of their animal to another family in need. In this way, the original gifts multiply and are shared.
Be Like Brit
An orphanage in Haiti. Britney Gengel grew up in Rutland, Mass. Her compassion for others brought Brit to Haiti, just a day before a catastrophic earthquake that claimed an estimated 230,000 lives. Britney had spent the day visiting an orphanage where she and fellow students from Lynn University met the Haitian orphans they had travelled so far to help. Just a few hours later, Britney, three of her fellow students, and two professors were dead. Britney was only 19 years old. Britney’s dream did not die with her. In Britney’s memory, her family established Be Like Brit, a nonprofit organization to serve the children of Haiti by establishing a safe, nurturing, and sustainable orphanage in an environment where they can grow, learn, and thrive.
Our Church’s Wider Mission
The United Church of Christ exists to serve its member churches, to provide theological education, and to work with other denominations to minister to those in need around the globe.
The money is divided:
- Through the national funding the United Church Board for World Ministries supports global evangelism, disaster response, rural and urban development, missionaries, UCC colleges and seminaries, and college campus ministries.
- The Massachusetts conference provides services and resources for pastoral settlement and for pastoral support and care. The conference provides training, resources, and development programs in areas such as missions, social responsibility, and stewardship.