Circle of Hope

Mardi Gras was a miraculous night at BW. The techonology finally worked (and who knew Steve was a good DJ?). Married people danced with each other! Brand new friends dared to karaoke! The fire department did not get called when we burned the fronds at midnight!

We weren’t sure anyone would revel with us, but a surprising number did and left wondering when we were going to do it all again. Oh, we will.

We don’t need Mardi Gras. But it turned out that it was a good prelude to the sober time the next evening at Ash Wednesday, when another surprising number showed up. Reportedly, all our congregations experienced much of the same. We are beginning the discipline season with conviction and hope. We are not afraid of the suffering and we are not afraid of the joy set before us.

From the Compassion Core Team member, Meg Rosenbach.

For the Love of Childs is a new Compassion Team focused on Childs Elementary, a South Philly neighborhood school. This team directly responds to our conviction: Generating justice and hope in our neighborhood must be at the heart of us. In response to our passion for our neighborhood and neighbors, a few of us have started to connect to the local Elementary School, G.W. Childs, a K-8 school just three blocks from our meeting space. Our team wants to follow this calling by investing our time, resources, and hearts into a partnership with staff, students, and parents at Childs. We recognize that schools are often the epicenters of neighborhood activity and serve as places where we will be able to connect with people we may not otherwise meet. In the process, we hope to engage the youth who attend Childs, by offering them opportunities for creativity, service, and possibly academic support.

At the heart of our team comes the conviction that those who are all ready part of the Childs community will know best what the school needs. We are dedicated to collaborating with people in the school community to define the initiatives and projects in which our team will engage. Our first connection to the school comes through Maria, the school’s art teacher. The team has all ready met with Maria and we will work with her this spring to help raise money for more art supplies by hosting a youth art show in the Broad and Washington space.

For the Love of Childs Team will move with the Spirit is doing next, always seeking out opportunities for new ways to serve and connect to the Childs community. We are committed first and foremost to loving our neighbors and to the flexibility that is required of those working with schools.  

If you are interested in joining us please contact Megan Rosenbach: megan.rosenbach@gmail.com.

This post is part of a three-part series from the Compassion Core Team! We are proud to introduce three recently formed Compassion Teams! Stay tuned for more. You just need some passion, people, and prayer to start your own team; check out how you can.

In 2011—through our Compassion Fund—we gave away $46,302.11 in gifts to our friends, family, strangers that had a need. I find it so inspiring to be a part of a family that gives away its money to help people get through hard times and help relieve the stress of bills so that minds are not cluttered with concern but focused on Jesus.

$12,694 helped people to pay their rent, so they could continue working on programs to promote peace and Gods love

Some of the other money went to buying a laptop so someone could accomplish school work, helping people get a months’ worth of groceries, getting a car repaired so they could get to and from work, helping someone to get closer to being debt free.

In 2011 Circle of Hope wrote 74 checks just because we saw or heard of a need.  In my eyes that is the true meaning of family and living like Jesus.

(Submitted by Kate Schafer, Treasurer of the Compassion core team)