Beginning next Sunday, March 7th, and for the next four Sundays, we will have a food drive for North Raleigh Ministries. We held a food drive last Lent, and our turn has come around again. The food pantry at North Raleigh Ministries could use tomato products, soups, canned meats and desserts. Please remember – NO FROZEN FOODS OR ITEMS THAT NEED REFRIGERATION. If you have any questions, please call Keith Bandy at 782-0315.

Pat Baker has been our representative for a second term and has resigned after a number of years of outstanding service. We need someone with an interest in helping this fine ministry in North Raleigh to represent us on the Board. Is that person you? North Raleigh Ministries (NRM) provides food and financial assistance to families and individuals in need. NRM does this by running a food pantry, a crisis center and a thrift shop. NRM needs good, responsible and caring leadership on the Board, and St. Timothy’s, as one of the founding parishes, needs representation on the Board. Please see Pat Baker or Father James to find out more about the responsibilities of Board membership.

Join the celebration! North Raleigh Ministries Thrift Shoppe will be celebrating our 4th Anniversary on October 30th through November 1st with store-wide sales. Drop by and see how your donations are helping our neighbors in need. The sale of one sofa keeps a family’s electricity or natural gas connected for a month.

We are also planning for Thanksgiving and Christmas! Mark your calendars for November 14th for our Holiday Food Drive at Chick-Fil-A on Capital Blvd. from 8 AM to 1 PM. Everyone who brings five non-perishable items will receive a free biscuit or chicken sandwich. Plus, NRM will earn 20% of sales (with an NRM Flyer) on all other food items. We will have activities, games, giveaways – fun for the entire family.

This year North Raleigh Ministries has partnered with the Inter-Faith Food Shuttle to sponsor 40 local school children by providing backpacks filled with healthy foods that are distributed to hungry children at times when other resources are not available, such as weekends and school vacations. The BackPack Buddies Program serves children who are food insecure, meaning they do not have access at all times to enough food for an active, healthy life.

BackPack Buddies targets kids who access free and reduced price lunches at school. Children are identified as “in need” by school guidance counselors and site coordinators.  The food is child-friendly, non-perishable, easily consumed and vitamin fortified. Backpacks are discreetly distributed to children on the last day before the weekend or holiday vacation.

We are looking for some churches and/or Sunday school classes to help sponsor this effort by having food drives specifically asking for the items that are needed to fill the backpacks. Right now the biggest need is for individually sized servings of boxed, shelf-stable milk and 100% juice boxes. Some other items to consider when shopping for the BackPack Buddy Program are  individual serving size containers of canned meats, stews, packaged noodles, breakfast items, canned fruit and vegetables and healthy snacks. Please contact Katie Lghtbody at 785-9911 Ext. 157 if you have questions or would like to sign up.

It is St. Timothy’s turn to hold a food drive for North Raleigh Ministries during the month of September. North Raleigh Ministries provides food and financial assistance to families and individuals in need. The ministry also provides Christian encouragement and referrals to Raleigh agencies that may be able to meet clients’ needs. We will collect food for the food pantry in barrels located in the narthex on the four Sundays of September.

Current food pantry needs include spaghetti sauce and noodles, canned meat, Hamburger Helper, peanut butter, flour, rice, canned pasta, instant potatoes, canned vegetables, breakfast items, jelly, sugar, vegetable soup, baking items, paper towels and toilet paper. All non-perishable items are welcome.

Please keep this ministry in mind. You may drop off your food donations in the collection barrels on September 6, 13, 20 and 27, or any day during the week that the Church is open. I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink. I was a stranger and you invited me in. – Matthew 25:35

Thank you! In July 2009, your generosity helped feed 186 families and provided financial assistance to help pay bills from Progress Energy, PSNC and landlords.

Please Save the Date – Saturday, September 12, 2009 – North Hills 5K Run for North Raleigh Ministries. Sign up now to run or volunteer.

Food Pantry Needs: Paper products, paper towels, toilet tissue, napkins, kleenex, paper bags for lunches, paper plates and paper cups.

School supplies will be distributed August 31st through September 3rd. Backpacks, paper, pens, notebooks, etc. are needed for all ages. Thank you for “Helping Neighbors now” with this need.

We need volunteers to assist with direct client services, a part time Thrift Shoppe manager, nurses to help with the CHAPS program, and teachers/instructors for client services in various programs. Call 785-9911 for more information.

Keep North Raleigh Ministries in your prayers as we continue to grow and help many more families through these difficult economic times.

Please bring non-perishable food products any Sunday in May. Donation barrels will be in the narthex on May 3rd, 10th, 17th, 24th and 31st. NO FROZEN OR REFRIGERATED ITEMS PLEASE. Contact Keith Bandy, Peppy Hayes or Debbie Nicholas for more information.

In an interest to support the food bank at North Raleigh Ministries, we are asking every child to bring at least one large jar of peanut butter to Church every Sunday in March. There will be a Peanut Butter Store open on Sundays during Coffee Hour for anyone wishing to purchase peanut butter to donate. Help share the joy of giving with your children during Lent. These jars will be taken weekly to the NRM food bank for distribution to the many people in need in our immediate area. Pat Baker, our contact person with North Raleigh Ministries, has informed us that there has been a great increase in people seeking assistance this winter.

Food Pantry Needs: Breakfast items (cereals, grits, oatmeal, breakfast bars, etc.), canned meats, dessert items (cake mix, pudding, Jell-O, etc.). Marked containers will be placed in the Parish Hall for collection of these items, and they will be transported to the Crisis Center. Please donate your time, talents and energy to sharing Christ’s love with our neighbors by volunteering at North Raleigh Ministries. Call 785-9911 and ask for Katie or contact Pat Baker at 787-5976 to volunteer.

We are providing traditional Christmas dinner boxes, Christmas stockings, and toys to eligible clients in our area. Already, over 70 children are registered for Christmas toys, and we still have a week to sign up. Your generosity will give these children a joyful Christmas. Please donate new toys and items for Christmas stockings before December 12. Last year we donated over 200 stockings, and this year the need has greatly increased.

Food Pantry Needs: Breakfast items (cereals, grits, oatmeal, breakfast bars, etc.), canned meats, dessert items (cake mix, pudding, Jell-O, etc.). Marked containers will be placed in the Parish Hall for collection of these items, and they will be transported to the Crisis Center. Please donate your time, talents and energy to sharing Christ’s love with our neighbors by volunteering at North Raleigh Ministries. Call 785-9911 and ask for Katie or contact Pat Baker at 787-5976 to volunteer.