St. Thomas - Journey Outward

SOCIAL JUSTICE To learn how we use our Episcopal voices to promote social justice, visit the Episcopal Network for Public Policy @ episcopalchurch.org, or call Alice Goshorn—738-2655.
Some Outreach Opportunities and Ways to Participate St. Thomas Clinic envisions a society where all people have access to health care regardless of their ability to pay. Johnson County is one of the fastest growing counties in the state and yet about 10% of its population face poverty. St. Thomas Clinic serves those in our surrounding community who cannot afford health care or prescription medicines. Services at St. Thomas Clinic are provided primarily by volunteer health care professionals, such as physicians, nurses, nurse practitioners, medical students, nursing students, social workers and pharmacists. Clinic sessions are every Wednesday and Saturday morning. Contact Administrative Director, Jane Beers on Wednesday or Saturday morning at 535-6057 or you may leave a message for her with the church office at 535-8985. Johnson County Food Pantry is located in Franklin and serves clients from 1 – 3 pm Monday thru Friday. St. Thomas collects food for the pantry the 3rd Sunday of each month and several members of the congregation volunteer one day a month to help at the pantry. Participate by bringing food to church on the 3rd Sunday, or consider volunteering one day a month to help fill food bags for the clients. Another way to participate is to become a food pantry board member. Please contact Don & Fran Thompson at 535-4897 for more information. Crop Walk Food Drive is family, friends and neighbors walking together to raise awareness and funds to fight hunger internationally and locally. 25% of the funds raised and all of the food remain in the local community. Johnson County Crop Walk is scheduled for the 1st Sunday in October. Participate by gathering pledges and walking on Crop Walk Sunday or agree to sponsor someone who is walking. Angel Tree is a ministry to children whose parent is incarcerated. Prisoners apply for help to provide Christmas gifts to their children. St. Thomas receives 15 to 20 names of local children each year and parish members purchase a clothing item or a toy for each child. St. Thomas provides a party for the children during Advent and also provides Easter baskets to the same children. Participate by taking an “angel” ornament with a child’s name and a suggested clothing item or toy. Then purchase, wrap and bring the item back to church. Provide decorations or refreshments for the party or just come and have fun as St. Thomas children meet and make new friends. Participate by filling an Easter basket with suggested items and bring it to church for delivery to children, by offering to deliver baskets. Please contact Karen Cushing at 885-7342 for more information. Habitat for Humanity seeks to eliminate poverty housing and homelessness and make decent shelter a matter of action. Through donations of money, materials and volunteer labor, Habitat builds decent houses. Homeowner (partner) families invest hundreds of hours of their own labor “sweat equity” to build their Habitat house. The houses are sold to partner families at no profit, with affordable loans. Their monthly mortgage payments are used to build more Habitat houses. Participate by making a donation or volunteering for the next home build. If you have questions you can call the local Habitat office in Franklin at 736-4454 or e-mail Doug Grant at habitat@franklincollege.edu Please contact Phil Warrenburg at 736-9043 for more information. Christian Help is an interdenominational community organization serving the homeless or near homeless in Johnson County. By providing a safety net of services, they are helping families and individuals become self-supporting, productive members of the community. At St. Thomas the open plate (undesignated) Easter offering is donated to Christian Help. Participate by volunteering your time or making a monetary donation. The Christian Help website, christianhelpinc.org details many ways to help. If you have questions or need more information contact Father Ferner at 736-7889. Bridge of Hope’s mission is to prevent homelessness of at-risk single women and their children. Professionally trained staff and church-based mentoring groups partner with a mother and her children to provide self-sufficiency through employment, friendship and self-esteem. The St. Thomas open plate (undesignated) Christmas offering is donated to Bridge of Hope. Participate by making a financial contribution to Bridge of Hope, by being part of a future St. Thomas mentoring group. Another way to participate is to become a Bridge of Hope board member. Please contact Jen Tullis at 346-7098 for more information. United Thank Offering is a partner in the mission work of the Episcopal Church. UTO focuses on addressing compelling needs and expanding mission and ministry. The goal is to help “turn lives around” by funding projects and programs world-wide. St. Thomas Clinic has received two separate grants from United Thank Offering. The St. Thomas UTO yearly ingathering is the Sunday before Thanksgiving each year. Please contact Judy Thompson at 885-8272 for more information. Episcopal Fund For Human Need provides critical support for those with needs in the Diocese of Indianapolis. Help is provided in times of community emergencies. EFHN also assists soup kitchens, prison ministries, the elderly and children in crisis. In addition, funds are provided for those in need of health care, emergency food, housing or clothing. St. Thomas participates in the Diocesan ingathering in Pentecost. St. Thomas Clinic, among others, is a beneficiary of this offering. Please contact Archdeacon Alice Goshorn at 738-2655 for more information. Episcopal Relief & Development is a compassionate response of the Episcopal Church to people suffering because of natural or man-made disasters who have immediate, emergency needs. ERD helps rebuild communities and promotes sustainable development by identifying and addressing the root causes of suffering. Opportunities to contribute to ERD are made available at St. Thomas during Lent. Please contact Archdeacon Alice Goshorn at 738-2655 for more information. Millennium Development Goals were identified at the start of the new millennium by a gathering of leaders from 191 nations, including the United States. The leaders agreed on a plan to cut extreme global poverty (freedom from misery and suffering, hunger, illiteracy, disease, poor housing and insecurity) in half by 2015. St. Thomas Vestry has made an annual pledge of 0.7% (seven-tenths of one percent) of the church budget to make the MDG’s a reality. The congregation is encouraged to make a personal commitment to the Millennium Development Goals. Please contact Archdeacon Alice Goshorn at 738-2655 for more information.

SOCIAL JUSTICE
To learn how we use our Episcopal voices to promote social justice, visit the Episcopal Network for Public Policy @ episcopalchurch.org, or call Alice Goshorn—738-2655.

Some Outreach Opportunities and Ways to Participate

St. Thomas Clinic envisions a society where all people have access to health care regardless of their ability to pay. Johnson County is one of the fastest growing counties in the state and yet about 10% of its population face poverty. St. Thomas Clinic serves those in our surrounding community who cannot afford health care or prescription medicines. Services at St. Thomas Clinic are provided primarily by volunteer health care professionals, such as physicians, nurses, nurse practitioners, medical students, nursing students, social workers and pharmacists. Clinic sessions are every Wednesday and Saturday morning.
Contact Administrative Director, Jane Beers on Wednesday or Saturday morning at 535-6057 or you may leave a message for her with the church office at 535-8985.

Johnson County Food Pantry is located in Franklin and serves clients from 1 – 3 pm Monday thru Friday. St. Thomas collects food for the pantry the 3rd Sunday of each month and several members of the congregation volunteer one day a month to help at the pantry.

Participate by bringing food to church on the 3rd Sunday, or consider volunteering one day a month to help fill food bags for the clients. Another way to participate is to become a food pantry board member.

Please contact Don & Fran Thompson at 535-4897 for more information.

Crop Walk Food Drive
is family, friends and neighbors walking together to raise awareness and funds to fight hunger internationally and locally. 25% of the funds raised and all of the food remain in the local community. Johnson County Crop Walk is scheduled for the 1st Sunday in October. Participate by gathering pledges and walking on Crop Walk Sunday or agree to sponsor someone who is walking.

Angel Tree is a ministry to children whose parent is incarcerated. Prisoners apply for help to provide Christmas gifts to their children. St. Thomas receives 15 to 20 names of local children each year and parish members purchase a clothing item or a toy for each child. St. Thomas provides a party for the children during Advent and also provides Easter baskets to the same children.

Participate by taking an “angel” ornament with a child’s name and a suggested clothing item or toy. Then purchase, wrap and bring the item back to church.

Provide decorations or refreshments for the party or just come and have fun as St. Thomas children meet and make new friends.

Participate by filling an Easter basket with suggested items and bring it to church for delivery to children, by offering to deliver baskets.

Please contact Karen Cushing at 885-7342 for more information.

Habitat for Humanity seeks to eliminate poverty housing and homelessness and make decent shelter a matter of action. Through donations of money, materials and volunteer labor, Habitat builds decent houses. Homeowner (partner) families invest hundreds of hours of their own labor “sweat equity” to build their Habitat house. The houses are sold to partner families at no profit, with affordable loans. Their monthly mortgage payments are used to build more Habitat houses.

Participate by making a donation or volunteering for the next home build.

If you have questions you can call the local Habitat office in Franklin at 736-4454 or e-mail Doug Grant at habitat@franklincollege.edu

Please contact Phil Warrenburg at 736-9043 for more information.

Christian Help is an interdenominational community organization serving the homeless or near homeless in Johnson County. By providing a safety net of services, they are helping families and individuals become self-supporting, productive members of the community. At St. Thomas the open plate (undesignated) Easter offering is donated to Christian Help.

Participate by volunteering your time or making a monetary donation. The Christian Help website, christianhelpinc.org details many ways to help.

If you have questions or need more information contact Father Ferner at 736-7889.

Bridge of Hope’s mission is to prevent homelessness of at-risk single women and their children. Professionally trained staff and church-based mentoring groups partner with a mother and her children to provide self-sufficiency through employment, friendship and self-esteem. The St. Thomas open plate (undesignated) Christmas offering is donated to Bridge of Hope.

Participate by making a financial contribution to Bridge of Hope, by being part of a future St. Thomas mentoring group. Another way to participate is to become a Bridge of Hope board member.

Please contact Jen Tullis at 346-7098 for more information.

United Thank Offering is a partner in the mission work of the Episcopal Church. UTO focuses on addressing compelling needs and expanding mission and ministry. The goal is to help “turn lives around” by funding projects and programs world-wide. St. Thomas Clinic has received two separate grants from United Thank Offering. The St. Thomas UTO yearly ingathering is the Sunday before Thanksgiving each year.

Please contact Judy Thompson at 885-8272 for more information.

Episcopal Fund For Human Need provides critical support for those with needs in the Diocese of Indianapolis. Help is provided in times of community emergencies. EFHN also assists soup kitchens, prison ministries, the elderly and children in crisis. In addition, funds are provided for those in need of health care, emergency food, housing or clothing. St. Thomas participates in the Diocesan ingathering in Pentecost. St. Thomas Clinic, among others, is a beneficiary of this offering.

Please contact Archdeacon Alice Goshorn at 738-2655 for more information.

Episcopal Relief & Development is a compassionate response of the Episcopal Church to people suffering because of natural or man-made disasters who have immediate, emergency needs. ERD helps rebuild communities and promotes sustainable development by identifying and addressing the root causes of suffering. Opportunities to contribute to ERD are made available at St. Thomas during Lent.

Please contact Archdeacon Alice Goshorn at 738-2655 for more information.

Millennium Development Goals were identified at the start of the new millennium by a gathering of leaders from 191 nations, including the United States. The leaders agreed on a plan to cut extreme global poverty (freedom from misery and suffering, hunger, illiteracy, disease, poor housing and insecurity) in half by 2015. St. Thomas Vestry has made an annual pledge of 0.7% (seven-tenths of one percent) of the church budget to make the MDG’s a reality. The congregation is encouraged to make a personal commitment to the Millennium Development Goals.

Please contact Archdeacon Alice Goshorn at 738-2655 for more information.