Outreach has been the cornerstone of the mission of the church. From providing families with food to communities with support, The Episcopal Church has done wonderful things to lift those around them wherever they may be. One such place is even here in our own diocese. Grace Episcopal Church in Chillicothe.
Michael Johns. deacon at Grace Episcopal Church in Chillicothe, has been managing a flock of laying hens for the last year and a half. The flock grew this summer to 75 hens and moved locations to a different Amish family’s farm. The chickens have been highly productive, giving them eggs for the less fortunate friends and acquaintances. Extra eggs are donated to the Salvation Army food pantry, providing nourishing food to many families in the Chillicothe area.
The Anglican Rosary for World Peace on Facebook Live began on May 23 this year, with Deacon Michael, Rosina Harter and Karen White offering the prayer faithfully each Thursday night at 8:30 on the Grace Episcopal Church Facebook page. To date, between 61 and 110 people have viewed the offering every week. Beginning the third Thursday in Advent, Deacon Michael and Rosina will be offering the Luminous Mysteries using the Marian Rosary.
Grace Church has also been operating a once-a-month food pantry (Livingston County Food Pantry) with fresh fruits, vegetables, and eggs donated by local farmers, and even use frozen ground deer meat from the Department of Conservation when it is in season. Additionally, this food pantry serves as an emergency pantry for the area’s Foster Adopt agency, the North Missouri Mental Health agency, and other organizations that help those in need. This pantry is operated by the mother-daughter team of Mary Ann and Amanda Slattery and a group of volunteers from the community.
Rosina Harter, Parish Administrator for Grace Episcopal Church, spoke to The Rev. Canon John Spicer in late August about the overall message of his book, Beating the Boundaries. Fr. Spicer said it was to find a need in the community and find people who have a heart for it to meet that need. They talked further about how God often offers us opportunities when we are open to accepting the call.
Almost immediately, opportunities were “knocking on the church’s door.”
Later that summer, Rosina Harter was contacted by the Verella Peniston School. The school is operated by the State of Missouri for severely developmentally challenged children pre-kindergarten through age 21. For the last decade, the children had not been provided with community enrichment activities. The new staff wanted to change this situation, contacting the fire department, police department, farm equipment dealers, the local bowling alley, the public library and other businesses about helping. Grace Chillicothe was on their shortlist.
The team of Georgia Way (ECW President), Karen White (DOK President), Alyona Trantham, Amanda Slattery and Rosina and George Harter accepted the offer. The group met October 2 to solidify plans for the near future. The ECW immediately agreed to be the Partner in Education for the 15-student school. The group plans to seek out and create enrichment sensory toys for the students, hosting their holiday parties with food and simple crafts, and helping with team T-shirts for the staff. The group will be celebrating the graduation of 2 students in January and February and hosting an end of the year carnival at the end of the school year. Grace Church hopes to provide funding for a third and fourth school excursion for the students next year, which could include a trip to the bowling alley and to Papa Charlie’s Pumpkin Patch. The Pumpkin Patch will admit the group for free as the school is named for the late wife and mother of the owners. Creativity has flown from the group with almost more ideas than are imaginable.
Additionally, after a three year hiatus, Second Saturday Cinema will return to the parish hall in the cold months (November-March). This ministry focuses on low income families. The volunteers, Mary Ann Slattery, Amanda Slattery, and George and Rosina Harter projects a children’s movie and offers hot dogs, nachos and cheese, other simple snacks and bottled water and hot cocoa to the children and their adult guests.
And, new to the line-up is a “make a card and gift morning”/ Parents Day Out for elementary school students on December 14. Parents will sign release forms similar to those from VBS and drop off the children. So far, Mary Ann Slattery, Karen White, Amanda Slattery and Rosina Harter have signed on, with other parishioners planning to join in, too.
Although small, this little white church with 17 able-bodied members has proven to be a huge impact on its community. It’s been a fundamental part of the church’s ethos and mission to give back to those in greatest need in the area.
Article submitted by Rosina Harter, Parish Administrator for Grace Episcopal Church in Chillicothe.
