490 Arnold Mill Rd. Woodstock, GA 30188
Service Opportunity Descriptions
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St. Michael's provides various service opportunities. There are many more opportunities available in Woodstock and Cherokee County. It is up to each family to find opportunities other than those provided by St. Michael's.
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Living Our Faith- Works of Mercy Service Program
Works of Mercy:
Feed the Hungry and Give Drink to the Thirsty
Clothe the Naked and Shelter the Homeless
Visit the Sick and Those in Prison
Instruct the Ignorant and Convert Sinners
Comfort the Afflicted and the Sorrowful“For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, a
stranger and you welcomed me, naked and you clothed me, ill and you cared for me,
in prison and you visited me.
Amen, I say to you, whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did
for me.” Matthew 26:35-36;40 -
Service Opportunity program
EACH YEAR: 3 SERVICE OPPORTUNITIES
- Every year: Participate in 3 parish provided or other works of mercy service opportunities.
- Serve others free of charge.
- You may work by yourself or with others.
- Parents are encouraged to serve with their teens.
- Each opportunity should be a minimum of 3 hours.
Record Keeping:- Candidates are to complete a Confirmation Service Journal Form for each service opportunity..
- To print out the Confirmation Service Journal CLICK HERE
- Give the completed form to your catechist.
- A Service Year begins June 1 and ends May 31 the following year.
- Service done the summer before you began Confirmation Prep Yr 1 may be included.
When we receive the Holy Spirit in the sacrament of Confirmation we are strengthened in a special way that helps us spread and defend our faith. One way of spreading our faith is in our actions-what we say and do in our parish and community. Our visible service to those in our communities-school, parish, neighborhood, and the greater community-is a reflection of our faith, our love for our Lord Jesus Christ.
In this time of preparation, each student of Confirmation is expected to give some form of service to their parish and communities. To be a mature Christian means not only to “know” one’s faith, but to also accept the responsibility of acting in the name of Jesus Christ in our community. Service is an integral part of our life-long faith formation. Our hope is that by participating in the program each student will “step out of their comfort zone” and truly perform Works of Mercy. -
Documents
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SERVICE OPPORTUNITY DESCRIPTIONS
Homestretch: (Work of Mercy)
Homestretch is an organization that helps homeless families in North Fulton. They provide shelter in one of about 30 units that they own. Then, they provide education about how to transition to regular housing. Most families will be in the program for about 9 months to a year. We help them by providing maintenance work on their homes and duplexes. This includes painting, moving, packing, yard work, planting flowers, etc. The exact nature of the work is not known until just before the service date. Meet at St. Michael’s by 8:15am, back about 12:30pm.
http://www.homestretch.org/
Fifth Saturday- SVDP & St. Michael’s Food Pantry:
Provides a meal to those at Must Ministries in Cobb County; usually serves between 50-100 guests. Students will bring items they have committed to bringing to the event, help to set up serving lines, serve food or drinks, provide support and encouragement to guests, and help clean up. 10 teens/event.
Thanksgiving Baskets: - Sponsored by Life Teen -look for their sign-up sheets in the Narthex in early November
Catholic Charities: - (Work of Mercy)We will help them unload trucks of boxes that will arrive from a donor Catholic parish. The boxes get sorted by the volunteers. Then, as the 100-200 families arrive to pick up their donations, we will verify their identity to make sure that the proper boxes are given to each family. We will help load the boxes into cars. As well, we will provide hospitality for the kids in the form of face painting, etc. Meet at Dunkin Donuts, 875 Towne Lake Parkway, Woodstock at 7:30am. Back about 3:30pm.
Giving Tree:
Collect, sort, load gifts for the needy in Cherokee County.Catechist Appreciation Dinner: -help with set-up/serving/clean-up
First Reconciliation Retreat Teen Aides: Three sessions to choose from. Help the second graders during their retreat with snacks, crafts, skits.
Lenten Fish Fry: Fridays during Lent (sponsored by the Knights of Columbus):
Help serve and clean-up.
St. Michael's Cupertino Village Special Needs Ministry: is excited to present a service opportunity as a Sensory Mass Monitor. In addition to attending the 12:45 Mass, a Monitor’s Job duties are as follows:- Set up Parent Room to receive Sensory Mass.
- Engage participants in Mass using tools provided.
- Clean up and return Parent Room back to its original function.
- Ensure that the room is being used appropriately.
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Ongoing Service Opportunities-contact directly
SVDP Thrift Store: 770-919-1458 (2722 Summer Street, Kennesaw)
HOPE Center's Seeds Thrift Store: 770-924-0864 (295 Molly Lane, Suite 120 Woodstock, GA 30189) http://seedsthriftstore.com/index.php/home/volunteer-with-us/
Next Step Ministries: This organization helps special needs teens and their families. Volunteers (14 yrs. and older) are needed on Saturdays. Visit their website: www.nextstepsministries.net
Christ Child: Christ Child Society of Atlanta is a non-profit organization serving underprivileged children in the Atlanta area and is open to people of all faiths. https://www.christchildatlanta.org/
The following are examples for the Parish/Community Service Opportunity
Religious Education: contact Elizabeth Bonutti ebonutti@saintmichaelcc.org
Teen classroom aides: weekly at any session; help children/Catechists
Parish Clean-up Days- as announced in the bulletin
Prayer Garden: Help with landscaping our garden. David Dull 770-924-9024
Youth Choir: Nila Alexander 770-966-8742 Brief music ensembles for Christmas/Easter -
SERVICE OPPORTUNITY IDEAS
TIME SENSITIVE OPPORTUNITIES
LIFE TEEN STATIONS OF THE CROSS DURING LENTContact: Lisa Fiamingo lfiamingo@saintmichaelcc.org 770-516-9699 x232
Pray the Stations of the Cross at St. Michael's- Friday @ 7:00pm during Lent.
PROJECT VALENTINE - for Empower CherokeeEvery year, Cherokee Recreaation & Parks collects the following Project Valentine donations: lip balm, lotion, sticky notes, pens, markers, word searches, art or music activities, candy (sugar free and regular), and other holiday related items. Donations are made into goody bags and delivered to Empower Cherokee, which is a nonprofit organization that serves the special needs community.
Please drop off contributions to the Recreation Center, 7545 Main Street, Building 200, Woodstsock. 770-924-7768
Wreaths Across America: volunteer to lay wreaths on the graves at the Georgia National Cemetery. Contact: Tom Wilder tom@wilder-realty.com for times and details.
What can you do?
This is a link to a beautiful list of Works of Mercy that you can do as a Family
ONGOING IDEAS
Corporal Works of Mercy:+ Contact local nursing homes, assisted living facilities and see if you can drop off items for the residents.
- homemade cards (don't include your last name), goody bags, home baked items, etc- get creative
+ Look around your neighborhood- do some elderly neighbors need help with their yard work, food shopping, running errands for them? Cook them dinner.
+ Look to your community paper - they usually list groups that are collecting items, assembling items, need volunteers.
Spiritual Works of Mercy:
+ Pray a weekly rosary with your family offering prayers for those in need, those in purgatory, unbelievers, priests, or deceased relatives.
+ Go to an Adoration hour and offer prayers for those in need, those in purgatory, unbelievers, priests, or deceased relatives.
Adoration at St. Michael's: Tuesday-Thursday 9:30am-5:00pm come anytime
+ Visit a cemetery and put flowers on graves; pray for the deceased
+ Pray outside an abortion clinic : Christy Wynn, Respect Life Ministry
respectlife@saintmichaelcc.org
+ Send someone a sympathy card or a care package
+ Pray a Divine Mercy Chaplet for those who will die this day
+ Pray the Prayer of St. Gertrude for the souls in Purgatory
+ Choose a family in your community and dedicate an entire week to praying for them