Outreach
Love of neighbour
Jesus said, “I tell you, whenever you refused to help one of the least important among you, you refused to help me.” Matthew 25
Loving our neighbour is the most important demand our faith makes of us.
Our Outreach Committee provides leadership for education and action,
both of which are woven into the life of our congregation.
Affordable Housing
Important to our outreach is to work in partnership with other organizations. Contact us if you are interested in getting involved in our work.
WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY AFFORDABLE?
“Affordable housing” means different things to different people. is For some, it means negotiating a good price. For the vulnerable poor, affordable doesn’t exist. For the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corporation it is something more technical, namely, 30% or less of a household’s income. This kind of housing needs public funding. Learn more here.
HOMELESSNESS
Kris Clemens, of End Homelessness, made us aware of the housing crisis in Winnipeg and across the country. Learn more here.
She quoted the 2016 Census that said, “Winnipeg had more than 35,000 homes that were crowded, unaffordable or in need of repair.”
THe right to housing
Kirsten Bernas, of The Right to Housing Coalition, responded to presentations made by our local MP, MLA and City Councillor.
She was then interviewed by one of the members of our Outreach Committee. Learn more here.
The Outreach Committee has a mandate to provide education, support congregational engagement and advocacy on issues, encourage financial support, and invite people to get involved in service opportunities. Other groups in the congregation, including Youth, Men’s Group, United Church Women and Children’s Church, also are active in social justice initiatives.
Some of the ways we are accomplish this include:
- guest speakers and events (for example, End Homelessness Winnipeg)
- study groups and programs (for example Hope for Housing? Ask our Politicians and Orange Shirt Day all ages program)
- relationship building (for example, youth walking with the Thunderbirdz northend patrol)
- food collection and meal preparation and serving with partner organizations
- financial campaigns (the choir did a video supporting Just A Warm Sleep shelter program)
- ongoing focus in worship on the gospel imperative to love and serve our neighbours with justice
- providing space in our building for community groups (among them Healthy Mom and Me, Embers (formerly Brownies) and many community choirs
Our partnership with 1JustCity is the primary way we are active with some of the most vulnerable people in our city. 1JustCity is a network of programs, including West End Drop-in, West Broadway Community Services, Oak Table and Just A Warm Sleep, with roots in The United Church of Canada extending back more that 100 years.
We support 1JustCity through an ongoing food collection for their emergency food bank, gifts to the West End Drop-in (formerly St. Matthews Maryland Community Ministry) Christmas Store, financial support built into the budget of the congregation through several of our Committees/Groups; serving occasional meals to 1JustCity guests, volunteer efforts and donations by individual Meadowood members.
Through a matching donation drive at the end of 2022, we were able to send over $6000 to West Broadway Community Services, one of 1JustCity’s sites.
Our congregation has a relationship with Teen Stop Jeunesse, a youth drop-in centre for youth from 8-18. Our support includes provision of special meals for their clients, gift bags and toiletries and financial support.
Our seasonal “Mitten Tree” of winter gear is distributed to several local agencies and schools.
We host a full table at the “Welcome Home” dinner supporting the House of Peace, which proactively discourages human trafficking by supporting vulnerable women in our community.
The United Church in Meadowood is a certified Fair Trade Faith Community! We use fair trade coffee for our coffee hosting on Sunday mornings and at other events.