F A I T H L I N E S
23 September 2020
In this issue:
PARISH EVENTS: Anglican Parish of Lloydtown
FOLLOW-UP: Our ministry partners need your help!
MINISTRY PARTNERS: North House, North Durham
A NEW $100,000
MATCHING CHALLENGE GRANT FOR PARISHES !!!
Virtual & Video sermons available
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If you wish to highlight your Parish's events in support of FaithWorks, please forward the details to faithworks@toronto.anglican.ca
For more information about the Run, visit

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FOLLOW-UP:
Our ministry partners need your help

Inspired by the story of the co-operation between St. George's, Pickering Village and All Saints', Toronto in the 26 August 2020 edition of FaithLines, a reader offered more sleeping bags to All Saints. Thank you for your generosity.
This highlighted the ongoing needs of all our FaithWorks ministry partners. All Saints' continues to need sleeping bags, especially with winter approaching. They also are in need of juice boxes, take-out containers and paper cups with lids.
I'm sure that all organizations that serve those in need are in need of supplies and would like to stock up as winter approaches. Please contact your local FaithWorks ministry partner (see faithworks.ca) and ask how you can be of assistance.
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North House Update

North House is a not-for-profit charitable organization who supports the North Durham townships of Brock, Scugog and Uxbridge through their mission of providing a spectrum of housing supports for those who are at risk or in crisis in North Durham. Established in 2004, North House has been assisting the low-income residents of the community as well as the most vulnerable who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless.

In March, the world was turned upside down. 2.6 billion people in our world went into self-isolation. The impact on us is immeasurable and involves the loss of so many things. COVID-19 has greatly affected the day-to-day lives of our community, but more specifically, the most vulnerable individuals are facing greater barriers. As we continue to maneuver through the daily changes during this pandemic, we worry about our seniors and our homeless. We are all trying to do what we can to keep them safe and free from the feeling of desperate isolation.

North House has always focused on housing, but in response to COVID-19, North House felt the need to make a slight shift in order to help meet the needs of our community. North House outreach staff prioritized both their senior and homeless clients, past and present to ensure their safety and to help to alleviate anxiety and isolation where they can. Completing over 133 wellness check-in calls during March staff identified the gaps in services within Brock, Scugog and Uxbridge townships.

Individuals contacted indicated that food insecurity is their biggest concern. Access to food has been an obstacle to many due to transportation restrictions, health-risks, lack of funds and mobility concerns. Accessing a food bank has been a challenge as many individuals have restricted mobility or those with chronic illnesses are at greater risk if they access a public space during the pandemic.

As a result, North House has been delivering healthy food boxes weekly to those seniors who need it. Weekly, on Fridays, the North House outreach team travels throughout North Durham delivering food, checking in and staying connected to the community.

North House has had the opportunity to work with several individuals who were either unsheltered or were living in inadequate conditions and help them apply and move into a new building in Cannington. Some of these individuals have been unsheltered for several years and have had no place to call their own in a very long time.

Once the apartments were secured, North House, through their Community Share Initiative, put out a call to the community for gently used items to help fill the apartments. The community came together in true “North Durham” style, donating several large items such as beds, couches, dressers and tables. With the support of partnerships with local Lions clubs and churches, people volunteered to help pick-up and move the items into the building. With the help of this great community, our newly housed neighbours have somewhere to call home. 
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ANNOUNCING A NEW
$100,000
Matching Challenge Grant
For PARISHES !!!

We are excited to announce that we have been offered a new matching challenge grant of $100,000 for new or increased donations. The challenge is only for parishes, not individuals. In other words, for every increased dollar a parish offers to FaithWorks over last years amount, this generous donor will match it with another dollar up to $100,000.
 
If a parish increases it's contribution to FaithWorks this year over 2019 by $1,000, it becomes $2,000. If a parish's increase is $5,000, it becomes $10,000. If a parish's increase is $10,000, it becomes $20,000, for those most vulnerable and struggling every day.

There are two ways for individuals to participate in this challenge and contribute to their parish's total.

1) An individual can make a donation directly to their parish designated for FaithWorks, as in the past.

2) To make online contributions easier the FaithWorks website has been modified to give credit to a parish for an individual's donation. Simply go to FaithWorks.ca and follow the instructions to put the parish's name in the Comments section when making a donation.

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Virtual and Video Sermons available
We are only gathering virtually. The Director of Stewardship, Peter Misiaszek, and I would normally be visiting parishes in person to speak of FaithWorks. Why not virtually!!! If you would like one of us to speak to your parish during your online Sunday worship please contact FaithWork Speakers Bureau at fwspeakersbureau@toronto.anglican.ca

If you would like the pre-recorded video of my sermon promoting FaithWorks (11 minutes) or the 20th Anniversary of FaithWorks video
(2 minutes) for your Sunday morning services, please email me so that I can make them available to you.
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Peter Mentis (he/him)
FaithWorks Campaign Manager

135 Adelaide St. E.
Toronto, ON M5C 1L8
416-363-6021 ext. 242
1-800-668-8932 ext.242
We build healthy, missional Anglican communities that engage faithfully with the world and share the gospel of Jesus Christ. I acknowledge that my office resides on the territory of sovereign Indigenous Nations, the Anishinaabe, the Haudenosaunee, and the Wendat. I acknowledge especially the Mississaugas of the Credit and the Toronto Treaties.