Dear Church Family,
The Fellowship of the Cross would like to thank everyone who contributed to the care packages for the college students in our church family this year.
We are especially grateful that you responded to our accelerated deadlines as many schools, for reasons related to the coronavirus threat, finished their fall semesters before Thanksgiving. We appreciate your efforts to get your donations to church at a time when we are not gathering for worship.
In a challenging time, it is of accelerated importance to share encouragement and the love of Jesus with each other, and through your generosity and effort, we will connect with 22 college students (some living on campus, and some studying from home) through boxes stuffed heavily with snacks, treats, Starbucks gift cards, and the love of the SUMC family.
Blessings,
The Fellowship of the Cross
Dear SUMC family,
So many hearts are necessary to carry a service project through a 10-year journey.
So many hands are necessary to fill 1,001 shoeboxes.
So much faith is necessary to give Jesus the opportunity to touch young hearts in Africa, South America, Central America, the Caribbean islands, Europe, and places unnamed. And we know that when he touches young hearts, he touches their families, their neighborhoods, their schools.
The Fellowship of the Cross youth wish to thank everyone in our church family who has encouraged and enabled our Operation Christmas Child campaigns since 2011.
We want to thank everyone who bring us shoeboxes throughout the year, every year.
We want to thank everyone who brings us “gently-used” toys and stuffed animals.
We want to thank everyone who shopped for school supplies, soap and washcloths and toothbrushes, socks and hats, toys and stuffed animals.
We’d like to thank everyone who joined in our packing parties. We’d like to thank everyone who made financial contributions.
We’d like to thank everyone who prayed for us and for the boxes and for the children who receive them.
This year, despite challenges posed by the Coronavirus threat, we were able to pack 101 boxes, and collect several more boxes from families in the Sewickley community.
We would like to thank everyone who rallied to our Krispy Kreme fundraiser in October.
Thanks to everyone who, while we aren’t gathering for worship, found a way to deliver your gifts and donations.
We offer a special thank you to Martha, who led us to Operation Christmas Child in the beginning and has partnered with us, mentored us, and met our needs every year. It is very likely that Martha’s fingerprints have been inside each of our 1,001 boxes. She has been a blessing to us, and to 1,001 children and their families around the world.
We extend special thanks this year to Kara, and daughters Elliett and Evarett, for wrapping more than 70 boxes. Their enthusiasm for OCC fuels us always, and was especially important this year.
We extend special thanks to Diane and Lou Ann and the pumpkin patch team for their encouragement and cooperation. Special thanks to Pam H. for her energy and support for all that we do.
Special thanks to Mike and Kristine, Donna, Kandace, Kim and Riley, and the Geason family, for accepting Coronavirus challenges, wearing masks and observing distancing policies, and carrying us to the finish line.
And thank you, everyone, for modeling the love of Jesus for all of us.
Blessings,
Fellowship of the Cross