Outreach
Outreach can have many meanings: it can mean providing funds, providing items, volunteering our service in the community, or just conversation with the wider community.
The First United Church of Arvada is made up of very generous people who give their time, talent and treasure to follow their call to serve, both the church and the community at large. Many of our people spend much of their time in voluntary service.
Blessing Box
In the summer of 2019, the church built and installed a Blessing Box with a grant from the Rocky Mountain Conference of the UCC. Installed at the corner of the parking lot where the church and Common Earth Community Garden meet, this little pantry provides a few food staples and hygiene supplies for anyone who needs them, and stays filled by members of the church and people in the community. “Take what you need; leave what you can.”
Mission and Service – Local
Some examples are:
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- Gifts to our church with grateful hearts; and service on our boards and the various committees needed to fulfill the many obligations involved in running a church.
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Various donations & volunteering throughout the year.
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Collection of clothes for kids in JeffCo Schools a couple of times of year.
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Fundraising for the GATE (Girls Advocacy Through Education) program in Thailand.
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Fundraising for this organization nurturing and educating orphans to become leaders in South Sudan.
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- Youth Mission/Service Trip – For a week each summer our youth, accompanied by adults, devote their time and energy to serving a place outside of the Denver Metro area. For many years the youth have served at La Puente Home in Alamosa, Colorado, a homeless shelter, food bank and outreach services provider in the San Luis Valley. In 2013, the youth helped clean up and rebuild flood-affected areas of Northern Colorado. In 2018, they traveled to Pueblo, CO to help several organizations build spaces for children, youth & families in need.
- First United is a participating member in Colorado Faith Communities United to End Gun Violence.
Mission and Service – National / International
We are a 5 for 5 church, which means that we support all five national UCC offerings:
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- OGHS – One Great Hour of Sharing
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- NIN – Neighbors in Need
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- Christmas Fund
- Strengthen the Church
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- Just Peace Offering
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—Provides small loans of a few hundred dollars that change lives through micro financing.
