News

It is with much gratitude and joy that HARC announces a new $50,000 grant for Micah’s Backpack from the Marion I. and Henry J. Knott Foundation.  “The Knott Foundation (TKF) is a Catholic family foundation committed to honoring our founders’ legacy of generosity to strengthen our community.”  Based in Baltimore, the foundation focused on strengthening communities in central and western Maryland, while honoring the Knott legacy of giving. Learn more on their website.

This is the first time HARC has received a grant from the Knott Foundation.  It comes at a time of great need as the number of children in our community in need of Micah’s Backpack has soared.  We are currently serving 1,236 children in 37 schools all over Washington County, and anticipate the number to exceed 1,300 by the end of the school year. The Micah’s Backpack Steering Team is overjoyed to have much-needed funds to support our many sponsoring churches and organizations in their work to provide weekly bags of food to children in our community.

Funds will be used to purchase food for the Micah’s Backpack program through our partner, the Maryland Food Bank, reducing the cost of food for sponsoring churches and organizations.

Children in our community are the true recipients of this important grant funding.  What students say they like about Micah’s Backpack (from spring 2024 surveys):

• Helps thru the weekend.
• It’s free
• What I like about is how it’s not judgmental to people who need food
• The way we get food when mom doesn’t have the money for food every week
• They add food to my house when times get hard. me and my brothers can always look in the bags when we don’t have food at home
• That they give you food on weekends so you don’t go hungry on weekends
• It comes with cereal and it is easy to make for my brother

Thank you to the Knott Foundation for this incredible gift!

Don’t forget to reserve your spot in front of John Wesley United Methodist Church for some of the best seats in town! Call the church office at 301-733-0391 to reserve chairs for you and your family. Seats are only $6 each. Concessions and restroom will be available. Ask about our new VIP seating!
John Wesley United Methodist Church, 129 North Potomac Street, Hagerstown MD

Did you know that dementia in its many forms affects more than 3,000 people in Washington County, Maryland along with their caregivers? Learning more about prevention, diagnosis, and treatment can help, as well as having access to support. At our October 2024 HARC meeting, we heard from representatives of Dementia Friendly Washington County (DFWC) about their efforts to make Washington County a dementia-friendly place to thrive. We also heard from a couple about their Alzheimer’s journey. Watch the recorded program on our YouTube channel.

DFWC is a dedicated group of local individuals and organizations raising awareness, decreasing stigma, and increasing public understanding. DFWC offers educational trainings, access to resources, a Memory Café, and more! DFWC operates under Dementia Friendly America and the Alzheimer’s Association of Maryland. To learn more or to schedule a free training or presentation, contact dementiafriendlywashco@outlook.com.

This position has been filled.

 

St. Ann Church is seeking a part-time (5-10 hours/week, flexible schedule) Facilities Assistant for weekly classroom and multi-purpose room set-ups and maintenance for parish events and activities. For more information contact David Matera, Director of Operations at 301-733-0410 ext. 102 or dmatera@stannchurch.com. Candidates must be able to handle physical workload (lifting and moving tables, chairs, etc.) with some evening and weekend availability.

Christ Reformed UCC in Sharpsburg is searching for an organist/pianist for our regular Sunday worship services. They have a wonderful Moller organ. Their regular worship is at 9:00am and usually lasts 1-1/2 hours. Music during the service generally includes a prelude, 2-3 hymns, an offertory and doxology and a postlude. The prelude, offertory and postlude are selected by the organist. There are no choir rehearsals. Please contact the pastor, Rick Bishop at ricksharpsburgucc@gmail.com or 240-329-1223.