MLK Day 2025 falls on Monday, January 20. Is your congregation, non-profit, or governmental office planning an observance? Let HARC know! If you are planning a special service, a community improvement event, a special meal to honor the life and work of Dr. King, please provide the details (and a flyer, if you have one) to us at info@harccoalition,org. Potential attendees and volunteers are seeking some way to honor the legacy of Dr. King. Help us to link them up with your ministry/event!
Cold Weather Shelter Volunteers Needed!
S.O.S. Reach currently has 4 unfilled weeks, including the days around Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Years. They would be so thankful for you sharing these days with them.
- 26-30 November
- 15-21 December
- 22-25 December
- 30 December- 4 January
If you are interested in sharing a few hours, hosting a week, a partial week, one evening and/or preparing a meal with your house of worship, work, service group, friends, and/or family, please contact Liz at Reach (Liz@reachofwc.org or 301-733-2371 X-114).
If you are available and interested, please click the google doc link below to confirm dates still available:https://docs.google.com/document/d/1QLujab2UZY3h2OFHNYTpxtkrt7x8Q0guszLREMC54Pk/edit?fbclid=IwAR2CS0nAxemIGsz5s4ki0IRQsJ0fCE5e37I6vHC2vI2stki9XrAgQ3ZufxM
Organist Wanted
Position available for a Church Organist at Christ’s Reformed Church United Church of Christ in Hagerstown, MD. We are looking for someone who has experience in accompanying church music. Must be available for Sunday morning services and Christian holidays and able to work with a small, skilled choir. Compensation is negotiable. Please send resume and cover letter to reverend.norville@gmail.com no later than November 22, 2024 with a starting date of January 1, 2025. For questions, please call Rev. Norville at (301)733-4144.
Donate a Meal to Circles of Washington County
Providing a meal at our Circles Washington County, MD Thursday night meetings is fun and rewarding! Please consider sharing and fellowshipping with us! We are currently working with a dozen participants (Circles Leaders) and their children to reach their self-sufficiency goals. To sign up, you can use this link Circles Washington County, MD: Donate a meal! or see the attached flyer.
Thanksgiving Pies and Cheesecake Orders – deadline Nov 17
Thanksgiving Pies and Cheesecake Orders are currently being taken. You may choose apple, pumpkin, cherry, apple-walnut-cranberry, fruits of the forest for $20 and lemony cheesecake and pumpkin cheesecake for $30. Pies may be ordered baked or frozen for baking later. Orders will be available for pickup on Tuesday, November 26 and Wednesday, November 27. These are premium quality pies!!! Deadline to order is Sunday, November 17. You may order after the 10:15 service or by calling Bruce Massey at 240-675-4498 or by emailing Bruce at lbmassey@verizon.net. You may also order and pay on our website: http://www.stjohnshagerstown.org. All proceeds will go to the St. John’s Episcopal Service and Outreach Commission for their many projects. Thank you!
HARC awarded $50,000 grant from the Knott Foundation for Micah’s Backpack!
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!
