Christ Church Service Projects
The Little church with a big heart
We are active in our community, and take great joy in fulfilling Jesus’ command to love God and our neighbor, in prayer, word, and action.
Our Mission Committee works to identify and help with need locally as well as around the world, from service to those in need in our local communities of Redding, Bethel, and Danbury, to our campaigns to raise money for wells to help provide fresh drinking water in Uganda.
For more information about any of these service projects, please email the church office at [email protected], or call us at 203-938-2872. We’d love to get you connected!
Christmas Cookie Wrap
Each year on a Saturday in early December, members of Christ Church parish donate homemade or store bought cookies which are plated and wrapped and delivered to older members of the parish, friends of the parish and others who could use a little cheer at that time of year.
The Shoe Box Project
Each year, we create Christmas shoeboxes for men and women in homeless shelters in Danbury. It is a community effort to fill and decorate the boxes so that each shelter resident receives a gift on Christmas Day!
Dorothy Day Hospitality House Meals
Each month parishioners contribute spaghetti, sauce, and meatballs to this shelter for feeding the homeless and the working poor in Danbury. Our meal group monitors the contributions and takes them over to Danbury once each month.
Call to Care Uganda
Christ Church is changing lives in Africa by providing funds for new wells in rural Uganda. Our first well, drilled in 2013, is at the Kakoni Primary School, located near the tea-growing region of western Uganda and serves a community of 800 people. By 2015 we fully funded our second borehole. It serves 1,400 people, helping them to stay healthy and keeping women safe as they fetch water locally. Our seventh well was recently completed! So far we've helped change the lives of over 8,000 people.
We work through a small charity named Call to Care Uganda. They have already drilled over 50 wells in Uganda, and have provided thousands of clean water cans as well as thousands of bed nets to help curb the spread of malaria. We are also pleased to periodically welcome Martha Hoffman, who created the organization, to report to us on its progress and to share crafts she brought back on her last visit. You can find them on the web at www.calltocareuganda.org.
Hands-On History
Every spring, the third graders from Redding Elementary School come to visit our historic church to hear stories of what life was like in Redding before and during the Revolutionary War. Redding was a town where Patriots and Loyalists lived side by side. The church's rooster weathervane was used for target practice by the British troops camped across the street and the church's first rector, John Beach, was shot at one Sunday morning while giving his sermon by some hot headed Patriots because he refused to stop praying for the King. Is war the best way to solve our differences? We try to give the kids an understanding of the complexities of the Revolutionary War.
Bethel Pride
We are a loving and inclusive presence at Bethel Pride each summer, proclaiming the Gospel message of God’s affirming and all-inclusive love for each person God created, just as they are.
The Ride For Our Vets
This year, Christ Church was able to be a place of respite for bicyclists participating in the Connecticut Veterans Legal Center’s Ride for our Vets fundraiser. We were glad we could be there with water when the cyclists finally reached the top of Church Hill!
Concert on the Green Sponsorship
Every summer, Christ Church co-sponsors one of the Redding Parks & Recreation’s Concerts on the Green. This is a wonderful way to give back to our community, and to enjoy good music in the best company. Join us next summer!
Redding Rakes
On one Saturday in November Christ Church members together with the Joel Barlow HIgh School Baseball team rake and clear leaves on several properties in town to help local residents for whom raking is difficult. It's great fun and a good chance to get outside and enjoy the fall and the joy of working together to help neighbors. Consider joining us!
