God calls his people to be servants, not just to one another within the walls of the church but also to everyone in the wider community and the world. God calls us too, to make the good news of Christ's saving love known to all people. We are called as a church, as a parish family, and as individuals to fulfill our baptismal covenant. The Parish
as a whole sponsors and organizes a variety of outreach programs and activities. Individual parishioners also participate in dozens of ministries of service on their own or through other organizations. A few of those ministries are described here, and there are many done quietly, known only to God and the people directly involved.
Click the item you are interested in from the list below.

The Outreach Committee's work includes publicity for outreach ministries, encouraging and helping to launch new outreach activities, building awareness in the Parish about community and global needs, liason with other outreach and service organizations and making recommendations to the Parish Council about allocation of Parish outreach funds to programs and organizations.

To find out more about how you might help with outreach programs at St. James, contact the Outreach Committee through the Parish office or through Tom Patterson at (519) 273-2678.

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Over the years many St. James parishioners have travelled to Guatemala as members of volunteer teams, along with others from Stratford, from across Canada and from the U.S. They have helped to build houses and schools and to operate medical, dental and vision clinics. Participants pay for their own travel and expenses. Project costs have been funded by service clubs such as Rotary and Lion's Club and from the Canadian government through CIDA, as well as contributions from St. James' individuals and other faith groups. Parishioners are continuing to volunteer to Guatemala through VOSH (see VOSH item).

Then the righteous will answer him, "Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave.........

Parishioners met Maximilliano Vasquez Lopez in 2000 while building a house for his family in Pinalito, an extremely poor rural area in eastern Guatemala. They saw great potential in Max, and through a combination of Parish and individual donations, St. James is assisting him to attend high school in the city of Zacapa. Donations may be made to Max's education fund through St. James Anglican Church - just indicate "for Max" on your cheque.

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Then the righteous will answer him, "Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you cothing? And when was it that  we saw you sick or in prison and visited you? And the king will answer them, "Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me".

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The Food Bank Bank offers emergency groceries to those who are experiencing financial stresses. Stocked and staffed by parishioners, the Food Bank welcomes all who seek its' help, every Tuesday morning, from 9:30 to 11:30. Parishioners are invited to bring non-perishable food items to Sunday worship services to keep the Food Bank shelves filled.

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For several years now, a group of parishioners and community volunteers under the leadership of Jan Mullock has served a full Christmas turkey dinner at noon for people who otherwise would be alone or unable to provide their families with a good celebratory meal. Funds, food and supplies are donated and the volunteers do the cooking, serving and cleaning up. For the volunteers, it is a rich time of blessing, an opportunity to share a beautiful experience of this great Christian festival with those who would have found it a bleak and lonely day. The warmth, joy and merriment in the St. James lower hall that day are the most wonderful of all Christmas gifts. If you would like to help, donate or attend, contact Jan Mullock.

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"For Christians, it is...extraordinarily important to live in a context where
    we are  not protected from the visibility of the powerless. The witness of
    L'Arche...speaks to this concern."
    Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury.

Even though L'Arche (French for "the Ark") is not a St. James project, it is a vital part of the lives of the parish community and many individual parishioners. L'Arche was founded in france in the seventies by Canadian Jean Vanier, and now provides homes in countries all over the world where people with intellectual disabilities ("core members") and their assistants live together as communities. L'Arche has four houses in Stratford - Maranatha, Agape, Caritas and Nazareth, to which the Parish has provided financial contributions.

A number of L'Arche core members are parishioners at St. James, and over the years many parishioners have been volunteers and board members at L'Arche Statford. Involvement with L'Arche is much more than helping people with disabilities. L'Arche and its' core members have an amazing ministry to the
world, demonstrating through their own lives how wisdom and love can blossom - not from wealth, smartness and strength, but from poverty, weakness, littleness and dependency on God. L'Arche core members participate in Association for Community Living day programs, and Community Living also provides home for people with intellectual disabilities, and St. James also welcomes some of them as parishioners. Several parishioners accompany L'Arche and Community Living residents to worship service and Parish events, and in doing so have been blessed with beautiful friendships with people that the world often shuns.

L'Arche Stratford (519) 271-9751 or info@larche.stratford.on.ca
L'Arche website   http://www.larchecanada.org

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St. James has sponsored three refugee families, from Vietnam, Rwanda and Afghanistan. Sponsorship includes providing financial support for the family, connecting them with community resources, schools and employment opportunities and helping them to orient themselves to life in Canada. Information about refugee sponsorship may be found on the Anglican Diocese of Huron website at:    http://www.diohuron.org/Refugee/introduction.htm

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The ACW comprises all the women of the Parish, and at St. James, our ACW is an outreach powerhouse. Their most spectacular fundraising event is the annual Variety Sale that involves well over a hundred volunteers - parishioners and others - in hard work and wonderful fellowship and has people lining up on the street for a chance at the bargains. ACW also bring interesting speakers to its' meetings, who often bring vital information about the needs of the world and the great work being done to meet them. In recent years, financial donations for needs outside the Parish have included:

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One of the ways St. James helps people in the wider community and the world is by sharing the earnings from the Parish Memorial Fund. One half of the earnings realized by the Memorial Fund each year goes to the Parish operating budget and one half goes to outreach. Recent contributions from these outreach moneys went to the following:

• Stratford Rotary Respite House
• Volunteer Optometric Services for Humanity (Guatemala eye clinics)
• Christmas Day community dinner at St. James
• Prevention of Homelessness, CMHA Huron Perth
• Stratford and Area Association for Independent Living
• L'Arche Stratford
• Maximiliano Vasquez Lopez education fund in Guatemala
• Badger, Newfoundland, for flood relief
• Companion Diocese, South Africe
• Flood Relief in Peterborough, Ontario

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Anglicans across Canada provide most of the funding for PWRDF through "apportionments" remitted by the parishes and dioceses, and through individual donations to the Fund. PWRDF engages in development work, responds to emergencies, works to protect refugees, and educates and advocates for change both in Canada and countries around the world. It is incorporated as a charitable, not-for-profit development agency.

PWRDF Mission Statement

PWRDF is a response by Canadian Anglicans to the gospel call to bear witness to God's healing love in a broken world. Inspired by the vision of a spirit-filled
community of hope, PWRDF walks toether with partners in Canada and overseas to share in the creation of a more just and peaceful world. In joy and struggle, the Primates Fund engages in development work, responds to emergencies works to protect refugees, and educates and advocates for change.

 PWRDF listens and responds to the needs of its overseas and Canadian partners through the implementation of development programs in
 Africa, Asia, South Pacific, Latin America and Caribbean regions in addition to aboriginal communities in Canada.

 PWRDF-supported  projects contribute to a more peaceful and equitable world in which social justice prevails, living out PWRDF's mandate as the international development ministry of the Anglican Church of Canada.

In the past few years, PWRDF has begun to reach out to Canadian youth through a program of education and training in international cooperation, greater participation in the life of our church, and involvement with PWRDF youth-oriented projects. Through its work with youth, and other members of congregations, PWRDF hopes to deepen their desire to share in the creation of a better world.

More information and links may be found at its website: http://www.pwrdf.org/ or at 80 Hayden Street, Toronto, Ontario  M4Y 3G2
Phone: (416) 924 9192, Toll Free: 1 866 308 7973, Fax: (416) 924 3483, General E-mail:  pwrdf@pwrdf.org

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Huron Hunger Fund (HH) is based in the Diocese of Huron and is a partner of the Primate's World Relief and Development Fund, and is supported by parish apportionments and individual donations. St James Stratford is one of the largest contributors to the Fund. HHF has ministered to people around the world for over 30 years, and has raised more than $8 million for emergency and development work.

The Huron Hunger Fund is guided by three principles:

1. To provide emergency relief.
2. To assist in the material necessities of life. This is to cover rehabilitation grants as well as grants to address hunger, needs of shelter, health and medical problems.
3. To provide grants for agricultural and self-help projects, and to help increase educational and cultural opportunities.

HHF may be contacted through the Anglican Diocese of Huron, 190 Queens Avenue, London, Ontario N6A 6H7. The HHF website and links are at http://www.diohuron.org/hhf/index.htm,  including information about the many wonderful projects HHF has contributed to around the world.

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The Youth of St. James put their energy and faith into a variety of projects and activities to serve others. One of the most challenging is the annual 30 Hour Famine, during which youth of the parish gather at the church for 30 straight hours of fellowship, fun, learning and FASTING in order to raise money and express their solidarity with the very poor around the world. The Youth Group meeets Saturdays at 7:00 pm. IF you would like more information, call Jan Mullock.

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The Outreach Committee wants to celebrate the amazing service ministries done by parishioners of St. James. One of the ways this is done is through Outreach News stories and announcements in the weekly Sunday bulletins, the display board in the narthex and on this website. If you are involved in a ministry of service beyond the walls of the church, please tell us about it. Contact the Outreach Committee through Tom Patterson at 273-2678, or drop a note in the Outreach mail slot just inside the Hamilton Street office entrance.

Here are some of the stories:

Peterborough Flood Relief - September 2004

St. James contributed $500 to flood relief efforts, through St. John's Anglican church in Peterborough. This money will go to help for the 2000 uninsured households that were so badly damaged by the floods. On their behalf, Rev. Gordon Finney of St. John's says, "Thanks for caring. Peace and Joy".

Remembering Ted Scott - June 27, 2004

This week we pause to remember retired Canadian Primate, Archbishop Edward Scott, who died last Monday (June 21). Ted Scott's life and work are radiant inspirations to Christian outreach. A recent biography of Archbishop Scott, Radical Compassion, tells how he "fixed his energy on persons, while at the same time working fervently to raise the systemic issues of the poor and oppressed, the marginalized and weak".
As moderator of the Central Committee of the World Council of Churches from 1975 to 1983, he helped to focus global attention on the plight of black South Africans living under apartheid. Before Ted Scott's death, Desmond Tutu, former Archbishop of Capetown, wrote this about him:

"We Africans speak about ubuntu. It has to do with what it means to be truly
human. It refers to gentleness, to compassion, to hospitality, to openness to
others, to vulnerability, to be available for others, and to know that you are
bound up with them in the bundle of life. My dear friend Ted Scott knew all
about ubuntu long before he ever heard the word, for he lives it daily."

Let us remember archbishop Scott's family and friends in our prayers. Gove give us the wisdom and compassion - ubuntu - to follow his example.

Relay for Life - June 2004

The St. James Relay for Life tem, "The Soul Mates", raised $1,160 for the work of the Cancer Society last weekend (June 5 2004). This was a 12 hour, all night event and despite the overnight chill, hundreds of people were still present at 3:30 a.m.! The deeply moving Survivors Victory Lap included a number parishioners and friends of St. James. Thanks and blessings to team captain Wendy McNaughton for building awareness and enthusiasm for the event.

Companion Diocese Donations - June 2004

$2,500 is going to our Companion Diocese in South africa to help build wells and meet other needs: $2.000 from Outreach and $500 from ACW. Individual donations may be made through GraceWorks.

News from Guatemala - June 2004

Cran Bockus received a letter from Max in Guatemala, thanking us for our continued support for his education, and enclosing his report card.

Sewing Group Aids Northern Communities - May 2004

The St. James' Sewing Group sent five bales of clothing to the north for distribution in Aboriginal communities. This energetic group, usually just five or six people, sews diapers and crib sheets, knits baby clothes and gathers good used clothing from the Variety sale, and sends two shipments a year up north. The ACW contributes the cost of shipping the bales.

VOSH Mission - April 2004

Evelyn Scott, Jan Mullock and Royden Brien recently went to Guatemala with Volunteer Optometric Services for Humaniy to operate a very successful eye clinic. By the way, Evelyn has been named President of VOSH in Canada.

Community Meal - January 2005

The first St. James' Community Meal was held Friday, January 7, 2005, and it was wonderful. Nearly all the food was donated, over 30 volunteers participated, and 50 guests came to enjoy the food and fellowship. Thanks to coordinator Alan Johnson and the Community Meals Committee, Knox for letting us use their wonderful kitchen, and everyone who donated food or worked on the supper.

We'll be doing this monthly, so all of us can be involved from time to time. As exciting as this ministry is, it is only one part of St. James' work in feeding the hungry. Equally important is keeping our weekly Food Bank on our shopping lists and in our prayers.

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