Mission Work at Lewis Center
"The world is my parish." - John Wesley
At Lewis Center UMC one of our core values is Risk-Taking Mission & Service: being the hands and feet of Christ in the world. Missions is more than a project or event, but an integral part of our foundation as a church. As believers, we are called to actively spread God's Word and love through our service in order to make a positive difference in the world, whether it be to our neighbors, loved ones, or strangers from another country. We encourage you to explore the ways Lewis Center UMC is spreading the Gospel of Jesus Christ through our partnerships locally and abroad.
SPECIAL Mission Projects
Common Ground Free Store Ministries - 2023
We decided to raise funds for Common Ground Free Store Ministries as our special mission project in 2023. Throughout the campaign we shared videos (like this one) to introduce our church family to this local non-profit and give everyone a better understanding of all of the good works they do. The Free Store that is stocked with community donations and operated mostly by volunteers. Building community and relationships is an important part of this ministry and they even offer pastoral care to shoppers. Some of their past volunteers have become staff members and some of their past shoppers have become Free Store donors. It was also wonderful to discover that our very own Joan Hays was part of the group that started Common Ground.
We are pleased to share that we exceeded our $10,000 goal for Common Ground Free Store Ministries by just a smidge! The funds that we raised will help the ministry transition to its new, larger location where they will continue to serve meals, meet basic needs of clothing/household items, build community, and provide pastoral care to our Delaware County friends and neighbors. We thank God for a wonderful start to our partnership and look forward to supporting them through free store donations, volunteer power, and food donations.
OhioHealth shared this photo of the holiday treats that were delivered to all associates on both day/night shits with the help of Santa, the Grinch and Grady Bear - thanks to the Grady Provider and Associate Wellbeing Fund that we helped support with our OhioHealth mental health campaign.
OhioHealth MENTAL HEALTH INITIATIVES - 2022
In 2022, we partnered with OhioHealth for our annual Easter Mission Project. We surpassed our $10,000 goal and raised $11,051.72 to support mental health initiatives in our local community. We are grateful for our most generous church family. Two thirds of the funds were designated towards grief support to provide support for bereaved children and families. The remaining one-third was used to support healthcare workers that have definitely been strained over the past two years. For both programs, half of the funds raised were used locally in Delaware County.
OhioHealth shared some updates with us regarding the use of the funds and said, “We are grateful for Lewis Center United Methodist Church’s 2022 support for programs to enhance the mental wellbeing of residents in Delaware and Delaware County, including frontline healthcare workers at OhioHealth Grady Memorial Hospital. Thanks to your congregation’s generosity, the Delaware Bereavement Program and the Grady Provider and Associate Wellbeing Fund provided essential resources to meet emerging and ongoing needs for care and support at some critical moments.”
Our youth group also had a speaker from Ohio Health talk to them about mental health and we plan to offer other programs and information related to mental health awareness throughout the year at the church.
COVID RELIEF FOR PIN & UMCOR - 2021
During the 2021 Lenten season we set a goal to raise $10,000 for COVID efforts both globally and locally. We are thrilled to report that we surpassed our goal and raised $12,100! People In Need of Delaware County received $7,040, and $5,060 was donated to UMCOR’s global COVID response fund.
TURNING POINT - 2020
Our 2020 special mission project to support Turning Point was placed on pause when the pandemic hit. Our campaign goal was to raise awareness regarding domestic violence and abuse, along with the mission to raise $10,000 to create a new colorful and inviting children play area for the Marion shelter. Just 3 weeks into the campaign, our church had already generously donated $4,578 before the coronavirus shut things down in mid-March. And we are so grateful to announce that despite the pandemic, our final campaign total ended up being $9,351. Thank you for continuing to be a most generous church - we look forward to sharing the updates with you as this new area is created for the children. UPDATE: Thanks to our generous United Methodist Women and another large donation that came through - our final total surpassed our goal with a final total of $10,650. Praise the Lord!
Watoto Read - 2019
During our 2019 Lenten campaign, we learned how girls are missing out on their education each month due to their menstrual cycle. Through our campaign for Watoto Read, we raised over $16,000 to help build classrooms and latrines for these girls in refugee camps in Chad, Africa. This campaign also inspired our church to begin supporting Amina’s Dream - a new ministry by Watoto Read. Volunteers are meeting monthly to work on creating/sewing reusable menstrual kits to be sent to girls in refugee camps to help them better manage their period.
The Jericho House located in Bucyrus, Ohio.
Alpha Recovery & The Jericho House - 2018
Our 2018 special mission project benefitting Alpha Recovery and the Jericho House wrapped up on Easter Sunday. Alpha Recovery is a ministry whose goal is to help families, friends, and those suffering any form of addiction. The Alpha Recovery ministry also supports The Jericho House which is a community recovery residence in Bucyrus that helps to heal those on the road to recovery from addiction - through provision of a safe place to stay, continued counseling, GED assistance, and referral to services to get them back on their feet. We are happy to report this campaign raised $5,227 to support Alpha Recovery and The Jericho House.
Watoto Read - 2017
On June 4, 2017, the LCUMC Missions Team was proud to be able to present a check to Watoto Read for $20,239 which will build three classrooms for children in refugee camps in Chad, Africa. Each school will be able to teach 60 children, who otherwise would not be able to attend school. This was a great effort by the church to impact the lives of children on the other side of the world and to give them hope for a better future. Thank you, LCUMC!
North Katanga women sharing the items they sewed with the supplies we provided.