Reaching out to help others

Silver Lake United Methodist Church believes in reaching out to help others. Some of the ways we do this are featured on this page.

The North St. Paul Ecumenical Food Shelf provides food for needy people in the communities of North St. Paul, Oakdale and Maplewood. We support the Food Shelf by bringing non-perishable foods to the church the first Sunday of every month.

The Emma Norton Residence, located in downtown St. Paul, provides transitional housing for women and children, including those dealing with issues of domestic abuse, unemployment and chemical dependency. The Emma Norton Residence also provides interim housing for women, as well as for families with relatives in area hospitals. This ministry has been going on since 1917. We support the Emma Norton Residence with our financial gifts, and the women's group of our church hosts special events for the residents. For more information, contact the Emma Norton Residence by e-mail at emmanorton@sprintmail.com.

Meals on Wheels Sliver Lake serves the surrounding community for one week every month, helping seniors and people with disabilities remain in their homes by providing a hot meal and personal contact.

The Silver Lake Christmas Project is an annual effort to help needy families in our own community. We provide Christmas gifts, clothing and food for Christmas, as well as grocery gift certificates for use as needed. Everybody in the church gets involved, and the families who benefit from this project often express deep gratitude for it.

The Silver Lake Mission Discretionary Fund is a special fund set up to help people in our community who need one-time assistance with rent, school supplies, or other necessities.

The Silver Lake Women's Group meets monthly to plan outreach and fellowship events. See This Week at Silver Lake for their current activities.

The Silver Lake Men's Group meets on the fourth Thursday of every month at 6:30 PM at the Ramsey County Nursing Home for a coffee fellowship with the residents.

In recent years, we have also:

• Worked on several Habitat for Humanity homes
• Painted houses for needy families as part of the Twin Cities Paint-a-Thon
• Donated underwear to homeless shelters
• Provided furniture for formerly homeless people

Please send e-mail to us at SLakeUMeth@aol.com with any suggestions you have!