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Reaching Out

Since its beginning, Port Nelson has been reaching out, giving resources, time, money, and skills to support those in need.

Coat Drive
Coat Drive
Meals of Hope
Refugee Sponsorship
Seeds of Life
Wesley Walk

Burlington Food Bank

Once a month during Sunday services, we receive an offering of food items and donations to help support the Burlington Food Bank.

Helping Hands

Helping Hands prepares and delivers simple meals to those experiencing crisis or in times of need.

Help to Families at Christmas

There are always families in our community who are in need of extra assistance at Christmastime. Likewise, there are always people in the church family who want to help out. We can match the needs with the gifts in December.

Meals of Hope

Meals of Hope began in October 2020 during the pandemic. At that time, we supported the Meal Bag Program at Wellington Square cooking meals four times a week.

 

We soon added another partner Gore Park Community Outreach. This added a fifth shift.

 

Once the the world opened again, we didn’t know if there would be a Meals of Hope. We were very wrong.

 

There are many societal issues facing our Community today that makes MOH a very active outreach program.

 

We continue to partner with Gore Park Community Outreach.

 

Our Thursday night shift is dedicated to making hot meals for Gore Park.

 

On Saturday, sandwiches, scrambled eggs and sausages are delivered (along with the hot meals) by our wonderful volunteer drivers.

 

The Gore Park Community has numbers reaching between 300 – 400 people each week. A majority of these people are seniors.

 

One of our new partners is the Wesley Shelter Food Program. It is a newly opened shelter for women and families. Food is provided around the clock. Our dedicated day is Wednesday. We are in touch with the coordinator of the program and we are ready to provide more food on other days, if necessary.

 

The shelter is located in Burlington.

 

The Bonnie Place Residence is seniors residence. We are providing meals twice a week. The residents are referred by a caseworker. They would otherwise not be able to manage.

 

Finally, the Burlington Baptist Church holds a seniors lunch (Circle of Friends) on Wednesday. The seniors are picked up from home and brought to the church. Nelson High School students help with the lunch that is made and delivered by Meals of Hope.

 

We are supported by a combination of financial donations and food donations. The donations are shared equally across all the partners.

 

We are also supported by an amazing volunteer base! Without our teams we could not do what we do. We feel so grateful everyday for the MOH teams❤️

 

New volunteers are joining every week. If you are interested, please call or email

Refugee Sponsorship

Port Nelson sponsored its first refugee family in 1975 as a result of concern for the people fleeing Vietnam. In 1996 Port Nelson had a concern for refugees fleeing the war in the former Yugoslavia and sponsored a family of three. In 1999 Port Nelson sponsored a family of political refugees. The father had been jailed and after release fled after an assassination attempt by the government of Colombia.

The refugee group was reinvigorated in 2015 in light of the Syrian refugee crisis and sponsored a Special Needs family of three women and a 19 year old single male, Hamza. The refugee group has helped Hamza successfully sponsor his mother and two younger sisters to Canada and will be helping to support the family when they arrive.

Seeds of Life: Canadian Foodgrains Bank

Seeds of Life is a local growing project of the Canadian Foodgrains Bank – “A Christian response to hunger.” This 72-acre farm at Alberton, Ontario, is a community project supported by a number of churches and individuals, including Port Nelson. You can sponsor all or part of the input costs of an acre of corn, soybeans or winter wheat (depending on the year) and, when harvested, the proceeds from the crop are matched with funds from the Government of Canada for world food assistance.

Special Appeals

Following natural disasters and world events such as floods, hurricanes and famine, The United Church of Canada frequently launches special appeals as a way for people to lend assistance. These are usually announced during services as needed.

United Church Mission & Service

Mission & Service connects our local church to the wider work of the United Church of Canada at home and around the world. There are special appeals throughout the year to offer opportunities for people to give. Contributions help support programs such as: Global and Canadian justice initiatives, Aboriginal ministries and right relations, Community ministries, theological education, youth and camping, intercultural engagement, support to remote ministries and innovation in communities of faith.

Wesley Urban Ministries: Case for Kids Event

Case for Kids is Wesley Urban Ministries’ major annual fundraiser, held at Bay Front Park in Hamilton. A team of 10-12 people from Port Nelson typically participate in running, walking or riding bikes to end child poverty. There is opportunity for the church family to sponsor those participating.

Wesley Urban Ministries: Christmas Store

For the month of December, Wesley Urban Ministries hosts a no-charge Christmas store. People on the margins can shop for gifts and food items they may need for their families. Food items and gifts are gathered from the church family at the annual Gifts Service, which includes a drama written and performed by our Port Nelson youth. Then, the youth typically volunteer for a day at the Christmas store.

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