Part of our vision is to have "practical concern for the poor and disadvantaged".
The church is generally encouraged to be generous with their time, talents and treasure. On a more formal level we also support those in need in a number of ways:
Local needs
1. Allocating a percentage of our tithe from our income for local needs. This fund is used to offer practical help to those in need within our church community or to those who are known to the church community.
2. 'Food vouchers for food' scheme. Each year in the lead up to Christmas, the congregation are asked to buy a food voucher when they do their normal supermarket shop. These are collected up and distributed to people we know who are in need.
3. The church supports the 'Daylight Centre' in Wellingborough.
National and Overseas
1. The church supports the 'Childen's Society' and 'Christian Aid' with its services over the Christmas period.
2. St. Mary's also has a link with the parish of Chwele in the region of Bungoma in Kenya. A percentage of our income tithe is given to this parish, as are special collections throughout the year. Contact Sue Wagstaff (suwagster@yahoo.com), our link coordinator, for further information about our link with Chwele and our overseas support.
See http://www.ackenya.org/bungoma.htm for more details about Bungoma.
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