Pastoral Care & Outreach
St. Peter’s Pastoral Care and Outreach Commission offers love and support for Parishioners who are ill, or have other needs. We keep the Prayer List up to date; the Clergy visit in the hospitals and offer home communions; we send cards and make phone calls to stay in touch; and TLC (Tender Loving Care) provides meals and rides for those who need help. TLC also coordinates receptions for baptisms and funerals. If you have any specific needs or need to add someone to the prayer list, please contact the Church Office at (813) 752-5061 or at st.peterspc@verizon.net.
In addition, Our Commission supports the Outreach Ministries of St. Peter’s, fulfilling our Mission of “Love God and Share God’s Love with the world.” We have several ongoing Outreach projects throughout the year.
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School Supplies are collected for Cork Elementary School before school starts, but needs are also met during the year.
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St. Peter’s supports the United Food Bank of Plant City, collecting food weekly and donating hundreds of pounds of food a year. We also participate in the Food Bank’s Empty Bowls fundraiser by offering Brunswick Stew at this annual city-wide event.
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In 2021 we started the Friends in the Park ministry, feeding the homeless a meal once a month. Our venue is the Plant City Winters Visitors Center. Parishioners cook and serve a hearty, balanced meal, including setting up tables and chairs, and cleaning up afterwards. Throughout the year, we also offer bags of toiletries, various clean clothes and snacks. This is the 4th Wednesday of every month.
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In May, 2023, in an effort to offer more help to those in need, we started our Laundry Love ministry. This is a nation-wide project that connects people to us and provides free laundry detergent for our clients. On the 2nd Monday of every month, during the late afternoon and early evening hours, we meet at Olde Henry’s Laundromat on US 92. We pay for laundry for those who need assistance, offering friendship and prayer as well.
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All of the above ministries are thriving, fulfilling essential needs in our community. Those who participate with us often comment on the benefits they receive in being able to give of their time and other resources.
That’s not all. We’ve been busy serving our community for a number of years.
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In 2023, as a way of connecting with our local community, we invited our Church neighbors to a St. Peter’s Block Party. We offered outdoor games, a bounce house, Snow cones, Church tours and Brunswick Stew, hotdogs and cookies made by parishioners.
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In 2022, we started a Book Drive for Springhead Elementary School.
In 2021 we started collecting donations for Pet Rescues at our St. Francis Blessing of the Pets service.
St. Peter’s has been delivering Thanksgiving Baskets for over 25 years. Last year we gave 25 baskets - 5 each to 5 different Elementary School families in need.
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For over 15 years, we have made Christmas Baskets for Meals on Wheels, which include toiletries, socks, afghans, notecards, and Christmas items. We have given as many as 50 baskets a year to be delivered to shut-ins with their Meals on Wheels dinners.
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At Christmas, St. Peter’s parishioners also provide Christmas gifts for 30 children from local elementary schools for the Angel Tree.
It takes a lot of willing hands to make our many ministries successful. If you haven’t had an opportunity to join in any of St. Peter’s Outreach Ministries, we invite you to join with us in experiencing God’s love being shared with the world.
As you can tell, we are a very active Commission of St. Peter’s. If you’d like to join us, we meet the 2nd Thursday of the month at 2pm in the Parish Hall.
We’d love for you to join us in pursuing our mission of “Love God and share God’s love with the world.”
Co-chairs: The Rev. Denise Healy revdzz@gmail.com and
Carolyn Durst carolyn.durst@gmail.com
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