Parishioners serve meals to the homeless and hungry at Daily Bread in Melbourne.
The motto at Holy Trinity Episcopal in Melbourne is, “To know Christ and to make Him known.” This maxim has led the church into local, regional and outreach ministries.
“We love to see parishioners put their faith to work, not only by serving those in need, but also by using their leadership skills to create partnerships that leverage the resources of the church in such a way that more people are helped,” said co-rectors Father Steve and the Rev. Pam Easterday.
Putting faith to work for outreach results in about 60 parishioners volunteering at the church’s Thrift Shop, which provides a remarkable outreach to the parish, the community, the Diocese of Central Florida and beyond. The shop provides household goods free to many needy families.
All items are donated and include not only clothing but also bedding, dishes, lamps, books, luggage, furniture, jewelry, small household appliances, baby items and much more. Proceeds from the Thrift Shop sales benefit many different outreach projects throughout the church and in the community. Clothing not sold after 90 days is donated to service agencies within the community.
Members of the parish make palm crosses to distribute at local hospitals on Palm Sunday.
Holy Trinity members also volunteer to assist residents with their meals at Trinity Towers South, a senior facility in downtown Melbourne. Countless prayer shawls and blankets are knitted and shared.
Additionally, one church family operates a group home for adult women with special needs, and parishioners provide activities to brighten the lives of those residents. But the giving doesn’t stop there.
There is a constant outpouring of food and clothing, and at Christmas, gifts for the needy, especially children. For many years Holy Trinity parishioners have made and filled more than 130 Christmas stockings for the children of Devereux, who live in a residential facility with little, if any, family support.
Holy Trinity’s outreach ministries stretch to hospitals as well. For about 50 years Holy Trinity has provided palm crosses to Holmes Regional Medical Center and Palm Bay Hospital to be placed on the breakfast trays of all patients on Palm Sunday.
Elsewhere, a team from Holy Trinity serves at Melbourne’s Daily Bread soup kitchen on every fifth Saturday. Parishioners also volunteer to help Brevard County with a headcount of the homeless and by purchasing and giving them socks.
In 2012, Holy Trinity formed a new outreach partnership with the South Brevard Sharing Center in the form of participation in its BIN (Bring in Necessities) Program. The BIN, the lighthouse found in the narthex, is a receptacle for many kinds of personal hygiene products, including shampoo/conditioner, toothpaste, feminine hygiene items, deodorant, antibacterial creams/ointments, pain relievers, shaving products, and baby diapers and wipes.
“This combination of hard work and community leadership makes Holy Trinity an incubator for outreach,” the Easterdays said, “And, there is a long history of this.”
In the 1960s and 1970s, this combination led to the building and, recently, a $20 million renovation of Trinity Towers – three apartment buildings with more than 550 apartments for the low-income elderly.
It also led to Holy Trinity providing leadership in the diocese in recovering and restoring Camp Wingmann in Avon Park. In 2007, Holy Trinity granted a $55,000 gift to Camp Wingmann as part of the church’s tithe on its capital campaign.
The co-rectors went on to say: “As a parish, Holy Trinity provides for many physical needs, but the greatest outreach of the parish is surely spiritual. The parish is very good at sharing faith with those who need God. That is our greatest outreach!”