We as a First Church family support and uplift many ministries, one of which is our beloved First Street Methodist Mission, which has a reinvigorated spirit of giving during this trying time.

Our First Street Methodist Mission has not closed its doors, and our Mission team led by FSMM Director Linda Murphy is working harder than ever to support people living with homelessness and hunger every day in our own backyard. Linda expresses her  heartfelt thanks to the FUMCFW staffers who stepped up to fill the roles of our regular mission volunteers, many of whom are in the high-risk population for contracting COVID-19: “Thanks to all the church staff members who helped us at the Mission  during the past two weeks,” she elaborates, “we provided 301 families with groceries and 324 sack lunches to our unsheltered friends.”

And now there’s a new wrinkle. With the new restrictions on what we can buy and how many of each item we are allowed to buy, the FSMM infant formula program is dwindling. Linda now asks that anyone who wants to help join in this strangely engaging FSMM Scavenger Hunt: “If in the normal course of going to the grocery store for your own family, please remember to help us look for infant formula, baby wipes, and baby cereal,” Linda implores, “and please purchase your allotted amount and donate it to the Mission. Do not put yourself at risk,” she quickly adds, “but if you see some while you are out it would make a world of difference.”

So be sure to keep the FSMM’s weekly Scavenger Hunt Items on your grocery list and when you are able to find any quantity of these items, purchase them and then come and drop them off at the Mission, Monday – Thursday, 8:00 am – 1:00 pm. Just ring the bell at the double doors facing Henderson Street, leave your donation, and know that you are doing your part to help care for one of our city’s hungry babies.