Serving others in need is our way of loving and serving God. Our service draws us into a deeper relationship with God and helps us grow to be more loving to all. We invite you to join us in this work.
Serve
Serve in the Greater Community
We are delighted to offer opportunities for our members to love their neighbors and serve others.
Serve in the Church
We are delighted to offer opportunities for our members to serve in our worship. Additionally, our members have opportunites to care for each other.
Outreach to Our Neighbors
At St. Michael’s, our Mercy & Social Justice ministry connects members with several partner organizations to offer opportunities to serve those in need. Here is an idea of what do annually.
Spring 2025
Diaper Drive | Mother's Day (May 11) through Father's Day (June 15)
Every year, beginning on Mother’s Day, we ask that our members donate diapers to our diaper drive. We do this because several years ago, when we were doing community dinners at St. Matthew’s, we offered some diapers we received as a donation. The people in the community went crazy for them! We realized that among the refugees, money was tight and diapers were expensive. We began this drive knowing that this was a wonderful way to love some of our most vulnerable neighbors. This year, we are running this drive through Father’s Day.
Many of us are downsizing, giving away, or cleaning out our clutter. Here is an idea! Celebrate Mother’s Day and Father’s Day by giving the gift of clean diapers to new mothers and fathers who may not be able to afford to buy them for their children. Just think, you can be grateful that you don’t have to change the diapers yourself!
All the diapers (and money) we collect go to River City Food Bank for distribution among their clients.
March (Easter Alms Giving)
Easter Gift Card Collection
During lent, we collect money to buy gift cards that are distributed to guests at River City Food Bank and people from the community of the Center @ St. Matthew’s. When you give online, please use the Food Gift Card option on the drop down menu.
Rise Against Hunger |March 29, 2025 | Johnstone Hall
We gathered on Saturday, March 29th to pack 10,000+ meals that were shipped overseas to help hungry children eat before they go to school so they can learn. This is a fun day to work together and serve others! This year, the meals went to the Phillipines.
Summer 2025
Pentecost Season
June 14, 2025 | St. Michael's Indoor Yard Sale
Beginning June 8th, St. Michael’s will be accepting donations for our yard sale. Members will gather to sort, price, and organize what is donated. On June 14th, at 8am the doors will open. After we close our last sale, the remaining items will be donated to the following organizations:
- American Cancer Society
- Family Promise
- Carmichael HART
- Disabled Veterans
- Floyd Elementary Clothes Closet
- Friends of the Library
- International Rescue Committee
- Lions Club Prison Project
- Loaves & Fishes
- Starr King K-8
- Thrift Store
- Homeless Effort, Clothing, Shoes, Blankets
- Transition Homeless House
All remaining children’s items, books, kitchen and household items, pairs of eyeglasses, clothing and backpacks are given to the above organizations to support their programs.
Diaper Drive | Continuing from May through June 15, Father's Day
Every year, beginning on Mother’s Day, we ask that our members donate diapers to our diaper drive. We do this because several years ago, when we were doing community dinners at St. Matthew’s, we offered some diapers we received as a donation. The people in the community went crazy for them! We realized that among the refugees, money was tight and diapers were expensive. We began this drive knowing that this was a wonderful way to love some of our most vulnerable neighbors. This year, we are running this drive through Father’s Day.
Many of us are downsizing, giving away, or cleaning out our clutter. Here is an idea! Celebrate Mother’s Day and Father’s Day by giving the gift of clean diapers to new mothers and fathers who may not be able to afford to buy them for their children. Just think, you can be grateful that you don’t have to change the diapers yourself!
All the diapers (and money) we collect go to River City Food Bank for distribution among their clients.
Starr King K-8 Backpack Project
St. Michael’s collects back packs and other school supplies for the children and teachers of Starr King K-8. We have given the teachers at the school Sanitary Wipes, Tissues, and Hand Sanitizer. We think that when we give, we help the teachers as well as the students. At St. Michael’s, we have many retired teachers and we know that if the classroom needs it, often the teachers, themselves, will provide it! Thank you for supporting this wonderful program!
Fall 2025
September, October, November | Pentecost
Trunk or Treat | October 31st | Halloween Night
St. Michael’s decorates their cars and loads them up with candy to give to the many gremlins and ghosts who come to trick or treat in our parking lot, which creates a safe and fun evening for all!
Thanksgiving Gift Cards
We collect donations to buy gift cards that are distributed at the Center @ St. Matthew’s and at River City Food Bank. We give them out around Thanksgiving to give people a chance to add a little bit more to their Thanksgiving dinner.
Gifts from the Heart
We give over 120 people a beautiful Christmas with presents and a lovely stocking made with their names on it in glitter packed with things picked out specifically for each person. We partner with the county to serve these 120 people who are not forgotten at Christmas.
Winter 2025
Advent, Christmas & Epiphany
Habitat for Humanity | Build for Unity
Build for Unity is a program that began in 2016 when Habitat for Humanity brought faith groups of different traditions together to work on houses for people of different faith traditions. St. Michael’s has participated since 2016 in this project. This year, 2025, we helped for three days, 30 slots, painting two house and building fences. We plan to have 30 slots open again this coming year. We would love for you to join us!
Carmichael HART | Winter Respite
Winter Respite is a program where St. Michael’s members are invited to go to a host church, Christ Congregational Church, and offer a warm breakfast, clean cots for rest, and a sack lunch for the day. This respite allows people without homes to have a break from the rain and cold during the winter months. This allows our members to reach out and serve those in need and an opportunity to get to know our neighbors.
Charitable Giving
Bob McMichael came to our beloved (and now retired) Deacon Cindy and me a while back wondering about our reserve funds. He thought that having some reserves was prudent and wise. However, he wondered if we could take a “significant amount” and use it to relieve some of the suffering that was growing around us all exacerbated by COVID. We brought this to the vestry and embarked on a journey together to determine if Bob’s idea was right for St. Michael’s at this time. The vestry determined that it is the responsibility of the church to give to those in need when we are able to do so. And so we are!
Projects we are proud of ...
Showing up to Serve Those in Need
HART Winter Respite
St. Michael’s’ members served our neighbors without homes three mornings in January and February at Christ Community Church in Carmichael offering respite from the cold and rain. Members cooked and served a hot breakfast, made lunches available for people to take with them, and created fellowship. There were cots available for people to rest out of the wet and cold.
We are grateful for Cindy Dewey for organizing our involvement in Winter Shelter and her team for providing care with grace to our neighbors in need.
Habitat for Humanity – Build for Unity
One again, St. Michael’s participated in Habitat for Humanity’s Build for Unity. Thank you Terry Bridges for organizing our participants. This year, along with other faith communities in the Sacramento Area, we helped paint two houses and put in fences. We filled 30 slots, contributing much to the Build for Unity in Sacramento.
2024 Mercy & Social Justice Parishioner Guided Grants
Congratulations to the nominators and recipients. Through these grants, St. Michael’s shows that we love our neighbors and respect the dignity of every human being.
- Starr King Staff Luncheon Nominated by Mary Ellen Ferguson
- Arden Arcade Hart Nominated by Julie Linderman
- International Rescue Committee Nominated by Christina Manning
- PANC Exhibitor Nominated by Dancy Dobrenick
- Parkinson’s Arden Arcade Support Nominated by Kay Griffin and Marcie Larkey
- River City Food Bank Nominated by Eileen Thomas
- Starr King Office Supplies & Student Rewards Nominated by Mary Ellen Ferguson
Working For Justice
Continuing 2015 Goals
Goals and Objectives … 2015 | We are still Keeping on!
Goal #1 Provide focused and balanced outreach in the 4 areas identified within the structure of Mercy and Social Justice: fundraising/check writing, in kind donations, doing to and for, partnerships/doing with.
Objective: Create a structure to define and review outreach partners. We have lived into this goal for the past 8-9 years.
Objective: Build relationships with partners – we have built relationships with multiple partners and you can find them here.
Objective: Create a plan for charitable giving – in 2022, we gave $100,000 in charitable grants. The vestry, at that time, defined our policy for reserve funds which includes the possibility for the vestry to make the decision to give out of St. Michael’s reserves charitably. We partner with the vestry in our charitable giving.
Objective: Offer opportunities in each area with careful consideration that there is balance across the 4 areas – we have done this remarkably well. We have learned; however, that finding communities to truly partner with, where there is a balance of decision making power has been difficult. We continue to search for those opportunities.
Goal #2 Create an Advocacy Ministry
This area has not yet been developed systematically within St. Michael’s. Many people are more aware of what leads to poverty, systematic racism, and many of the injustices suffered by LGTBQAI+ and those of color.
Goal #3 Communicate well with other committees
We continue to work on this goal.
New Goals to strive for!
Goals and Objectives … 2023/2024
Create Opportunities to Expand Outreach
Objective: Create a “housing advocacy” group to learn about the housing situation in Sacramento, create ways to advocate for more housing and support for people who are without housing. Leverage our involvement with HART, St. Mattews, RCFB and AACFC.
Objective: Expand partnership with Loaves and Fishes by organizing a St. Michaels team to volunteer once a month.
Objective: Explore within our partnership with International Rescue Committee opportunities to help Refugees and discern at least 2 ideas for involvement opportunities to our members.
Objective: Identify current outreach activities where we can partner with other faith groups in service to others.
This is the work ahead of us. It is exciting!
