Congregations for Children
What is C4C?
Congregations for Children (C4C) is an initiative that was started at the North Carolina United Methodist Annual Conference in 2013. The focus of C4C is to reflect the love of Christ to our neighbors, by helping children in public schools who live in poverty. Front Street has been partnering with Eastlawn Elementary school for several years. The free and reduced lunch rate at Eastlawn is a staggering 100%, so this ministry is so important.
There are many ways that you can be involved with this ministry.
Backpack Ministry
Front Street collects and distributes shelf-stable food on an ongoing basis. This food is then sorted and distributed to families at Eastlawn that have been identified by the social worker. The food goes home with the children on Fridays so that they will have food to eat over the weekend.
In the 2022-2023 school year, there were 200 families who received backpack meals from Front Street.
Current Food Collection
Fresh Mobile Market
Fresh Mobile Markets are free mobile food pantries that distribute fresh produce, bread, meat, and shelf-stable items to families on a monthly basis. This is done in conjunction with Out of the Garden Project.
On the 3rd Wednesday of each month at 2PM, we distribute fresh food (meat, fruit & vegetables, bread etc.) to families in need from the parking lot of Northside Presbyterian Church located at 1805 Vaughn Road. Our target audience is Eastlawn families, but anyone is welcome. This is a drive-thru distribution that needs volunteers to sort food, load cars, and direct traffic.
This monthly market begins at 2:00 PM and lasts until we run out of food—usually about an hour and a half or so. Volunteers are asked to arrive at 1:30.
School Buddies
Volunteers are able to serve in the classroom as reading buddies, math buddies, or lunch buddies. This opportunity requires a weekly commitment of one hour and volunteers must be registered on the ABSS volunteer system. For questions or more information, please contact Melissa Miller.
Teacher and Staff Treats
Every other month, Front Street provides the staff of Eastawn treats such as fruit, baked goods, and other goodies. Eastlawn does not have a parent organization, so this is one way that we help support the teachers and staff and let them know how much they matter.
Other
Welcome-Back
Front Street also provides a welcome-back lunch for the teachers and staff the week before school starts back and on the first day of school, we stand in front of Eastlawn and greet the students as they walk into school. We want the kids, families, and staff of Eastlawn to know that Front Street supports them in every way we can.
Thanksgiving Meals
The week before Thanksgiving, Front Street purchases and delivers turkeys and Thanksgiving food for 100 families so that they can have a Thanksgiving meal with their families.
5th Grade Promotion Ceremony
At the end of the school year, Front Street hosts the 5th graders at Eastlawn for their 5th-grade promotion ceremony. The ceremony is held in the sanctuary and we provide a reception for the families in Aldersgate Hall following the ceremony.
If you want to serve the children, families, and staff at Eastlawn in any of these ways, please contact Melissa at melissa@frontstreetumc.org.
