FAMILY MINISTRY
The Family Ministries program’s mission is to bring families together through fellowship and sharing God’s love. In an effort to meet this goal, the program has coordinated several events, with all family types and ages welcome. Most of the gatherings included younger children and their parents; however, several others have attended these events as Church family members. At each event, refreshments, crafts, and other entertainment were provided. Some events from the past few years included the following gatherings:
January: Saint Matthew Book Swap
February: Mardi Gras Celebration
March: Saint Matthew Bowling
April: Easter Egg Hunt
August: Back to School Tie Dye Party
October: Halloween Party
Fellowship
Our committee meets on a quarterly basis, unless events require follow up planning. 2018 Fellowship events included monthly coffee hours after each service, luncheons, and assisting with Evangelism and Family Ministry events. Additional fellowship opportunities at Saint Matthew in 2018 included Worship in Motion and Pub Theology which are coordinated and led by Vicar Dan.
Events include:
Coffee Connection– monthly coffee hour after each service
Men’s Breakfast – meets the third Saturday of each month at the Red Iron American Pub (except March where we meet in Elbert Hall).
First Thursday Friends (FTF) – a senior’s group that meets the first Thursday of the month at at 11:30 am for lunch at a local restaurant..
Book Reviews – held throughout the year at various times to accommodate a range of interests and schedules.
Fellowship Team — Organizes after church social time.
SOCIAL MINISTRY
The Social Ministry Committee organizes various projects that minister to our Saint Matthew congregation, our local community, and beyond. Our members, along with others in the congregation, actively support the following ministries both locally, in the Greater Philadelphia Area and a few worldly organizations:
Springfield Souper Bowl of Caring Food Drive
shut-in members from Saint Matthew at Easter and Thanksgiving.
the Loaves and Fishes Food Pantry.
Baby Manna, to support that organization which provides formula and other nutritional items to infants living in poverty to help them thrive.
school supplies and gifts of new pajamas and toys and books and gloves for Christmas that are then given to the children of Faith Immanuel Lutheran Church in East Lansdowne.
Christmas cards that were sent to people in local prisons to remind those that are often forgotten that God still loves them and cares about them.
Various financial and items donations to Lutheran World Relief.
Women of ELCA
We can see God’s Work, Our Hands in the women of this church as they spread the good news of Jesus Christ locally, nationally, and internationally. On a monthly basis, they serve various ministries by organizing events or collections. Here is an example of their monthly themes:
January: A luncheon was prepared and served for our Congregational Meeting.
April: Women’s Sunday featured Elizabeth McKinley from Lutheran World Relief. Over $400 was donated to LWR from our congregation.
May: A dinner was hosted for the entire congregation. The Rev. Violet Little and Rev. Shaunel Steinnagel talked about The Welcome Church that ministers to the homeless in Philadelphia. A Welcome Home Package, containing numerous items needed to set up a new apartment, was given to them.
June: Quilts for Lutheran World Relief were delivered to the Biennial Convention in Downingtown after being blessed at a service in May. Two members attended this event. Three graduating seniors received their quilts at a special service.
September: Our Ronald McDonald Quilting group disbanded after years of providing many quilts for the children. We thank these faithful women for their long, dedicated ministry.
October: Several women attended the Delaware Conference at Faith Immanuel Lutheran Church in East Lansdowne.
December: A breakfast was hosted. The entire congregation was invited. John Stefl spoke on genealogy. A free-will offering of over $300 was donated to Lutheran Disaster Response for the California Wildfires.
The Ronald McDonald Quilting Group
In 2018, the ladies in the Ronald McDonald Quilting Group completed 19 tied quilts, 47 crocheted afghans, and 4 pillows which matched the tied quilts. Beneficiaries of this group are Silver Springs Foster Care Children, Fair Acres, Lutheran World Relief, Ronald McDonald house for Family Stays and various other organizations.
YOUTH MINISTRY
One of our four areas of focus is eQuipping youth and their families for a life of faith in Jesus. This year was a notable year for our youth and their opportunity to worship, learn from, and serve Jesus.
Harvey Cedars
In the Spring, our youth attend the Harvey Cedars Lutheran Youth Retreat. This program, which is attended by youth from across our Synod, is a wonderful opportunity for our youth to recognize that the Church is broader than any of our congregations, that there are other youth in this world who value faith and a relationship with Jesus, and to learn a bit more about the faith we profess through an engaging time of discussion and discernment. All this takes place in a context of fun and fellowship with over 300 other Lutherans. This event has been growing so significantly over time that in 2019 we will be going to a new site so we will not have to turn youth away. The new site is Tuscarora Inn and Conference Center in the Poconos. We look forward to another great year in our new site for the Lutheran Youth Retreat.
ELCA Youth Gathering
This event is held every three years in a different city in the country. It is 5 days of worship, learning, and service for Senior High Lutheran youth from across the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. More than 30,000 people attend this event every triennial, making it by far the single largest event the ELCA holds. This year the event was held in Houston which was fortuitous as we were present following the flooding from Hurricane Harvey in 2017.
Learning and Service at Home
There are Sunday morning learning at Bible school. Others were involved in our evening Confirmation Classes. And many of them have also participated in servant leadership as acolytes, crucifers, torchbearers, ushers, communion servers, worship assistants, and helpers with Vacation Bible School.