We have many volunteer opportunities at Interfaith Works, from sorting donated clothing to preparing and serving meals. Many groups approach us with creative and thoughtful ideas for giving back to our neighbors in need. Janet Madison, a member of the Cedarbrook Community Church in Clarksburg, recently hosted a tea party with her congregation for the ladies at our Wilkins Avenue Women’s Shelter.
“We had a great time doing the tea – we have organized tea parties for the women of the church in the past and thought that it would be fun to do at Wilkins Avenue,” Janet shares. A group of women from Cedarbrook Church serve meals once a month at Wilkins Avenue, and looked forward to sharing a special event with the women at the shelter.
Eight ladies from the congregation met on a Saturday morning and made chicken salad on wheat bread, egg salad on flat bread, and English cucumber with dill and cream cheese on marbled rye sandwiches. They filled lemon tarts and baked chocolate cupcakes and caramel pecan cookies. Hummus and crackers, chocolate truffles, a variety of tea, and sodas completed the menu.
The Cedarbrook ladies went to Wilkins Avenue to decorate the kitchen and serve tea for the women at the shelter. Congregation member Susan Dunn spoke about love and having faith, and presented a gift bag for every woman with each item representing a part in her talk.
Water – essential to life, refreshes
Kleenex – wipes away our tears
Lotion – soothes and heals the rough places
Sponges – wipes up messes and removes stains
Note pad and pencil with eraser – gives a fresh start and new paper on which to write our life, eraser for correcting mistakes
Candy – love is sweet
Janet recalls, “I think there were about 20 women that attended. They seemed to really enjoy themselves. It was very fun for those of us that played a part, and I highly recommend that other groups get involved. You get far more out of it than you put into it.”
If you are interested in volunteering or have a creative idea for a service activity, please contact our volunteer coordinator, Cindy Hall, at chall@iworksmc.org. Learn more about our volunteer opportunities by visiting our website: www.iworksmc.org.
