Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.

In order to fulfill our Lord’s “Great Commission,” we support several mission efforts through our national province, the Anglican Province of America. In Cap Haitien, Haiti, we help to support St Yves Church with monthly contributions. These contributions have been particularly helpful over the past year as the people of Haiti continue to try to recover from the devastating earthquake that destroyed much of Port au Prince in 2010. Our mission in Cap Haitien was able to help with the many refugees fleeing the capital city.

We are also helping to support a joint project between our province and Operation Mobilization to construct a Good Shepherd Community School (a Dalit education center) in the Kadapa district of Andhra Pradesh, India. This project will help bring education to the Dalit population in that district. The Dalits, also known as the “untouchables,” are the lowest caste in India and have traditionally served as virtual slaves in Indian society. We have reached our goal of $100,000 for funding the construction of the new school!

For you always have the poor with you. . .

Those are Jesus’ words to his disciples, but it wasn’t a statement of approval, just a sad statement of fact in this fallen world. In order to help alleviate some of the suffering in our community that poverty brings with it, St Mark’s is involved in giving aid to the homeless and near-homeless around us.

Each Friday evening of the month, a team from St Mark’s provides and serves a full meal at The Source, a local ministry to the homeless in our community. We serve hot fried chicken (generally), mashed potatoes, mixed vegetables, salad, and often a homemade dessert to an average of about 70 trays on any given Friday evening.

In addition to our work at The Source, we also occasionally assist with power bills, housing, or food on a case by case basis.

Finally, we collect food and plastic grocery bags in a very large box in the narthex of the church. The food is taken to The Source for their food pantry, and the grocery bags are used by homeless men and women to keep their personal belongs dry in our wet climate.

Our outreach efforts to the needy in our community are our way of being the eyes, hands, and feet of Jesus to those in need. We are an incarnational church, serving those around us.