Dear Members of the Chester Eastside Community,
Each Monday and Wednesday before we open the doors to welcome neighbors into our food pantry and hot meals programs we gather as a community of servants. We come together and share the news, joys, concerns, and longings of the volunteers and staff. Each time we gather we affirm our commitment and deepen our bonds with one another, and with those we are preparing to serve.
During this time recently one of our volunteers asked for prayers for a family member who is the Air Force. He had been deployed to one of the air craft carriers off the coast of Gaza. No sooner was that petition offered than a little piece of all of us was with him far away in the Mediterranean Sea.
In the last two weeks the food pantry and hot meals program have been overwhelmed. One day, for the first time since I’ve been at CEI, we ran out of food and had to turn people away. This increase has been largely due to many families for whom cities and towns in Central and South America were their last homes.
At one point, I stood in this parking lot looking into the eyes of a woman who told us (through an intrepeter) that she had walked to the US border from Venezuala. Then, from Texas to Philadelphia on a bus; from Philadelphia to Chester on a train. As she shared her story, she held one small child in one arm, while holding the hand of another.
Each time we made eye contact, I was transported to the treacherous path from her last home to her new one.
Many of us know people in Israel, Gaza, Lewiston, El Paso, and Ukraine…places where people suffer and struggle. Such relationships refuse to be bound by time or space; they are transcendent, and serve to bind us ever closer as a global community.
The good news I would offer in the midst of these dark times is that our shrinking world is not just about being in solidarity in times of turmoil. Even more, as the world gets smaller, the ability to offer goodness, grace, hope, light, and even life gets larger by the day.
At Chester Eastside we have a unique privilege: the ability to make the world smaller for those experiencing doubt and fear. We have the will and the means to provide for the real and immediate needs of those with whom we share this little vessel called earth.
May all that we do in the name of Chester Eastside draw us closer to one another: let our words and acts of love and compassion make our world just a little smaller each day.
Peace,
Andy
What’s Happening and Coming Attractions
Turkeys, Turkeys, and More Turkeys!
The annual Thanksgiving turkey meal distribution will be on Sunday, November 19 from 1-2pm and 3-4pm at St. Paul’s Church.
We are now accepting donations so that we will be able to provide 250 full Thanksgiving Day meals. Click here to see the list of needed food items.
We will be packing bags on Saturday the 18th. If you are intersted in volunteering, please call the office so we can coordinate different groups throughout the course of the day.
Thanks to all who make this such a meaningful day for so many!
Celebrating Our Volunteers and Staff
In the midst of the holiday season we will take a joyous pause to recognize those who keep the CEI train on the tracks. On Saturday, December 9, we will gather in our CEI home. At 5:00pm the doors will open for a time of fellowship and appetizers. We will then proceed to the dining room for good food and great fellowship, interspersed with special awards and recoginitions for all of the faithful service offered by our volunteers and staff.
The Annual Holiday Bazaar
On Thursday, December 21, from 12pm to 6pm, we will host our annual Holiday Bazaar. There will be clothes and household items available for anyone at no cost. We will serve light snacks and warm beverages as we rejoice in seasonal music.
At the core of the day is the distribution of holiday gift cards. This year we will offer gift cards to every individual who comes – but you must be a resident of Chester. Each member in a family will be counted, but, adults and children, must be present to receive a gift card.
If you have items to donate, or would like to donate gift cards, you can bring them to CEI from 8:30am – 6:00pm each weekday. If that is not possible, you can call the office and arrange a drop off.
It’s Time For…The Annual Appeal
As in so many of the past years, we will be sending out an appeal for your financial support in the next week. Each year this blessing has increased, so much so that it now accounts for a large percentage of our annual budget!
Our ask is simply this: when you receive the letter containing the appeal, step back and think about all that we are able to accomplish when we offer our time, talents, and resources. Then, pause for another moment, and imagine what might be possible if we were to receive more than anticipated.
Having done that, we trust that we will end up with all that we need – and more! May our giving be a blessing for all who receive its benefit.
After School Update
The news about the After School Program is all good! Director of Education Whitney Wright has hit the ground running! The space has been transformed, new computers greet each child, new ways of providing meals are in effect, the gym is a constant blessing, the clubs are thriving, the garden has been harvested, and volunteers new and old fill the ranks. For K-9 students the program is in person each day from 2:45pm-6:00pm. For high school students the program is offered virtually. As of this writing we have just about reached the capacity of 40 students!
And then there are the additional field trips. The students traveled to the award ceremony to receive the prize for the best children’s garden in the County. Last week they took a trip to Macy’s to prepare for the November 11 fashion show in which they will walk down the aisle in the glow of flashing cameras. This Saturday they will be at a local University women’s soccer game as special guests – walking the players onto the field, and being recognized at half time.
Especially as the roster fills up, we are always seeking volunteers willing to come and teach, mentor, inspire, lead, and play with our students!
