Friends of Grace Carries On
Before the fire on August 15, the last public event in Grace Presbyterian Church’s building on Grove and Tuxedo was a community meal hosted by Friends of Grace. Like many others at Grace, the Friends of Grace asked themselves, “What do we do now?” The need to meet the spiritual, physical, and emotional needs of our community’s food-insecure residents persists. Could Friends of Grace find a place to host these events? God showed up and led the team to Saint John’s Episcopal Church on Montclair Avenue in Montclair. Their campus is just a few blocks from Grove and Tuxedo, and they have a kitchen and a large hall that are just right for this ministry. Friends of Grace hosted their first community meal in this temporary home on September 17.
Thank God, the Little Free Pantry escaped the calamity undamaged, and the fence was installed so that both we and our neighbors could still get to it. So, Grace Church folks have continued their generous donations of nonperishable food items.
The Friends of Grace supply of small stuffies, which Friends of Grace calls Comfort Creatures and which are donated to local EMS services, were lost in the fire. The team welcomes contributions of the small stuffed animals so they can continue to be delivered to local emergency services providers.
