Trinity Parish Ministries and Commissions
Manna Ministries
The Manna Ministry provides meals to those in our parish community who need a bit of relief, whether recovering from surgery, childbirth, illness, or feeling overwhelmed by life! Manna is an "in-reach" ministry where Trinity folks minister to others within our community.
One can participate as a provider and as a recipient, or both! Learning to live in community means not only giving help to others in the community but equally learning to lean on your neighbors in the parish when needed.
Manna Ministry speaks to those who, at the moment, could use a bit of neighborly help:
Is life dealing you a bit more than you can handle right now? Are you anticipating some down time due to surgery or childbirth? Would having a meal or several delivered to your doorstep provide some welcome relief? Then call on the Manna Ministry!
Over 60 Trinity parishioners are ready to prepare and deliver meals to fellow parishioners in need. (If you’d like to be added to the Cooks list, please email us at manna@trinitymenlopark.org.) And whenever you or a friend needs help, please contact our Meal Coordinators via email manna@trinitymenlopark.org or call Jackie Wood (650-323-9663) or Irene Lawrence (650-857-1159) directly. Jackie or Irene will consult with you to establish an appropriate delivery schedule and any dietary restrictions. Your Trinity community is here to support you – do call!
Manna Ministry also has something to offer those who have time and talent to give:
It feels great make a difference in the lives of individuals and families in need! We all need a helping hand from time to time, and we all need to be that helping hand from time to time!
In addition to the satisfaction of helping others within the Trinity family, Manna cooks cite the pleasure of meeting people from other services, whether cooking together in the parish kitchen during our quarterly “Cook-Ins” or delivering meals to people they don’t know well.
Manna Ministry was born in February 2006, building on the success of the Casserole Brigade which preceded it for many years. Parishioners attending a visioning workshop articulated these fruits of the ministry:
- Wonderful to be fed when someone is sick
- Wonderful to give, so basic
- Meet new people
- Give more than a meal. Reach out with a visit, a call
- Build community
- Good thing to do for others, especially those without local family
- You don’t have to ask, it’s out of your hands
- Helps keep tabs on those who aren’t at church
- What’s great is the people who do it!
- It surfaces needs e.g. to clergy, for prayers
- Lots of cooks, so the burden is light and it’s OK to decline
- Special needs (no gluten, vegetarian, etc.) handled well
What’s the time and talent commitment?
"Many hands make light the burden." Manna Ministry is blessed with a strong steering committee, 2 dedicated meal coordinators, and a large group of active volunteers.
Volunteer cooks can be as involved as they feel able. We have a database of 60 volunteer cooks, so no single volunteer should be called upon very often. The volunteer cook is asked to prepare and deliver a meal to the family or individual in need. (And “prepare” can mean pick it up at Costco or Draeger’s if that works best!)
We also hold quarterly “Cook-Ins” to stock the freezer with emergency meals. Those who do not wish to be called upon to deliver meals, can participate in the quarterly Cook-Ins. These are held one afternoon per quarter, in the church kitchen
Following are “job descriptions” for roles that require more time commitment, for those who would like to be more involved:
Meal Coordinators
The primary role of the meal coordinators is to function as a single point of contact for the recipients. The coordinator takes on the burden of asking for help from the meal providers. Since this role is now shared, the meal coordinators should establish a process for determining who will be the single point of contact for each recipient.
- Contact Recipient(s) to determine their need, dietary restrictions, time-frame etc.
- Contact the volunteers via email or phone to solicit meals.
- Prepare a schedule and share it with the family and the volunteers.
- Deliver first meal, food cooler (if applicable) and the schedule to the family.
- Contact the clergy to pass along any pertinent pastoral information.
- Check back every week with the family to see if the need will be continued.
- Write thank you notes for the volunteers who have delivered meals.
- Monitor the stock of frozen foods.
- Work with Treasurer to request budget reimbursement.
- Train the next coordinators.
Cook-In Coordinators
Responsible for planning and staffing a quarterly cook-in.
- Schedule Cook In days, one per quarter.
- Plan the meals to be prepared
- Prepare recipes, shopping lists
- Prepare labels
- Stock up on containers
- Find shoppers
- Recruit cooks for the day
When does the commission meet?
Quarterly Cook-Ins are held in the church kitchen.
Quarterly Steering Committee meetings are held in a member’s home.