Trinity Parish Ministries - Ecumenical Hunger Program

Serving the community in more ways every day

The Ecumenical Hunger Program, founded in 1975, a community organization providing food, clothing, household essentials, and case management to families in need in East Palo Alto, Menlo Park, and Palo Alto. By serving its over 10,000 clients with compassion and respect, EHP promotes personal dignity and encourages self-reliance. EHP moved to a new, larger site in Nov., 2003.

With "seed money" of $40,000 from Trinity, plus over 400 Trinity volunteer hours in four Workdays to date, and Trinity-arranged pro bono work from local contractors, improvements worth over $500,000 have been accomplished so far!

As construction at the EHP site winds down, Trinity's emphasis at EHP will revolve around ongoing programs. A longstanding tradition has been the EHP Food Box at the back of the church. Trinity families make purchases of non-perishable foods like flour, canned fruits and vegetables, oil, beans, canned meats, etc. a routine part of their weekly grocery shopping. Volunteers take the donations to EHP after church.

For the past three years Trinity has held a backpack drive to equip needy children with a backpack containing grade-appropriate supplies. The ingathering culminates with "The Blessing of the Backpacks;" for Trinity youth and their neighbors across town, surely a great way to start the school year! A new Afterschool Tutoring program, will provide additional support for children through the EHP Family Center.

On-going Project Responsibilities: Food-box filling and collecting, Backpack Drive and Outdoor Workday participation.
Contact: Nancy Grove - 650.329.8658
Timeframe: Days, Weekends

Afterschool Tutoring Responsibilities: Help children with their homework and/or particular subjects which need extra attention. We are looking for people from High-School age to grandparents who are willing to commit one afternoon a week for a quarter. A special opportunity to make a difference in the life of a child.
Contact: Carolyn Emmerson 650-329-0484
Time Committment: One afternoon per week
Timeframe: Days

Snapshot: "Participating in Trinity's work days at EHP was quite special for me. The work days were a fun way to meet and interact with members of our parish from all the different services, and were also a great way to participate and assist those seeking to make a difference in our local community. At the first work day, a veritable army of painters transformed the EHP building from unpainted stucco into its new "beige" identity. On our follow up days, we cleared and cleaned up the EHP lot in preparation for landscaping, trimmed trees, replaced gutters, and did other odd jobs. Happily for me, no great skill was required, all useful tools (as well as lunch!) were provided, each person's efforts were appreciated, and the Lord consistently blessed us with wonderful weather! It was such an encouragement and blessing to see so many gracious and willing workers from our own parish and from other groups in the community come together for this project." -Francie Johnston

Snapshot: "Outreach is first that. We reach into the community at large and serve others. The Food Box at the back of the church serves the Ecumenical Hunger Program. If you can donate a little something remember it gives families their daily bread. It is "good for the bottle, good for the can," and rewards your heart to know you too can help." --Sarah Divine

Snapshot: "One of Trinity's challenge projects this year was preparing backpacks for children in our community who might not otherwise have some basic equipment for the new school year. The packs go to all age children from kindergarten through high school. Dozens of people in the Parish responded to the challenge by getting backpacks (86 in all!), school supplies, or donating time or money. On the final day of the project, a group got together to check the backpacks and make certain each had the necessary supplies for the individual student; a lot of work, but a truly worthwhile project." --David Arscott