21 Dec Christmas at Our Church: Baltimore, Md.

John Christophel (right), pastor, Brooklyn Park UB Church (Baltimore, Md.)

The Brooklyn Park Church has been helping needy families in our community with Thanksgiving and Christmas food baskets for many years. Over the past 14 years we have also been gathering gifts of toys and clothing for children in need.

This year the need was great. We were able to provide food baskets to four families at Thanksgiving and six families this Christmas. What helped make this a success was that we joined with our local community association to establish a community food pantry in our church. We are getting great support from the community and local businesses.

Our greatest joy has always been in being able to bring Christmas cheer to the needy children. With the help of many, we were able to give 7-9 gifts of toys and clothing to 20 children from seven different families.

This year two of the families we helped were evicted right before the holidays. The seven children were scattered out to live with other family members and friends. Another family we helped only had a queen-size mattress on the floor and a small TV. A local funeral home bought the children new beds. We are collecting other furniture as well.

We praise God for how he brought many people together to make this a special Christmas. Some of the families attend our church, but a few are new contacts.

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