Thank you so much for all your support!

I wanted to let you know that we had 22 churches that helped support Lutheran Social Services Food Pantries financially, by donating bags of food, and volunteering. I am very pleased to share that over 3,000 families were served at the LSS Food Pantry Thankfull Holiday Distributions across 10 counties. I am also thrilled to share that 1925 bags were collected from churches!! That is more than half of the total bag distribution—well done to all!

Again, thank you so much for supporting the LSS Food Pantries Thankfull Holiday!

Grace and peace,

Benjamin Powers
Congregational Relations Manager
Lutheran Social Services

Holy Trinity is once again partnering with Boulevard Presbyterian Church for the Community Christmas Box project by donating 90 dozen cookies.  In recent years, families have decorated pre-cut frozen cookie dough.  While you are still welcome to make that kind of cookie, homemade cookies of any kind are welcomed.  Please package your cookies in boxes or containers so they can easily be transported and then divided at Boulevard Presbyterian to create festive plates for seniors in need.  Be sure to have your cookies on the table in Holy Trinity’s church sacristy (the room near the parking lot doors just outside of the sanctuary) before noon on Friday, December 15th.  Please sign up on the clipboard at the Collection & Signup Corner in the Gathering Space or on this SignUp Genius indicating the number of dozens of cookies you can bring. Thank you for your ministry to make the Christmas season special for those in need.

by Elizabeth Sammons with love from Neighbor to Neighbor

Black Women of the Old West, Read Until You Understand, and Troublemaker are books that I’ve read myself or seen as books of note.  This literature intends to expand our awareness, theology and/or acceptance of diverse viewpoints. We on Neighbor-to-Neighbor hope you’ll discover how these writings from various generations embrace what it means to be human and to walk in spirit. …

Black Women of the Old West by William Katz
This book traces how African American women challenged white bigotry, labored to create new lives, and ultimately helped to transform sparse frontier settlements into thriving western states. It reveals how these pioneers brought culture to the early communities from Ohio, Kansas, and Texas to Oklahoma, Nevada, and California. For grades 4-7. 1995.

Read Until You Understand by Farah Griffin
The author reflects on her love of the majestic power of words and Black life, culture, and community. She shares her discoveries through the works of figures like Frederick Douglass, Malcolm X, Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder, Toni Morrison, Romare Bearden, and others. Available in audio. 2021.

Troublemaker by John Cho
The first night of rioting in the wake of the Rodney King verdict, Jordan’s father leaves to check on the family store, spurring twelve-year-old Jordan and his friends to embark on a dangerous journey through South Central and Koreatown to come to his aid, encountering the racism within their community as they go. For grades 5-8. 2022.

Holy Trinity is continuing its annual tradition of decorating a Hat & Mitten Tree. Everyone is invited to donate hand-made or newly-purchased hats, mittens, gloves, scarves and socks for the tree. Contributions will be donated to clients at Lutheran Social Services food pantries in January when they’re needed most. Watch for the tree coming soon!

The Holy Trinity Neighbor-to-Neighbor Ministry is an outreach team focused on helping our neighbors by:

• Raising Awareness,
• Building community, and
• Promoting justice and peace.

There are two upcoming events to mark on your calendar.

Sunday, December 10^th, Deacon Nick Bates, Director of the Hunger Network of Ohio will preach at worship and will be available before and after the service to discuss opportunities for Holy Trinity to become involved in justice matters related to food insecurity.  In 2022, foodbanks in Ohio provided take-home groceries to over 3.5 million households and served 13.7 million prepared meals.  Food insecurity is a serious problem among the poor who must wrestle with inflation, medical services, and rent along with feeding their families.

Deacon Nick Bates, J.D. serves as the director of the Hunger Network in Ohio, an ecumenical ministry that works to end hunger by addressing the root causes of poverty through public policy advocacy. Faith-based advocacy seeks to build relationships between faith, community, and policymakers to identify solutions to hunger by addressing the root causes. The root causes of poverty are wide-ranging and HNO brings a faith lens to issues such as state budget policy, criminal justice reform, racial and gender equity, healthcare, housing, environment and much more. HNO works in collaboration with ELCA Advocacy as a part of the ELCA’s State Public Policy Network.

Deacon Bates has nearly 20 years of experience working in the non-profit advocacy sector with expertise on issues related to hunger, housing, state budget and tax policy, and much more. He is a graduate of Trinity Lutheran Seminary and Capital University Law School in 2012. He now lives in the Hilltop neighborhood with his wife and two children who attend Columbus City Schools.

Monday, January 15^th, Capital University will be celebrating the life of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. and the Neighbor-to-Neighbor team plans to join the celebration on the Capital University campus.  Please consider joining us for an informative event.  Watch the newsletter for further details.

If you are interested in participating on the Neighbor-to-Neighbor team, our next meeting is Monday, December 11^th at 7:00 pm in the church library.  For more information please see Sharon Hamersley, Dave Kriska, Carl Peterson, Benson Ross, Elizabeth Sammons, Becky Warnement, or Pastor Steve.

The Lutheran Social Services Network of Hope thanks you for your generosity in providing hope and healing for people in crisis. Holy Trinity contributed 138 Thankfull Holiday meal bags to help families in need celebrate Thanksgiving. A turkey, bread and produce will be added to each bag that is picked up at the LSS food pantries in the coming days. Thank you for making the holidays a little brighter for people struggling with food insecurity.

All 3rd, 4th, and 5th grade students are invited to learn to make knit hats this Saturday, November 18 from 9-10:30 am.  Don’t worry if you don’t have any experience – some of the adults will be learning right along with you!  It’s an easy process when using a special loom.  As everyone learns this new skill together, your efforts will be sure to keep people warmer this winter.  In order to ensure we have enough yarn and looms, it would be helpful to know if your Tween(s) will be at church on Saturday morning for this activity.  Feel free to contact Mrs. Banicki (jentes1@gmail.com), Mrs. Pensyl, or Mrs. Fox (noelle.fox@engagedbygrace.org) with questions or to let them know your child will attend.  Hope to see you there!

Big news for Holy Trinity’s Habitat house this weekend. Saturday, December 2nd is Holy Trinity’s turn to make lunch for our Habitat volunteers! Also, the morning of that same day, we will have our Wall Raising Ceremony. This is where the family comes and raises up the front wall of the house and nails it together. This happy event will be attended by dignitaries and press, and all are invited. If you are interested in helping with lunch that day, please contact Benson Ross at detailsdetails96@gmail.com.

The house is located at 1496 Arlington Avenue in Linden, Columbus 43211. Construction is now underway, working Thursdays from 8:30 am – 12 noon and Saturdays from 8:30 till 3:30. The new Habitat partner is Zeinab Badhi and her two sons. Zeinab is from Somalia and has lived in Columbus since 2014. Before coming to the United States, she spent eight years in a refugee camp in Kenya. Zeinab works at Macy’s and is the mother of two boys: Mohamed (age 15); and Anas (age 14). Both attend Westerville South, love football and basketball, and play at the YMCA. When Zeinab heard about Habitat for Humanity from some friends, she was eager to apply for the program. She said that she has always asked God to provide a new home for her, and now, her dreams are finally coming true! The family will leave behind an older home that is in desperate need of repairs. Zeinab cannot wait to move into her new home in Linden and looks forward to hosting “FunDays” (big parties) with her friends. The boys are excited to have their own rooms. We’re looking forward to making another safe home for a family who is presently living in substandard conditions. All are welcome to come on out to the site and lend a hand, thank you! No experience necessary. Please contact Benson Ross at detailsdetails96@gmail.com with questions.

by Elizabeth Sammons with love from Neighbor to Neighbor

Black Soldiers in Blue, Rise: From Caged Bird to Poet of the People, and The Matter of Black Lives are books that I’ve read myself or seen as books of note.  This literature intends to expand our awareness, theology and/or acceptance of diverse viewpoints. We on Neighbor-to-Neighbor hope you’ll discover how these writings from various generations embrace what it means to be human and to walk in spirit. …

Black Soldiers in Blue by John David Smith

These fourteen essays tell the stories of the African American soldiers who fought for the Union cause. Essays explore the recruitment of black troops in the Mississippi Valley; the U. S. Colored Cavalry; military leadership; chaplain Henry McNeal Turner; the black troops who occupied postwar Charleston; and the experiences of USCT veterans in postwar North Carolina.

Rise: From Caged Bird to Poet of the People by Bethany Hegedus

A biography of African American writer, performer, and activist Maya Angelou, who rose above a childhood of trauma and emotional pain to become one of the most inspiring voices of our lifetime. Includes a forward by her grandson Colin Johnson. For grades 3-6. Available in audio. 2019.

 The Matter of Black Lives by various authors

This collection of writings from the New Yorker features stories of private triumphs, national tragedies, political vision, and artistic inspiration written by James Baldwin, Toni Morrison, Ta-Nehisi Coates, Hilton Als, Zadie Smith, and others. Available in audio. 2021.

Save the date for the next Red Cross blood drive at Holy Trinity on Thursday, November 16 from 9am-3pm. Go to www.redcrossblood.org/give or call 1-800-REDCROSS to make an appointment.