We live in a world in which we have broken the bonds of this planet and walked on the surface of the moon, and yet we see each day that we have a difficult time reaching back to earth to lend a helping hand to our neighbors.
That is why we at St. John’s don’t just practice our faith, we strive to fulfill our mission of Living God’s Love in the World. That world stretches from the streets and neighborhoods of the Sacramento region across the globe to the rebuilding country of Rwanda, and anywhere in between where there are those in need. Every day, members of St. John’s are making a difference in the lives of others: sharing meals, providing shelter, building homes, leading the fight for social justice, hosting meetings, always eager to answer the call for help. Our members truly know how rewarding God’s work can be.
St. John’s is one of the regional churches that takes turns
providing space for up to 100 homeless men and women to stay
overnight out of the cold and rain.
St. John’s has been participating in Family Promise since
Thanksgiving, 2005. The program is committed to helping
low-income families nationwide to achieve lasting independence.
This is accomplished by helping communities mobilize to provide
safe shelter, meals, and support services for homeless families
and through programs designed to redress the underlying causes of
homelessness.
St. John’s Family Promise coordinators are Dan Maloney and Peter
Brostrom.
Habitat for Humanity builds
housing for low-income families throughout the world. St. John’s
has partnered with Thrivent Financial Services for
Lutherans to support Habitat projects in the Sacramento area.
Since 2007, more than 100 members have volunteered to help build
homes with other volunteers in the community. People of all skill
levels. Currently, St. John’s members are helping to build a home
in Sacramento. Steve Ruder currently coordinates St. John’s
Habitat volunteers.
St. John’s has a sister parish relationship with the Rukira
Lutheran Parishes in Rwanda. This partnership is a model of
accompaniment and both parishes are thriving due to this
partnership in the gospel.
There have been several cross-continent exchanges to strengthen
this relationship. In 2004 our first delegation from St. John’s
visited Rwanda. During the summer of 2006 Pastor Martin
Habiykare, along with other parish members visited St. John’s and
northern California. In 2008 two delegations from St. John’s
visited Rwanda and the Rukira Parishes.
This non-profit organization started its mission to feed the
elderly and low-income in 1983. Today it is still going strong,
feeding more than 2,000 families and nearly 1,000 seniors each
month. The program collects more than $2 million in food
donations every year and operates with an extremely low overhead.
It distributes groceries and commodities four times a month from
St. John’s.
Named for William (1928-2009) and Donna (1932-2010) Morgan,
long-time members of St. John’s Lutheran Church. During his
career as an educator, Bill served as principal of McClatchy High
School and devoted himself to the education of Sacramento’s young
people. He and Donna supported the Scholarship Fund from
its infancy, and Bill served as the Scholarship Committee’s chair
for many years.
The William and Donna Morgan Award is presented in their memory
to graduating high school seniors as chosen by the Scholarship
Committee.
