Meaningful Outreach

At the Redwood City laundromat: 3 members of our church
and Pamela Stevens (2nd from right) from the Diocese.

Those of us who have owned our own washing machine and dryer for decades may have forgotten, like I did, what a hassle it is to haul dirty clothes, laundry bags, detergent, and quarters ($8 for a large load!) to the laundromat, sit on hard plastic chairs, and wait for a machine to open up.

Early Saturday morning I went to the church office to pick up donations for the community served by El Buen Pastor, the Episcopal Church's Spanish-speaking congregation on the Peninsula.

Staff and parents of the pre-school and members of the church contributed laundry supplies, rolls of quarters, and children's books and toys to the effort. All told, we paid for 20 loads of laundry, and everything that was donated found its way to a proper home.

Meaningful outreach needs time and money, but a little empathy and imagination help, too.