Make a Difference Day
What does one day mean to a community? It can mean something soft and cuddly to a child who is afraid and suffering from a disease. It can mean a Christmas gift for a senior who is lonely during what should be family time. It can mean warm clothes to help survive the cold winter. It can mean so much to those who serve as well as those who are served.

Join us for one day on Saturday, Oct. 25, to make a difference in the world around us. Meet others with a heart for service and be a part of this national day of volunteering. Our goal is to have at least 500 families and adults involved in serving at some point during the weekend. Check out the Make a Difference Day brochures available in each building for planned activities or make up your own and let us know what you are doing. If you need ideas or have questions, contact Susan Asplund at 651-762-9124.

Save winter coats
Throughout the month of October we will be collecting gently-used coats, hats, boots, anything that might be handy to surviving a Minnesota winter, through the Share the Warmth campaign co-sponsored by Mahtomedi Girl Scouts. Boxes will be in the Great Hall and the Sanctuary for your donations beginning Oct. 1. Please treat your donations as if you were giving them to a friend. Would you give your friend something that wasn’t clean, smelled bad, or was broken and missing pieces? Take the time to prepare your donations carefully.

Loaves and Fishes Evening Meal
Every other month a group meets at the Dorothy Day Center in St. Paul to serve an evening meal to nearly 300 homeless individuals and families. Contact Chris Egge at 651-426-3731 to register. Next dates: Sept. 23 and Nov. 25.

College Care Kits
It’s not too late to register a recent graduate to receive a fall college care kit. Applications available in the Great Hall and Sanctuary. The kit includes fun stuff, serious stuff, and a little bit of home. Contact Susan Asplund at 651-762-9124 for more information.

Fight Hunger Now
Mark your calendars now for the St. Paul CROP Hunger Walk on Sunday, Oct. 12.  CROP Hunger Walks help children and families worldwide – and right here in the U.S. – to have food for today, while building for a better tomorrow. Each year some two million CROP Walkers, volunteers, and sponsors put their hearts and soles in motion, raising over $16 million per year to help end hunger and poverty around the world, and in their own communities. For more information, visit CropWalk.

New Times…New Volunteers Needed!
We’ve opened up the entire first floor of the Sanctuary at the 11 a.m. service in anticipation of additional worshippers.  Be part of this exciting ministry by joining an 11 a.m. Usher Team.  Even if you don’t usually attend the last service, please prayerfully consider seizing this opportunity to SERVE!  We need four more ushers per week to remove the ropes and we have five teams…that’s an additional 20 ushers needed! 

Some Have ‘Great’ness Thrust Upon Them!
Join one of our Great Hall Worship Volunteer Teams.  Experience the joy of serving as an usher or communion server at one of the contemporary worship services in the Great Hall: The Gathering Saturdays at 5 p.m. (ongoing) and The Current Sundays at 9:45 a.m. (starting Sept. 14). We place our volunteers on teams that serve just once every five weeks.  The rewards are “out of this world!” Contact Joan McCormick at 651-762-9132 to learn more about using your gifts at St. Andrew’s in one of these critical areas.

Music Series Volunteers
A great opportunity to try ushering!  No experience necessary! We welcome Confirmation students, individuals or families. Ushers and First Response volunteers are needed for:
Minnesota Orchestra Concert, Sunday, Oct. 12, at 4 p.m.
U of M Band with organ, Friday, Oct. 24, at 7:30 p.m.
Bill’s Tricks and Treats with the Mighty Organ, Thursday, Oct. 30, at 6:30 p.m.
To sign-up, or for more information, contact Terese Almquist at 651-762-9132.