Voting Options for 2023 Service

Ways We Can Serve as a Group

Read through the entire list.  Choose the top 20 ways you would like to serve as a group.  Send the numbers of your choices to me by Wednesday, March 1.  I will tally all votes and send top ten ways to serve as a group by Friday, March 3.  Then we will discuss planning and organizing actual service by month.  

1. Cook and serve a meal at a shelter or soup kitchen.
2. Cook and serve a meal at a school or college.
3. Make and distribute food baskets as a group and distribute to needy families on a special occasion (Easter).
4. Sponsor/Organize a food drive.
5. Volunteer as a group at The Food Depot.
6. Have a potluck after the 4:00 Mass at Cristo Rey where all can gather (fed and unfed) and share a meal. 
7. Partner with Cross Catholic Outreach and Knights of Columbus Box of Joy ministry (see crosscatholic.org).
8. Partner with Cross Catholic Outreach and Knights for food packing programs.
9. Raise money to send to a charity that serves the poor in the world.
10. Support St. Vincent de Paul in a specific way or case to provide for a family.
11. Collect and distribute reusable water bottles to the homeless.
12. Identify a place in the world with a specific program (World Vision) to provide clean water and support their efforts.  Support ministries that drill for clean water in remote areas so fresh water is available always.  Support the various organizations that bring drinking water to areas that don’t have basic drinking water. Donate to organizations that build wells.
13. Raise money to give to shelters on the U.S./Mexico border//organizations that help those crossing the desert.
14. Have a one day community clothes closet (parishioners bring clean gently use clothes), where anyone can come and take what they need, with extras donated to Salvation Army or other organization.
15. Support organizations I.E. Knights of Columbus who provide new jackets to the most needy families in our communities.
16. Have a clothing drive for children, and donate clothes to schools.  Have sock drive to donate to homeless.  Shoe drive for homeless.  Organize a clothing drive for a particular type of clothing , needed by a particular group.  Clothing drive for adults, donations made to St. E’s, Lifelink, Esperanza, etc. 
17. Help sort clothes at a clothing donation center.
18. Blanket drive. Collect and donate blankets, pillows and bedding to shelters.
19. Toiletry drive for homeless.
20. Find out what local shelters need and start a collection for those items or services.
21. Plan a day to give manicures and facials to homeless women.
22. Have a walk-a-thon to raise funds for shelters.
23. Do an art or music activity with shelter residents.
24. Volunteer as a group with Habitat for Humanity.
25. Plan a Bible devotional for residents at a homeless shelter.
26. Help with the expansion of shelter with women.
27. Host a community building activity in our parishes.  Plan an organized activity where parishioners can come together to get to know each other better. 
28. Assist SFPS Adelante Program for homeless kids.
29. Donate time as a group to help at shelter in whatever way needed. Support our local shelters by donating your time, feeding, organizational help, operational help.
30. Raise money for an aid organization that relieves poverty abroad.
31. Collect balls, games, to donate to border organizations that help immigrants.
32. Support Catholic Charities services to immigrants.
33. Plan a couple hours to do arts and crafts at a nursing home.
34. Help decorate at nursing home on a special occasion.
35. Have a mini wellness retreat at a nursing home with prayer, music, art, yoga, dance.
36. Decorate a unit at the hospital.
37. Read to children at the hospital.
38. Choose a day to an art or craft activity with children at the hospital.
39. Read the Bible to patients at the hospital.
40. Ask Deacon Martin how we can do a day of service to support the ministry of Servant of the Heart.
41. Provide transportation to those in need.
42. Lobby for medication for the mentally ill.
43. Take communion to the sick or homebound.
44. Volunteer at VTCC medical clinic.
45. Visit the sick communicate with family members of the sick to establish turn taking
46. Make care packages for people living in an institution type setting.
47. Arrange an afternoon to play board games with people in nursing homes.
48. Make and send cards to the elderly in nursing homes.
49. Go in teams of two to visit people in nursing homes.
50. Do a walkathon to raise money for St. Jude’s
51. Write letters to children at Saint Jude’s
52. Organize a healing mass.
53. Do a mini wellness retreat with prayer, music, art, and yoga at the prison.
54. Plan a day to write greeting cards for Christmas and Easter to send out to prisoners.
55. Pray rosary, and distribute rosaries to inmates.
56. Have a book drive (and other reading material) and donate to the prison. 
57. Collect spiritually inspiring cards and small religious items for prisoners.
58. Raise money for an organization that advocates for those on death row.
59. Make and send care packages to prisoners (I do not think this would be allowed).
60. See how we can get involved in prison ministry.
61. Have a workshop for making remembrance/memory journals for loved ones who have passed.
62. See how we can get involved in a funeral ministry.
63. Plan a day to visit the cemetery to clean headstones.
64. Organize cleanup days at our local cemeteries.
65. Have an end of life planning workshop.
66. Plan and lead a prayer service to remember souls that have passed in our parish over the past year (This is done at CBSFA at All Souls Day Mass).
67. Have workshop-Treasures on bury and mourn the dead.
68. Plan a day to help clean up a trail.
69. Plan a day to volunteer with Friends of the Santa Fe River.
70. Volunteer as a group with Keep Santa Fe Beautiful on a monthly litter clean up. Plan a day to pick up trash in our community. Clean certain areas of our town that have not been kept up.
71. Volunteer a few hours as a group at the Santa Fe Humane Society.
72. Volunteer a few hours as a group at Kindred Spirits Animal Sanctuary.
73. Volunteer a few hours as a group at the New Mexico Horse Rescue.
74. Volunteer to work a few hours as a group in a community garden.
75. Volunteer to clean up grounds, grotto and gardens at Santo Niño Regional Catholic School.
76. Do a presentation at our parish on conservation.
77. Host information tables after Mass to put these responsibilities forward (care for creation).
78. Teach people to garden and compost (workshop).
79. That we advocate for, as a parish group, legislative efforts that impact this call to protect creation.
80. Host a faith focused social activity.
81. Have mini retreats on different faith topics.
82. Have spiritual growth groups.
83. Organized small groups for prayer.
84. Hold prayer sessions regularly and rosaries for special intentions.
85. Have a Bible Study.  Offer a Bible study during the week. Have Bible study sessions on weekends. Have a Bible study through Zoom. Have a Bible study semiannually.
86. Have a religious/spiritual topic Book Club.
87. Take an afternoon to read Bible stories and do related crafts with children at Santo Niño. 
88. Show religious movies and invite people from the parish.
89. Host speakers on different faith subjects.
90. Distribute holy cards/prayer cards/encouragement tracts after Mass.
91. Provide opportunities , programs, activities for healing , reflection, and repentance. 
92. Offer a Grief Retreat once a year in the month of November.
93. Work with grief ministry at church for special prayer service.
94. Hold grieving sessions periodically.
95. Hold sessions to discuss our faith and answer questions. 
96. Provide follow-up speakers to go with literature.
97. Meet with chaplains (prison) to identify a need and schedule prayer groups, gospel reading.
98. Have a prayer service at cemetery on All Soul’s Day.
99. Have a candlelight rosary at the cemetery in November.
100. Bring more opportunities for Adoration in our churches.
101. During the month of November collect the names of those who have died, display them         prominently in the church.
102. Create intercessory prayer groups.
103. Get priests involved in meeting parishioners. Engage the pastors and deacons and participating in the ministries.
104. Organize oh tree to call (sick?) daily.
105. Compile lists of the dead for us all to hold in prayer.
106. Support weekly rosary every Saturday that is conducted by Knights of Columbus.
107. Mixed bowling leagues   
108. Retired priests birthday parties
109. Monthly lunch/dinners/breakfast get-togethers    
110. Monthly card game get=togethers
111. Drop off center for our monthly missalettes.  
112. Organized get together with our local nuns.  
113. Nursey home spring planting and tending garden day.  
114. Support for local seminarians  ie  letters & cards, news of their interest, holiday remembrances.