859-263-5304 office@walnuthillchurchky.org 575 Walnut Hill Rd., Lexington, KY 40515

Missions & Outreach

SPECIAL UPDATE!

THANK YOU, WALNUT HILL CHURCH

Our Brenda Cowan Elementary School Backpack Ministry program is fully funded for the 2023-24 school year! Together, we raised enough to supply at least 50 children with food next year with donations totaling more than $11,000 in five months.

Please view this special message of thanks from Brenda Cowan Elementary School’s Principal, Joshua Williams.

Missions & Outreach

Walnut Hill Church’s (WHC) life and ministry, as supported by congregational giving, enables the church to continue to demonstrate God’s love through programs and outreach while maintaining and improving its buildings and grounds.

In the past year, there was an 18% increase in charitable donations from 2022, which included over $16,000 to support Ukraine, and another $16,000 to support local Lexington and Kentucky causes.  WHC provided funding for children’s programs including the Brenda Cowan Elementary School Backpack Ministry; The Nathaniel Mission’s Summer camps and Giving Tree; and the Kids Cancer Alliance.

Other missions where WHC made its mark were in providing over $4,000 in relief following the Kentucky floods in the summer of 2022, $2,000 to food insecurity efforts, and over $3,000 to aid those in need, including an Afghan refugee family relocating to Lexington.

Below are just a few of the outreach programs in which WHC takes part annually.

Brenda Cowan Elementary School

BCES is a local school in the WHC neighborhood/community. WHC supports the school on a recurring basis by providing school supplies, financial assistance for field trips, and through its Backpack Ministry.

  • Backpack Ministry – WHC began its work with the Backpack Ministry when the doors of Brenda Cowan Elementary School opened in 2019. The program works to provide low-income elementary school-age children and their families with nutritious food during weekends. In 2022, 225 out of a total of 535 students (nearly 42%) were identified as such.  Volunteers currently gather twice a month to assemble the backpacks to be delivered to the school for the children.

This year (2022-23) WHC has supplied 40-50 backpacks for BCES children every week through its partnership with God’s Pantry. An estimate of over $7,000 is raised by Walnut Hill each year to support this mission. Fundraising efforts are already in motion to support this program for the 2023-24 school year.

  • School Supplies – Walnut Hill gathers and purchases supplies for Brenda Cowan Elementary School children at the beginning of the school year. This year’s supplies included scissors, markers, crayons, folders, and headphones.
  • Field Trips – On occasion, WHC has been asked for, and has provided financial support to assist children without the financial resources for expenses related to extracurricular field trips, which enhance their educational experience outside of the classroom.

Nathaniel Mission

The Nathaniel Mission seeks to transform the city of Lexington and the lives of neighbors through investing in acts of generosity, service, support, and love.  For over 75 years, The Nathaniel Mission has been a partner in the work of restoring dignity and honor to those marginalized and overlooked in urban Lexington.  WHC provides support to the following programs at the Nathaniel Mission.

  • Summer Camps – Walnut Hill provides materials and monetary support for area children from kindergarten to fifth grade to attend summer camps where they spend time reading, making crafts, conducting STEM experiments, and engaging in physical activity.
  • Thanksgiving Stuffing – Walnut Hill provides Thanksgiving stuffing/dressing and volunteers for The Nathaniel Mission’s annual community Thanksgiving Dinner, which typically serves 150 guests.
  • Giving Tree – The Nathaniel Mission organizes “The Giving Tree” each Christmas. This program provides gifts and clothing for local Lexington children of low-income families for the holidays. Walnut Hill typically sponsors ten or more children annually.

Lexington CROPWalk

Walnut Hill children, youth, and adults participate in this annual fall event to support The Church World Services in providing life-saving support like emergency food along with seeds, tools, and programs that help families feed themselves in the future. WHC sponsors each of its volunteer walkers and raises individual donations. The Walnut Hill team raised $1,295 in 2022 and was recognized as the “Organization with the Most Participants.”

Sandwich Ministry

WHC has provided volunteers for the Catholic Action Center’s Sandwich Ministry every fourth Sunday of the month since June 2011. This volunteer opportunity involves gathering supplies, preparing 75-100 sandwiches, and delivering them to the Catholic Action Center for dispersal to community members in need.

One Great Hour of Sharing

WHC encourages its congregation to participate in “One Great Hour of Sharing” to benefit the Presbyterian Disaster Assistance, Presbyterian Hunger, and Self-Development of People programs during Lent. This mission asks members to place an offering container on their regular household dining table, and at the main meal of the day, for each family member to contribute a coin to the container. Some households build on this practice by including different countries in their table prayers or even using the occasion to learn about countries in other parts of the world. Offering containers are returned to Walnut Hill on Easter Sunday and added to that day’s special offering to support the above-mentioned programs.

Walnut Hill Church Bike Ride

WHC hosts the Bluegrass Cycling Club group rides as well as a family fun ride, followed by brunch at the church in early fall. The church coordinates with local government and police to temporarily close Walnut Hill Road for this event. There is no charge for the ride or brunch, however voluntary donations are accepted. All money raised by the event is contributed to improve the local Lexington Community; recent recipients have included Greenhouse17, a non-profit that supports families impacted by domestic violence, Brenda Cowan Elementary School to fund children’s field trips and Teacher Appreciation Gifts, and Kentucky Refugee Ministries.

Scouts

WHC has an ongoing relationship with several local Scout troops that use the fire circle and outdoor areas for overnight camping and other events. The church also benefitted from Scout service projects.

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