Serve Your Community
Jesus said, ‘For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.
…‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did it to me.’ —Matthew 25:35,36,40
Jesus’ words from Matthew teach us that Christ’s face can be seen any time we humble ourselves enough to put the needs of anyone else above our own. Not only do we help others, we deepen our own spirituality, and we ourselves are changed.
Harris County BackSnacks
BackSnacks helps fight food insecurity in Harris County by providing bags of food for weekends and school holidays for children who live in food-insecure environments.
Volunteers work together to recruit others, raise funds, buy food, pack bags, and deliver to local schools. Many of our volunteers come from the High School Gay-Straight Alliance (GSA).
You can help by volunteering your time, providing food, or making a financial contribution.
Chattahoochee Valley Episcopal Ministry (CVEM)
St. Nicholas is a partnering parish with CVEM, supporting its mission to proclaim the Good News of God in Christ by engaging Episcopalians and our neighbors in the Chattahoochee Valley to learn, connect, and act to fight inequity and build strong communities.
CVEM provides direct aid, empowerment, and advocacy to God’s people in need in the area.
Since 2020 St Nicholas is represented on the CVEM’s Striving for Justice Team which conducts open monthly discussions on a spectrum of timely social justice issues.
ONE Harris County
In 2016 a group of St. Nicholas parishioners and other Harris County citizens met at the church guided by our rector, Father Jeff Jackson, to form an organization designed to build relationships across racial lines, foster community, and provide support and promote opportunities for all individuals in the Harris County community regardless of race, faith, culture, or gender. This informal organization became ONE Harris County.
ONE Harris County has conducted Racial Trustbuilding trainings mentored by Troup Racial Trustbuilding. Along with Gilbert family descendants and the Center for Civil Rights and Restorative Justice of Northeastern University, St. Nicholas parishioners helped co-sponsor a memorial to 1949 lynching victim, Henry “Peg” Gilbert.
St. Nicholas is currently partnering with the City of Hamilton, the Equal Justice Initiative (Montgomery, AL) and a number of other local organization to create a memorial park and marker to the eight (known) people who were lynched in Harris County over an 81-year period.
Under Father Jeff Jackson’s leadership a fruitful partnership was begun with Christian Valley, an African American church in our county. We participate in pulpit swaps twice a year and partner on other events such as the first Juneteenth Celebration in Harris County. We also participate with Christian Valley in the popular Martin Luther King Day Parade and tailgating event held annually.
