St. Alphonsus Parish is Committed to Service

The St. Alphonsus Parish community truly embraces the Redemptorist mission to serve the poor and most abandoned in our wounded world. The entire parish is proud to serve all people – no matter their race, religion, ethnicity, background political beliefs or lifestyle – with a wide range of ministries.

Maintaining dignity is the guiding principle of the outreach ministry. For example, instead of simply handing out bags of groceries, the Food & Clothing Pantry is set up like a store. The clothing is clean and displayed on racks.

The food is arranged on shelves. People are given a colored chart based on their family size, and then they are allowed to shop in the store and select their own items. One of everyone’s favorite ministries is the Christmas Toy Store. Those that qualify register for a time slot and are given a certain dollar amount up to which they can spend, based upon their income and the size of their family.

Gifts appropriate for infants through teens are priced at 10 percent of retail, and cover the entire gym and cafeteria. Shoppers select gifts for their children and pay for them, giving them the sense of dignity they deserve. Michelle Hatfield, director of the Social Concerns Ministry, also has worked very hard to establish good relationships with neighborhood churches and organizations, as well as local companies. Meijer, a supercenter chain with local headquarters, donates tens of thousands of dollars every year, and even sends a team to staff the Christmas Toy Store for a day.

Fr. Rick Potts, pastor, shares some components of the parish outreach ministry:

-Food & Clothing Pantry: About 800 people served each month.

-Food Truck: About 100 families served each month.

-Baby Layette Program: Each newborn receives a basket filled with baby items and a baby quilt made by parishioners.

The numbers vary, but have increased since the pandemic, which also led to the shutdown of several smaller churches and organizations that did not have the people or resources to continue. Several have offered to support our programs. One faith community provides us with all the diapers we need, which numbered more than 1,300 last year.

-Blood Drives: Quarterly blood drives, each averaging more than 16 donors, are conducted with the assistance of the Knights of Columbus.

-On their Journey: Homeless numbers vary greatly, but there are a significant number of homeless not far from the church. After asking several of them how they thought we might help them, we put together backpacks containing things they can carry, like socks, underwear, toiletries, snacks and a few other basic needs.

-Christmas in July: Parishioners donate personal care items to help re-stock Food Pantry shelves.

-Thanksgiving Meals: The parish serves around 700 low-income seniors a holiday meal, delivered on Thanksgiving morning.

-VITA Tax Program: About 1000 low-income people are provided with free tax-preparation. The total refunds this year exceeded $1 million.

-Mission Team: A parish group travels to a different destination each year to complete various projects. They went to the South to help after several recent hurricanes. This last year they stayed in the area and worked with Habitat for Humanity on home construction and repair in Baldwin, the poorest area in Michigan. The parish has established a relationship with Baldwin and makes regular deliveries of clothing and food. A group of parishioners are returning to work with Habitat for Humanity later this year, and the parish is continuing to look for ways to offer assistance.

-Emergency Assistance: In addition to many generous parishioners, other churches, organizations and companies provide support for Emergency Assistance. We have helped people pay rent and utilities, and have paid for motel stays for some of our homeless neighbors. The local Redemptorist community has even lent the front parlor of the rectory to a family during a few cold nights.

-Back to School: This was the first year offering a specific school program, providing nearly 300 children with new backpacks, school supplies, socks, underwear and other clothing items.

-Christmas Toy Store: As previously mentioned, this popular annual event is a favorite of the entire community.

THE GREATER COMMUNITY

-Supper House: Parish facilities are offered to this local hot meal program, and parishioners volunteer to staff it once a month.

-Kibble Konnection: Thanks to the parish’s reputation, the Humane Society of West-Michigan sought a partnership to help pet owners. Low-income people can get pet food and have vets check the health of their pets. People were lined up down the block hours before this event opened.

-Kids Food Basket: Co-founded by a parishioner when she was in college (now she’s the CEO), this program provides fresh produce from her farm to help stock our pantry. When the schools were closed, Kids Food Basket provided bag lunches every afternoon for the neighborhood children, who would otherwise not have had a meal.

-Catherine’s Health: This organization started in the basement of the church. The program outgrew that location, moved to the recently vacated school building, and has since grown so much it now has three locations throughout the county.

SENIOR PROGRAMS

-Young at Heart: A senior program funded by the county meets at the parish twice a week. Br. Leo Patin is active in this ministry, which has and continues to host programs throughout the year to keep seniors active and involved.

-Calvin University Nursing Students: Every month, nursing students offer free services, including blood pressure and sugar level checks, along with other health resources like vaccinations.

-Zumba Classes: The YMCA provides free classes each week. St. Alphonsus Parish is always exploring ways to meet other needs in the community.

Programs currently in various stages of planning and development include: Budgeting Classes, Healthy Cooking Classes, Mental Health Services, Parenting Classes (also for foster and adoptive parents), and Poverty Simulation Classes, which will help people better understand what it means for the poor to live in our wounded world.

North American Conference of Redemptorists

Washington, DC

St. Alphonsus Parish is Committed to Service