By Betty Cooney as reported by Pastor Luis R. Peņa
On the mornings of two major holidays—Thanksgiving and Mother’s Day—Hollywood Spanish Church members are busily working on their first holiday meal of the day at the church.
For the past two Thanksgivings, the church has distributed meal invitation flyers to the community and urged members to invite friends and relatives.
The special outreach begins with an 8:30 a.m. Thanksgiving service, followed by a complete breakfast and fellowship time. Afterward, guests receive bags of groceries for their families.
Around 60 community visitors and 400 members attended the 2003 Thanksgiving breakfast, the largest holiday attendance to date. “With a larger crowd than we expected, the cooks ran out of some breakfast items,” says Pastor Luis R. Peña. “But they retrieved containers of potato salad from the bags of food to be given to the visitors when they departed, and added it to the breakfast plates!” Pathfinders added to the festive occasion by preparing large baskets of fruit and special food items for the visitors.
The food ministry continues throughout the year, according to Peña. “Each week some of our members go to a special outlet to pick up food items that we give away," he explains. "After Wednesday evening prayer meetings, we invite the 15 or 20 visitors who regularly attend to pick up food to take home with them.” The guests come to the church in response to personal invitations from members.
On Mother’s Day, church members hand out a flyer with a coupon that visitors can bring to the church to receive special gifts. They attend a Mother’s Day service first, then have breakfast and receive gifts and food items.
A visitation team follows up on holiday programs by visiting the homes of individuals who handed in coupons to receive gifts. “When we visit them, we ask if there is anything we can do to be of service,” says Peña. “Some community residents have requested marital counseling or help with teen problems; some ask for Bible studies. We praise the Lord that about three persons have been baptized as a result of the holiday outreach programs.”
