9-24-26

Weekly Food Pantry Report

•
September 24, 2026

2 Minute Read

Thank you, Blue Sky Community Garden!

This week's food pantry served 72 families representing 219 individuals. We distributed 112 bags of food and welcomed 4 new families. We were blessed by the helping hands of 16 volunteers.

I'm excited this week to highlight a long-standing mission partner: Blue Sky Community Garden! For a decade, Blue Sky has grown and shared fresh, organic produce with local neighbors in need through Advent's Food Pantry, all while educating our community on sustainable gardening and healthy eating. We are so grateful for every volunteer who makes this ministry possible. This past Saturday, I had the privilege of joining them as they received a $5,000 Wellness Across the Lifetime Grant from the Sprouts Healthy Communities Foundation! This grant will help expand their crop yield, grow their volunteer base, and broaden their impact. Thank you, Blue Sky!

Paul's letter to the Philippians holds up a simple but demanding picture of life together: look not only to your own interests, but to the interests of others. That's what a Thursday at our pantry looks like. Neighbors in the drive-through line are met by people who have set aside their evening to make sure someone else's family has enough. It isn't done for recognition. It comes from the same humility and care Paul saw in Christ, who emptied himself for the sake of others. We see that spirit in our volunteers who give their time, in our mission partners who share what they have, and in our supporters who give and pray without seeking anything in return. Thank you all, for so faithfully putting others first.

"Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility regard others as better than yourselves. Let each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others." — Philippians 2:3-4

Current needs:

Boxed cereal
Jelly, jam, preserves
Canned pasta / pasta-meat (e.g., Campbell's Spaghettio, Chef Boyardee,...)

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September 24, 2026 • 2 Minute Read

9-24-26

Thank you, Blue Sky Community Garden! This week's food pantry served 72 families representing 219 individuals. We distributed 112 bags of food and welcomed 4 new families. We were blessed by the helping hands of 16 volunteers. I'm excited this week to highlight a long-standing mission partner: Blue Sky Community Garden! For a decade, Blue Sky has grown and shared fresh, organic produce with local neighbors in need through Advent's Food Pantry, all while educating our community on sustainable gardening and healthy eating. We are so grateful for every volunteer who makes this ministry possible. This past Saturday, I had the privilege of joining them as they received a $5,000 Wellness Across the Lifetime Grant from the Sprouts Healthy Communities Foundation! This grant will help expand their crop yield, grow their volunteer base, and broaden their impact. Thank you, Blue Sky! Paul's letter to the Philippians holds up a simple but demanding picture of life together: look not only to your own interests, but to the interests of others. That's what a Thursday at our pantry looks like. Neighbors in the drive-through line are met by people who have set aside their evening to make sure someone else's family has enough. It isn't done for recognition. It comes from the same humility and care Paul saw in Christ, who emptied himself for the sake of others. We see that spirit in our volunteers who give their time, in our mission partners who share what they have, and in our supporters who give and pray without seeking anything in return. Thank you all, for so faithfully putting others first. "Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility regard others as better than yourselves. Let each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others." — Philippians 2:3-4 Current needs: Boxed cereal Jelly, jam, preserves Canned pasta / pasta-meat (e.g., Campbell's Spaghettio, Chef Boyardee,...)

September 17, 2026 • 2 Minute Read

9-17-26

Fresh Manna each day This week's food pantry served 83 families representing 263 individuals. We distributed 134 bags of food and welcomed 1 new family. We were blessed by the helping hands of 13 volunteers. As we close this week, I've been reflecting on the neighbors I've come to know at our pantry. What began as a weekly handoff of groceries has become something richer — conversations where people trust me with what's really going on in their lives. It's a rollercoaster of emotion: the joy of a birthday one week, the ache of a suffering loved one the next. In the wilderness, God gave manna fresh each morning — enough for that day, gathered in that moment. I've come to believe our Thursday mornings work the same way. God brings us together for that moment, and what we share is never only physical nourishment. I'm grateful for you: our volunteers, mission partners, and supporters who make these encounters possible week after week — you're providing far more than food. "When the layer of dew lifted, there on the surface of the wilderness was a fine flaky substance... Moses said to them, 'It is the bread that the LORD has given you to eat.'" — Exodus 16:14-15 Current needs: Boxed cereal Boxed Mac & Cheese Canned pasta / pasta-meat (e.g., Campbell's Spaghettio, Chef Boyardee,...)

September 10, 2026 • 2 Minute Read

9-10-26

Grace Doesn’t Keep Score This week's food pantry served 79 families representing 257 individuals. We distributed 127 bags of food and welcomed 3 new families. We were blessed by the helping hands of 17 volunteers. As we close this week, we're reminded that grace doesn't keep a running tally. When Peter asked Jesus how many times he should forgive, expecting a generous cap of seven, Jesus answered: seventy-seven times — in other words: stop counting... just keep extending grace. That's the same posture behind our pantry each Thursday: we don't track how many times a neighbor returns, or measure whether they've earned it — grace is given as often as it's needed. That same grace carries on through our volunteers, mission partners, and supporters who make this ministry possible — thank you for all you give this week! We want to acknowledge Grace Communion Melbourne Fellowship Group, faithful supporters of our pantry for many years, who will soon be closing their doors. We're deeply grateful for their generosity and hold them in prayer as they close this chapter. Their faithfulness is a reminder that grace, once given, keeps rippling outward long after — through every meal their gifts helped provide and every family they touched without ever meeting. "Lord, if another member of the church sins against me, how often should I forgive? As many as seven times?" Jesus said, "Not seven times, but, I tell you, seventy-seven times." — Matthew 18:21-22 Current needs: Boxed cereal Boxed Mac & Cheese Canned pasta / pasta-meat (e.g., Campbell's Spaghettio, Chef Boyardee,...)

September 3, 2026 • 2 Minute Read

9-3-26

God Shows up in the gathering This week's food pantry served 66 families representing 203 individuals. We distributed 106 bags of food and welcomed 1 new family. We were blessed by the helping hands of 13 volunteers. As we close this week, we're reminded that God shows up in the gathering — not just in grand moments, but in the ordinary act of people coming together for a shared purpose. Every Thursday, our pantry opens for distribution, and that promise plays out in real time: neighbors helping neighbors, hands passing bags of groceries, conversations that remind someone they're not alone. After weathering a month of rain and thunderstorms, we were grateful for clear skies this week, making distribution a little easier on everyone. Our volunteers, mission partners, and supporters each play a part in the gathering — some in distributing the harvest, others giving quietly behind the scenes, and still others lifting this ministry up in prayer. Every form of showing up matters, and we're grateful for all of yours this week. "For where two or three are gathered in my name, I am there among them." — Matthew 18:20 Current needs: Boxed cereal Boxed Mac & Cheese Canned pasta / pasta-meat (e.g., Campbell's Spaghettio, Chef Boyardee,...)

August 28, 2026 • 1 Minute Read

8-28-26

Let Love Be Genuine This week's food pantry served 74 families representing 232 individuals. We distributed 117 bags of food and welcomed 4 new families. We were blessed by the helping hands of 9 volunteers. As we close this week, Paul's words to the Romans feel like they were written for a community like ours: "Let love be genuine... extend hospitality to strangers." That's exactly what happens every week when our doors open — genuine love, made real in a bag of groceries, a warm greeting, a moment of dignity for someone who needed it. This kind of hospitality doesn't happen on its own — it's carried week after week by the hands of our volunteers, sustained by the steady generosity of our mission partners, and made possible by supporters who believe in this mission. We see genuine love lived out in every one of you. "Let love be genuine; hate what is evil, hold fast to what is good... Contribute to the needs of the saints; extend hospitality to strangers." — Romans 12:9, 13 Current needs: Boxed cereal Canned fruit

August 21, 2026 • 1 Minute Read

8-20-26

Showing Up, Rain or Shine This week's food pantry served 68 families representing 229 individuals. We distributed 111 bags of food and welcomed 3 new families. We were blessed by the helping hands of 10 volunteers. This week reminded us what it means to be built on solid rock. We weathered the storms to keep this week's pantry distribution running, and we're grateful no one who needed food went without. On top of that, earlier this week we earned a perfect score on our annual Second Harvest audit — clear evidence of the strong foundation our team and volunteers have built, week after week, through care and integrity. None of this happens without our volunteers who show up rain or shine, our mission partners who keep us stocked, and our supporters whose generosity makes it all possible. Thank you for helping us build something that holds firm, no matter what storms come. "And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it." — Matthew 16:18 Current needs: Boxed cereal Canned fruit

August 14, 2026 • 1 Minute Read

8-13-26

Even crumbs can change everything This week's food pantry served 83 families representing 256 individuals. We distributed 131 bags of food and welcomed 1 new family. We were blessed by the helping hands of 12 volunteers. As we close this week, we're reminded of the woman in this Sunday's Gospel who refused to be turned away — who believed even the crumbs from God's table were enough to change everything. That's the kind of faith our pantry ministry tries to embody: no one turned away, no need too small to matter, and grace enough for everyone who comes to us in need. We're deeply grateful for our volunteers who show up week after week, our mission partners who make this ministry possible, and our supporters whose generosity keeps our table open. Thank you all for helping us live out that faith this week. "Then Jesus answered her, 'Woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish.' And her daughter was healed instantly." — Matthew 15:28 Current needs: Boxed cereal Canned soup

August 7, 2026 • 1 Minute Read

8-06-26

Thank you! This week's food pantry served 75 families representing 247 individuals. We distributed 128 bags of food and welcomed 3 new families. We were blessed by the helping hands of 13 volunteers. I am considerably grateful for the faith partners who support and enable our ministry. This week, Suntree United Methodist Church entrusted us with over 1,000 meal items for our weekly distribution, packed by their youth groups during a Meals of Hope packing event as part of Brevard Mission Week. We also continue to faithfully receive weekly donations from St. Paul's Anglican Church and Pineda Presbyterian Church. Alongside many other faith communities and individuals, they truly make Advent's food pantry a shared community mission — and we thank God for every one of them... and each of you! "He who supplies seed to the sower and bread for food will supply and multiply your seed for sowing and increase the harvest of your righteousness. You will be enriched in every way for your great generosity, which will produce thanksgiving to God through us." — 2 Corinthians 9:10-11 Current needs: Boxed cereal Canned soup

July 31, 2026 • 1 Minute Read

7-30-26

God’s Blessings Abound This week's food pantry served 63 families representing 204 individuals. We distributed 103 bags of food and welcomed 2 new families. We were blessed by the helping hands of 16 volunteers. As we close this week, we're struck by a familiar scene: a crowd, a shortage, and disciples ready to send people away hungry. But Jesus doesn't send them away — he takes what little is offered, blesses it, and it becomes more than enough. That's the pattern we see in our own community week after week: a handful of volunteers, a stocked shelf, a few hours given — and somehow it's always enough for the families who walk through our doors. A special note of thanks to our friends at Suntree United Methodist Church for their ongoing support of our pantry and for sharing so generously from their own bounty. And to you — thank you for continuing to bring your loaves and fishes. Together, God keeps multiplying them. "They need not go away; you give them something to eat." — Matthew 14:16 Current needs: Boxed cereal Canned soup

Advent Lutheran Church is exempt from federal taxation under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986. We are classified as a church and a public charity under Section 509(a)(1).