Christ the Redeemer helped the local community and the Detroit area during their annual St. Nicholas Day Project.

Once again, the rise in Covid caused the church to pause, pivot and re-evaluate how to safely serve those in need. They had almost 400 volunteers, with some doing multiple jobs, for a total of more than 750 volunteer hours for all the projects.

Some of the projects included: filling 1,500 bags with candy, which were distributed to children in the Detroit Metro area; packing boxes and helping deliver food at Lighthouse, Gleaners in Detroit and Forgotten Harvest.

Projects that could be done at home with families included: making fleece blankets for Care House in Pontiac, decorating and packing snack bags for the Song and Spirit Institute of Peace in Berkley, writing 500 letters to the troops overseas, baking 36 dozen Christmas cookies which were donated to our first responders and the teens of the Oxford High tragedy that gathered the Legacy Center.

More than 700 gifts were purchased from their Giving Tree Tags, to benefit Lighthouse of Clarkston, St. Dominic’s Outreach in Detroit and Oakland County’s Children’s Village.

The biggest project was distributing approximately 3,000 fliers to area neighborhoods collecting personal hygiene and household supplies for CCTR, Catholic Community Response Team in Pontiac, and Ladies of Charities St. Vincent De Paul of Oakland County’s Food Pantry.

In this time of uncertainty and in the wake of a terrible community tragedy, Christ the Redeemer community continues to move toward the light, spreading hope and a helping hand to those most in need. — Karen Swietlik

Photos provided by Christ the Redeemer Church

Online: www.ctredeemer.org