Local Missions

We wholeheartedly serve in the name of Jesus:
We share the burdens of others in our midst and around the world.

Allentown Community Good Neighbor Fund

The Allentown Community Good Neighbor Fund is a mission of the entire community of Allentown and its churches. Our aim is to provide emergency financial assistance to those in severe distress due to monthly utilities, rent, and medical bills, and unexpected expenses.
The Good Neighbor Fund is distributed through the Church office at the Allentown Presbyterian Church, 20 High Street, Allentown NJ.

In need of assistance? Stop by during office hours or contact Courtney Stover at courtney@allentownpresbyterian.org or 609-259-7289.

Allentown Community Food Pantry

The Allentown Community Food Pantry desires to be the hands and feet of the church of Jesus Christ. Our primary mission is to follow the example of Jesus by serving local neighbors in need. One of the largest food pantries in the county, it is located in the lower level of the APC Cornell House. Open on Mondays and Wednesdays from 10:00 - 2:00pm.

The pantry accepts food from the FoodBank of Monmouth and Ocean Counties as well as individual donations. Members are encouraged to make food and/or cash donations. Cash donations allow the food pantry to take advantage of large discounts offered by the FoodBank to buy bulk food for an average of 18 cents a pound. The pantry is open to any individual or family who is experiencing financial hardship and finding it difficult to buy groceries. The pantry is run by about 28 amazing regular serving volunteers.

In 2023, our amazing volunteers received, stocked, and distributed over 100,000 pounds of food. They served approximately 4,200 families,
a 40% increase from 2022! They saw a record number of clients coming to our pantry.

Questions? Contact Lisa Boss at lisamsellers@hotmail.com or Sandy Carduner at sanduner@optonline.net

Seeds of Faith Garden

The Seeds of Faith Garden was created with the vision of helping those in need locally. The purpose of the Seeds of Faith Garden is: to address hunger needs by providing fresh, organic produce to the community through the APC Food Pantry; to provide an opportunity for the community of all ages to participate in a local mission; and to provide agricultural education to the children and youth of our community. They typically grow about 1500 lbs of vegetables and fruit a season, which is picked fresh the mornings the food pantry is open. This supplements all the other donations of food provided by the community and the scouts. The scouts have also contributed to the food pantry with Eagle Scout construction projects; an irrigation system, the permanent trellises for beans, the gate and sign and more. They rely totally on volunteers to plant, maintain and pick the produce. Interested in helping? Contact Ingrid Kowalski at 609-610-1472.

HomeFront

Since its inception over 20 years ago, HomeFront has worked to break the cycle of poverty and end homelessness in Central New Jersey. HomeFront utilizes all segments of the community to accomplish its mission of providing comprehensive programs which enable formerly homeless families to become independent, contributing members of the community. APC works with HomeFront each year to provide families with everything from food, goods and services to assistance in locating jobs and housing. Our congregation supports families through children’s backpack and Christmas drives, monthly High School fellowship/mentoring visits, ROCK caring kids’ projects, linens, home goods, clothes and furniture, as well as financial support throughout the year. Together, we are trying to break the cycle of poverty in the area. We pray continued support for these families in need. To learn more about Homefront check out their website www.homefrontnj.org.
Questions? Contact Mary Beth Drew at 5drews@optonline.net

North Clinton Church of Christ

North Clinton Ave meal mission, which provides midday sit-down and take-out meals every second Saturday of the month to families and individuals in need in the Trenton area. We volunteer to help cook and serve the meals. After the North Clinton Church lost other sponsors during the COVID-19 pandemic, we at APC doubled the number of meals we support from 4 to 8 so that those meals could continue. In 2020 a food “Blessing” box program was started to supplement basic food needs and has continued into 2024. This year, we will also be partnering with the North Clinton Church Benevolence Project to launch a Children’s Summer Lunch Program which will feed 50 children a week for 4 weeks in the Trenton area. Questions or looking to get involved? Contact Mike De Ieso 610-730-9036.

Urban Promise Trenton

Urban Promise Trenton provides urban youth and teens a chance to believe in and build a positive future by providing the skills necessary for academic achievement, life management, spiritual growth, and Christian leadership. This is achieved through after-school and summer
academic programs, tutoring, leadership training, college and secondary education tuition support, and community partnerships.

We partner with UPT by sponsoring a deserving student with a modest tuition grant towards their education. In addition, Crossroads Youth Ministry and some UPT leaders and members have gathered together for various events and are currently exploring ways to partner in potential community service and leadership opportunities.

Trenton Rescue Mission

The Trenton Rescue Mission Food Pantry is located inside the The Misson’s Thrift Store and opened after the pandemic. They began seeing many new people that needed clothes, and confided that they were struggling to put food on their tables. The harsh reality is that nearly one out of every two children under the age of 6 in Trenton is living below the poverty line. The Food Pantry is open Monday, Wednesday and Friday and everyone is welcome!