Grace South Bay exists to…
GO out to live for a story bigger than ourselves.
We believe that Jesus sets us free FROM sin, self righteousness, and selfishness and he sets us free TO live for others; to love, serve, and help meet their needs. Since he has met all of our needs and will continue to provide for them, we are charged and changed to provide for others.
We long to see Grace as a serving church, which engages with the practical needs of the community and loves the people of San Jose.
How can you be serving your neighbors, coworkers, friends, and fellow South Bay residents?
WHERE TO VOLUNTEER
Looking to plug into compassion efforts near you? A list of suggested nonprofits with volunteering opportunities can be found here: https://bit.ly/2pqyz8V
HELP US LOVE OUR NEIGHBORS
Interested in leading a compassion effort with the church? Have questions or suggestions? Please contact Debby Chang at corina.chen@mac.com
Upcoming Compassion Opportunities
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February
Teach Me Tutoring
10:00 am — 11:30 am
11
February
Teach Me Tutoring
10:00 am — 11:30 am
18
February
Teach Me Tutoring
10:00 am — 11:30 am
25
February
Teach Me Tutoring
10:00 am — 11:30 am
Local Compassion Partnerships
Grace South Bay partners with the community to offer opportunities to love our neighbors. Below are 10 ways you can join us in our compassion ministry:
1. Volunteer to tutor kids and teens: Come tutor with us on Saturdays Sept-May from 10am-12pm in the Crossroads Bible Church building! Email corina.chen@mac.com to get started. Teach Me is a program started by a coalition of 3 San Jose churches, whose mission is to empower underserved K-12th Grade students near the Rose Glen neighborhood through personalized tutoring and education.
2. Help the homeless and recently housed families in San Jose: PATH‘s Evans Lane (a supportive tiny home community for recently homeless families with children) is looking for volunteers to host activities (art, sports, tutoring, etc). Volunteers are also needed to lead field trips to family friendly locations in San Jose to build life skills. Grace SB also hosts a Pre-Thanksgiving Dinner at Evans Lane every November. Year round, we collect full-size household items for PATH’s Villas on the Park site, as well as travel-sized toiletries and individually wrapped snacks for Hygiene and Snack Kits for PATH’s street outreach team.
3. Alleviate hunger for low-income seniors and at-risk women: Join us on the 2nd and 4th Thursdays of every month from 10am-11:30am as we partner with CityTeam to distribute groceries at Miranda Villa Senior Apartments in SJ. We also encourage cooking dinner for Heritage Home and dairy donations to House of Grace, supporting at-risk women and their young children. We partner with CityTeam San Jose for other programs targeting the homeless and low-income population throughout the year.
4. Become involved in foster care: Grace SB is an official partner church for Foster the City and encourages attendance at an FTC Interest Meeting for anyone who wants to learn more about becoming a resource parent or support friend. Foster the City is a coalition of churches that equips foster parents and support friends with the tools they need to care for at-risk children.
5. Give Christmas gifts to foster children: This Nov-Dec, join our Help One Child Giving Tree and pick out a wishlist to provide an at-risk child or youth with a Christmas gift of their choice. Help One Child’s mission is to recruit, train and support those willing to provide a home or volunteer services to at-risk children, including those in the foster care system.
6. Provide home repair for low-income neighbors: This April on our annual Spring Rebuilding Day, come with Grace SB to help paint a home for a local low-income resident. We partner with Rebuilding Together Silicon Valley, which provides renovation and repair services for the nation’s most vulnerable homeowners.
7. Support Afghan refugee families in the Bay Area: We partner with the International Refugee Committee in San Jose to donate items for refugee families new to the San Jose and Fremont areas. Furniture is in high demand, as well as volunteers with large vans or trucks that can coordinate and deliver donated furniture.
8. Be a Budget Coach: Those called to help others steward their money can consider being a budget coach with Love INC’s Comprehensive Transformational Ministry program. You’ll be paired with a participant to offer both financial and spiritual mentorship.
9. Donate kids items to at-risk children: Join us for a Kids Resource Drive this summer benefiting KAFPA (Kinship Adoptive Foster Parent Association). You can also donate kids items any time of the year by dropping off donations directly to their office. KAFPA serves over 500 families and 1600 of Santa Clara county’s most vulnerable children.
10. Volunteer at summer camp for families living with disabilities: Members of our congregation have volunteered at Joni and Friends’ Family Retreat in the Santa Cruz hills each summer as short term missionaries. Joni and Friends provides outreach to families impacted by disability.