LOCAL COMMUNITY OUTREACH
For our church, this is an opportunity to live out our faith in a way that is visible, practical, and rooted in love. For families under strain, a meal can mean relief and one less burden to carry. This isn’t just an event…it’s a moment of alignment. When the church moves together, something powerful happens.
impacting local communities
*To give by check, please write “DT-Meal Packing” in the memo.
Feeding Communities. Strengthening Hope.
Food is about more than nourishment…it’s a sign of care and provision. From shared tables to loaves multiplied, Scripture reminds us that when God moves through His people, hunger is met with compassion and abundance.
Across our Eastside communities, many families are carrying the weight of rising costs, limited resources, and increasing uncertainty. In these moments, the simple, tangible act of providing a meal becomes a powerful reminder: We see you. We value you. We’re with you.
This summer, Local Compassion is stepping into God’s calling to feed the hungry in a bold and collective way:
WE ARE PACKING 1 MILLION MEALS!
“And all the believers met together in one place and shared everything they had…with those in need.” Acts 2:44-45 (NLT)
The Need
Across all communities, our local partners are seeing families struggle to keep up with the cost of daily life. Housing pressures, disruptions to work, and broader community challenges have left many households stretching limited resources further than ever before. Our partners are deeply embedded in their neighborhoods and one of the most immediate, practical, and dignifying ways we can support their work is by placing meals directly into the hands of those they serve.
How We Are Responding
As we launch into two full months of mobilizing our church to Unleash Compassion, Eastside will kick off Summer of Serving by hosting a large-scale Meal Packing initiative across all of our campuses.
Together, we will pack 1 MILLION MEALS that will be distributed through our local partner agencies and returned to the very communities where we live and serve. This is a massive, coordinated effort requiring months of planning, hundreds of volunteers to support the Local Compassion team, and nearly 5,000 Eastsiders to come together and pack meals. And it doesn’t end there! Teams will carefully deliver each box of meals to local partners, ensuring families have immediate access when it matters most.
What Your Generosity Makes Possible
The cost to pack and distribute one million meals – including ingredients, supplies, logistics, and professional support from our meal-packing partners – requires an investment of $280,000.
With your generosity, we will:
● Equip thousands of volunteers to participate in a hands-on act of compassion
● Provide nourishing meals that local partners can distribute immediately
● Strengthen the capacity of organizations serving high-need communities
● Launch the largest Summer of Serving our church has ever experienced
Why This Matters
This isn’t just an event…it’s a moment of alignment. When the church moves together, something powerful happens. Hands pack meals. Communities are fed. Hope is restored.
For families under strain, a meal can mean relief and one less burden to carry. For our church, it is an opportunity to live out our faith in a way that is visible, practical, and rooted in love. As we begin this Summer of Serving, meal packing becomes our shared first step: An outward expression of the heart of Jesus, who met people’s needs and invited others to do the same.
Together, we can help ensure that when families gather around a table this summer, they do so knowing they are supported, remembered, and cared for.
“Feed the hungry, and help those in trouble. Then your light will shine out from the darkness, and the darkness around you will be as bright as noon. The Lord will guide you continually, giving you water when you are dry and restoring your strength. You will be like a well-watered garden, like an ever-flowing spring.” Isaiah 58:10-11 (NLT)
