First Presbyterian Church, Portland Oregon

Looking for a way to get involved in our community? Check out the needs for volunteering with our partners at Friendly House! Here are a few that are currently in need and coming up soon!

- Every other Friday, volunteers pick up food from Milk Crate Kitchen in NE Portland and deliver it back to Friendly House. This is a great opportunity for a regular volunteer who can get to know the procedure and the staff at MCK!

- Volunteers are needed for berry picking and jam making the week of July 7-10! Jam-making volunteers need a Food Handler's Card, which is only $10 and can be obtained online (Need help with this? Contact Friendly House!).

- Friendly Visitor: This is an ongoing program where a volunteer meets with a senior in need. This is a longer-term commitment with an orientation and background check required.

Check out there and other opportunities on their website here: https://friendlyhouse.volunteerhub.com/vv2/

We love supporting our neighbors and friends throughout Portland!

Today, we celebrate Juneteenth - a day of freedom, remembrance, resilience, and hope.

Juneteenth commemorates June 19, 1865, when the last enslaved African Americans in Texas learned of their freedom, more than two years after the Emancipation Proclamation. It is a day to honor the strength, faith, creativity, and enduring contributions of Black communities whose gifts continue to enrich our nation, our churches, and our shared life together.

As followers of Christ, we also recognize we are called to pursue justice. We acknowledge our ongoing responsibility to confront racism, dismantle systems of oppression, and live into God's vision of a beloved community where every person is treated with dignity and love.

On this Juneteenth, we give thanks for Black history, culture, and leadership. We commit ourselves anew to the work of antiracism, reconciliation, and justice, trusting that the Spirit continues to guide us toward freedom for all.

"Let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream." — Amos 5:24