How We Live Our Faith in Action
Trinity has a long history of Faith in Action, both through outreach and through parish care. Since the 1940s, our refugee ministry has helped settle families from Germany, Bosnia, Cuba, Liberia, Myanmar, Syria and Afghanistan. Trinty started, supported and for a long time housed the Loaves and Fishes feeding program and we supported and housed Trinty Academy, a tuition free, grade 1 -4 magnet school. Despite our decline in members and budget which limit our corporate efforts, we are still engaged in outreach through the efforts of our individual lay members who have a long personal involvement in various activities. Trinity remains committed to using its buildings and resources for service to all of God’s people.
LOCAL OUTREACH
Covenant to Care - Trinity participates in the Adopt-a-Social-Worker program of Covenant to Care for abused, neglected or at-risk Hartford children. Parishioners provide back-to-school backpacks and materials in the fall, gifts asked for by the children from our Advent Giving Tree, and other items during the year.
Church by the Pond in Bushnell Park - Several times a year, Trinity supports the Ecclesia Ministry and Church Street Eats program coordinated by Christ Church Cathedral. Our volunteers make lunches at Trinity which we offer, with personal care items, after the Eucharist at the park. Through the Cathedral, we provided personal hygiene products, not covered by food stamps, to Capital Community College students.
Greater Hartford Interfaith Action Alliance – In 2021, Trinity joined GHIAA, a coalition of 52 Christian, Jewish and Muslim organizations, which does community-based research on social justice issues in our area, organizes and trains members and lobbies CT legislature and executive branch on mutually agreed issues like gun violence, housing, mental health and education.
Refugee Resettlement – Our Refugee Resettlement Committee works with partners in several other local faith communities to resettle refugee families in the Hartford area. Working closely with Integrated Refugee and Immigration Services (IRIS), Trinity has sponsored and supported two Afghan families whose husbands had worked for the US military and one Syrian family. Members of the committee provide support in families’ day-to-day settlement activities, including school enrollment, medical care, jobs and transportation.
Several members are Connecticut Foodshare distribution volunteers and we participate in its fundraising walk and a cystic fibrosis walk. We printed Trinity T-shirts which we wear on the walks and similar events to publicize our involvement.
Trinity is a long-time member of the Asylum Hill Neighborhood Association, formed in 1997 to empower community residents and stakeholders (non-profits, churches, merchants and corporations) to improve the quality of life in Asylum Hill. Trinity has long hosted weekly 12-step AA, NA and Al-Anon group meetings.
INTERNATIONAL MINISTRIES
Five Talents, the microenterprise program of the Anglican Communion, works through the staff of local Anglican Churches in over eight countries. It helps the poorest, mostly women, save money and start small businesses, as well as providing training on literacy, basic math, trauma healing, peace building and agriculture, as needed. Trinity has supported its work in Bolivia, Rwanda and South Sudan and has sponsored requests for significant donations from our diocese’s Sustainable Development Grant fund. American Friends of the Episcopal Diocese of Jerusalem is a ministry strongly supported by parishioner donations and special occasion envelope and loose plate offerings approved by the Vestry. Our support in recent years has been for Ahli Hospital in Gaza. Parishioner donations to AFEDJ were matched from the outreach budget. We also fund it by offering Palestinian ornaments for sale in Advent.
PARISH CARE
Faith in Action at Trinity also takes the form of care for the church and parishioners. While we seek a new priest-in-charge, pastoral care has primarily taken the form of parishioners taking care of each other. We have several members who are retired priests and they have been generous in providing emergency support to the parish on a voluntary basis.
Members of our Intercessory Prayer Team are available during communion each week to pray individually with people who feel in special need of God’s healing presence. Team members meet monthly for fellowship and conversation as a means of deepening their own spiritual life. Office Volunteers assist our Administrator and Financial Manager with tasks and projects for Trinity. We also have several book groups which meet regularly. Several of our members are trained Stephen Ministers.
Our property team works with the Facilities Manager to maintain all aspects of the buildings and grounds including applying for grants and arranging work days, mowing the lawn and caring for the plantings and labyrinth in our Memorial Garden.
