Engage My City

August 2023

Engage My City is a local outreach initiative to relationally serve our city in tangible ways. Throughout the month of August, we will be highlighting areas of impact within our city and will provide opportunities to partner with organizations through volunteering. Our goal is to have deep impact through consistent involvement in the city God has placed us.

Will you engage?

Send Sunday

August 27 at 4:30PM

Outdoor Service

As we wrap up a month of serving our city, we are only just beginning! We want to encourage you to stay engaged and step into the areas where God is leading you to serve. Join us for a special outdoor service as we worship together and are commissioned to be sent out! We’ll have baptisms and Kids Ministry available (birth – 3 years). Following the service, we’ve got six food trucks joining us and plenty of activities for the whole family! Be sure to bring a chair or blanket, some money for dinner, or pack your own picnic. We’ve got water games for the kiddos, so be sure to pack them a swimsuit and a towel too. Come early, between 4:00 – 4:30 PM, for some giveaways and pre-service fun! We can’t wait to see you there!

Send Sunday will still happen rain or shine! If the weather is bad, we will move the service inside. This will be communicated on our social media platforms to let you know well in advance.

(No 9AM + 11AM gatherings/livestream)

Week 01

International House

July 30 – August 5

International House is a non-profit, non-denominational Christian organization committed to sharing the love and light of Jesus Christ with refugees and other internationals living in the Fort Wayne area. We will have the opportunity to learn more about the international community in Fort Wayne through immersive, interactive experiences and a guided prayer tour.

Learn more about International House.

Our Goal: 230 Volunteers
All Opportunities Completed
International House is a non-profit, non-denominational Christian organization committed to sharing the love and light of Jesus Christ with refugees and other internationals living in the Fort Wayne area. Recently, International House became a partner of Pine Hills Church, and we are excited to bring awareness to the work they are doing in our community during the month of Engage My City!

Most of the volunteer opportunities with International House are relationally driven and require more commitment than one week. They focus on building relationships with internationals through consistent interaction and time spent with them. International House first works to build awareness of the international community in our city and the Engage My City opportunities bring that awareness and will hopefully inspire our PHC family to engage with International House beyond the month of August!

Engage My City is all about building relationships to serve others out of a posture of care and love. In order to build relationships with internationals in our city, we first need to understand who they are and what they believe, which for many involves Islam. Visiting a local mosque is an awareness opportunity for us to build relationships with the Muslim community in Fort Wayne and learn from a local Imam about Islam. We will not be attending a service, but we will be having a conversation with the Imam to broaden our understanding of Muslims in our community. It is also an opportunity for us to step out of our comfort zone and enter into a different cultural space we usually do not enter.

Yes. Please wear pants and have your shoulders covered. Women may wear a skirt or dress as long as it is ankle-length. Shoes will be removed when entering the Mosque.
A Splash Event is a cultural immersion tour of our city which will include stops at International House, an ethnic restaurant, and a business (i.e. small store) owned by Fort Wayne Internationals. PHC individuals who are signed up for this opportunity will meet at International House and will load up in a PHC van to tour parts of our city which include our international community. You will need to bring $15-$20 for the meal, and it is kindly asked that you make a small purchase in the store we will be visiting to support the local business owner. Purchases under $10 are cash only.
Of course! We encourage you to participate as a family each week. Here is a suggested volunteer opportunity for Week 1:

  • Take your family on the self-guided prayer walk or drive around the city. You will receive the list of locations and prayer requests after you sign-up in the week leading up to our official launch of Engage My City.

Pine Hills Youth and Young Adult Ministries are involved all month long in a variety of additional opportunities during their gathering times as well. If you need help selecting the best opportunity for your family, we would love to chat with you on a Sunday morning. Find us at the sign-up tables in the lobby!

Week 02

NeighborLink

August 6-12

There are several new projects available for you, your family, or your small group to participate in together!

If you have already signed up as a volunteer with NeighborLink, log into your account and check out potential projects or sign up as a new volunteer at neighborlink.org. You can also sign up for one of our large group projects below.

Learn more about NeighborLink.

Our Goal: 230 Volunteers
All Opportunities Completed
Yes! There are a variety of projects on the NeighborLink website that include cleaning or other indoor projects. Pine Hills also has a project of taking water to various project sites during the week we are serving with NeighborLink. Simply go to pinehills.church/emc and select “NeighborLink” to sign up for delivering water bottles to project sites.
Not at all! In fact, we encourage you to check out the MANY other projects NeighborLink has in our community by visiting their website at www.nlfw.org. You can select the type of project you would like to do or even filter projects by zip code to find one in your neighborhood. Once you sign up to be a NeighborLink volunteer, you can choose any of the projects on their site. We love hearing how the PHC family is serving so make sure you let us know if you choose your own project!
Paint for the fire hydrant project can be picked up at Pine Hills Church on Sunday, August 6th before and after both services.
Of course! We encourage you to participate as a family each week. Here is a suggested volunteer opportunity for Week 2:

  • Join a large group of us on August 12th for cleaning and mulching a City Park! Or, if you have younger kids, and flexibility throughout the week, delivering water bottles to project sites could be a great fit for you and your family.

Pine Hills Youth and Young Adult Ministries are involved all month long in a variety of additional opportunities during their gathering times as well. If you need help selecting the best opportunity for your family, we would love to chat with you on a Sunday morning. Find us at the sign-up tables in the lobby!

Week 03

New Mercies Ministries

August 13-19

We will be hosting a yard sale for New Mercies Ministries on August 18 from 8:00 AM – 5:00 PM with many volunteer opportunities available. Donations can be given throughout the week and volunteers will be needed to receive, clean, sort, and organize donations in preparation for the sale.

Learn more about New Mercies Ministries.

Our Goal: 306 Volunteers
ALL OPPORTUNITIES COMPLETED

Yes! Donations can be dropped off at Pine Hills Church during the following times:

August 13 | 1-4 PM

August 14 | 9-3PM + 4-7PM

August 15 | 9-3PM + 4-7PM

We would love to accept any of your, clean, gently used home goods, furniture, and clothing. We will not be able to receive the following items: Tires, Beds, Mattresses, Pool Tables, Pianos, Paint/Chemicals, and Perishable Items.

Of course! We encourage you to participate as a family each week. Here is a suggested volunteer opportunity for each Week 3:

  • Time to go through all those old toy bins and clothing tubs from the attic. Collect gently used donation items for the New Mercies sale to drop off at Pine Hills Church during the designated collection times. Then shop the sale on Friday, August 18th with your whole family.

Pine Hills Youth and Young Adult Ministries are involved all month long in a variety of additional opportunities during their gathering times as well. If you need help selecting the best opportunity for your family, we would love to chat with you on a Sunday morning. Find us at the sign-up tables in the lobby!

Week 04

The Rescue Mission

August 20-26

The Rescue Mission, founded in 1903, is a faith-based, nonprofit organization, providing restorative care to men, women, and children experiencing a homeless crisis. Their ministry serves Fort Wayne, Allen County, and its eleven surrounding counties. We will be serving all of the meals at The Rescue Mission this week and sorting items at Treasure House, their thrift store.

Learn more about The Rescue Mission.

Our Goal: 282 Volunteers
70 Opportunities Available
Volunteers must wear loose-fitting tops (no crop-tops, halter-tops, sleeveless shirts, or tank-tops). Clothing that promotes drugs, alcohol, sex, profanity, or violence is not acceptable. Recommended attire for food service volunteers is long-sleeved shirts, slacks, or capri pants, or long dresses. Closed-toe shoes are required, as well as a hair net (provided by The Rescue Mission) or a ball cap.
The minimum age for serving a meal at The Rescue Mission is 7 years old and the minimum age for serving at Treasure House is 18 years old.

Of course! We encourage you to participate as a family each week. Here is a suggested volunteer opportunity for each Week 4:

  • Throughout the week, we have the opportunity to join residents and those in our community in the chapel services hosted at The Rescue Mission. Sign-up to bring your family to one of these special half-hour services led by our Pine Hills Worship team. Your attendance will surely be an encouragement to the residents!

Pine Hills Youth and Young Adult Ministries are involved all month long in a variety of additional opportunities during their gathering times as well. If you need help selecting the best opportunity for your family, we would love to chat with you on a Sunday morning. Find us at the sign-up tables in the lobby!

Podcast

The Engage My City Podcast is designed to answer honest questions through raw and thought-provoking conversations. Each episode features roundtable discussions with staff and elders at Pine Hills to shed light on the questions we often hesitate to ask and to provide thoughtful insights that can empower us to surrender to the Holy Spirit’s transformative work in our lives.

Digital Magazine

Check out our 2022 Engage My City digital magazine designed to help us engage with topics and causes associated with our partner ministries! The magazine features articles and additional content to promote consideration, conversation, and prayerful contemplation.

Share a Story

We love hearing stories about the projects you’re completing and, especially, how God may have shown up while you were serving!