Category: Ministries

Souper Bowl of Caring

As you prepare to purchase snacks for the Super Bowl, you are invited to provide food and funds for our hungry neighbors. Americans spend about $1 billion on Super Bowl snacks. In contrast, the youth of St. Philip challenge the congregation to donate just $1000 and 770 grocery items (that’s enough cans to build two 10×10 pyramids) to Feeding America Food Bank and the St. Mark’s food pantry, respectively. On Sunday, February 3 at both worship services, the youth will collect the groceries in the sanctuary and the money at the close of worship as you leave the sanctuary. Together we can tackle hunger right here in Roanoke!

Listen, God is Calling

Thank you to all of you for the many ways you serve God’s church through the ministry of St. Philip. Truly our calling is about God’s work and our hands. Several of you have asked if there is a list of things that might be helpful as Church Council continues to discern next steps for staffing. There are a number of quiet ways you might make an impact in the ministry. If you have been thinking about ways to connect to the ministry at St. Philip and have not been quite sure how to start, please consider serving in one or more of these ministries:

Altar Guild – Each Sunday we, as a congregation, experiences the living Christ at the altar. The altar guild serves to make sure the table is ready. This ministry is wonderfully rewarding and truly as easy as getting ready to host a dinner.

Miss You Cards – The church office is looking for someone who would send cards to folks who have not been to St. Philip to worship for a while.

Children’s Table and Busy Bags – As school starts, this is a great time to re-supply busy bags that are provided to help children participate in worship in ways that make sense for younger ones. Additionally, there is a table just for little ones in the gathering space that needs freshening.

Property Care and Clean-up – A group clean up day planned is for September 22nd, but you do not need to wait until then to help out around the church. (see page 4) St. Philip has a wonderful facility that truly serves the whole community. It should be care for with pride.

Worship Assistants – Ushers, acolytes, power point clickers, sound system operators, readers, communion assistants. This is absolutely a great way to live out your faith on Sunday morning. Speak with Carol Dillman at 8:30am worship and Mary Jo Sahm at 11am worship.

Prayer Chain Coordinator – This longtime ministry of St. Philip needs someone to check in with the links in the chain. The prayer chain is made of praying volunteers who pray for special congregational needs. See Laura Latham if you might serve in this way.

Social Ministry “Sharer” – If you have a Facebook account, you can help share ministry of St. Philip with your family, friends, and community. Anything you see on the St. Philip Facebook page can be shared to your page and newsfeed. The social ministry task force is working to create more and more Facebook events about upcoming activities and ministries here at St. Philip. These events are open to all people, so please share and invite folks even outside of the congregation.

Elijah's Backpack Ministries

Elijah’s Backpack

Judy Brammer

As the end of another school year approaches, those of us who have been involved with Elijah’s Backpack this year wanted to give a HUGE thank you to all of you who have supported this ministry all year. The congregation of St. Philip helps with donations of food, donations in memory or honor of loved ones, and of course packing and delivering the bags of healthy food and snacks that go home each weekend with children from the five different schools we serve. Sixty-five bags are sent home with children each weekend throughout the school year. An extra bag of food is sent home holidays and at the end of the year.

A strong budget and volunteer help is maintained with a partnership with Journey Church, Faith Alliance, Green Ridge Presbyterian, and Northview UMC, Hollins University and local businesses.

We truly live in a generous community, and we like to think this happens because we all work together to watch over God’s neediest children. God Bless you all!

Ministries Preschool

Preschool News

Ms. Danielle, Ms. Kelly, Ms. Sherrie, Ms. Rachael

This month marks the end of the 2017-2018 school year for St. Philip Lutheran Preschool. The preschool staff wanted to take a moment to sincerely thank each member of St. Philip for their prayers and hallway smiles while we ministered to over 35 families this year.

The time and effort many of you took to smile at, speak to, and learn the names of various students has meant the world to them. Many of the kids excitedly peek out of the classroom doors when they hear the outside doors open – a testament to their feeling of security and welcome within these church walls. While academics and social/emotional growth are our main focus here at St. Philip Preschool, there is a more important mission of making each child feel honored and welcomed within this body of believers.

The staff is looking forward to a fun summer camp as well as the upcoming 2018-2019 school year. We would like to invite each of you to join us in praying over these students, especially our rising kindergarten students.

For those of you who were unable to make it to the preschool graduation on May 23, please check out the Facebook page at for a video of graduation and pictures from throughout the year.

Thank you again for the honor of ministering alongside you!

Day of Service Ministries

Day of Service

Linda Rhodes

On Sunday, August 26, St. Philip will once again provided a picnic for the residents at Melrose Towers. They appreciated last summer’s picnic so much, the staff have asked St. Philip if they might return this year.

The menu will be hot dogs and hamburgers with all the fixings. There will also be opportunity for bingo and other games. The residents love receiving prizes of toiletries, laundry detergent, cleaning supplies, toilet paper and paper towels – items that cannot be purchased with food stamps. Later in the summer look for opportunities to donate these items and how you can help serve St. Philip’s neighbors.

If you have any questions please contact Linda Duncan Rhodes or Donna Wright.

Global Missions Ministries

Italian Night and Silent Auction

Post author By Alice Lebow
Post date March 22, 2018
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It’s no secret that the congregation at St. Philip enjoys sharing meals together. The Global Mission team is offering a chance to gather and break bread together with an authentic Italian meal. On Saturday, April 21 come for a dinner from 5:30 to 7:30pm and a silent auction.

The menu for this elegant evening will showcase delicious chicken Parmesan and spaghetti with Grandma Jo’s sauce, salad, bread, beverages, and Italian dessert choices. Advance ticket price is $12.00 for adults and $6 for children (age 12 and under). Tickets at the door will be $15 for adults/$8 for children. All proceeds from this elegant evening will benefit St. Philip’s sister parish in Mponella, Africa as we continue to help our brothers and sisters there with food security assistance.

Come early for the silent auction. Bidding opens at 5:00pm. Items available in past years a signed ACC football, golf and lunch with Pastor David, a Taubman Family membership, Disney Tickets, gift baskets, and more. Admission to the silent auction only is free.

Advance dinner tickets may be purchased on Sunday mornings during Café or by stopping by the church office on weekday mornings. Please come help support our friends of the ELCM while enjoying a fun evening with friends and family in our own community.

Congregational Life Ministries

Walking in Faith Together

Post author By Alice Lebow
Post date March 6, 2018
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Kelly Truax

Happy February everyone! I have enjoyed these past few weeks getting to know many of you and reconnecting with many familiar faces! As volunteer coordinator, I am exploring different ideas on how to better connect us and our families to each other and help grow our faith. Family Faith Formation is a great way for us to connect, amongst many endless opportunities for us to learn and grow together. I am thankful for you all and am enjoying sharing life with you. Please do not hesitate to share your ideas or find me and ask how we can work together. Let’s do faith together!

Congregational Life Ministries

Ministry All Around

Laura Latham

Wow! St. Philip has been alive with ministry the first 6 weeks of 2018: Souper Bowl of Caring, Fat Tuesday Steak Dinner, ForwardingFaith, Elijah’s Backpack, St. Philip Preschool, Lenten worship services, Witnessing Paws and more! Every day there are volunteers and congregation members in the building active in inreach and outreach. As part of my new role at St. Philip, it’s my honor and pleasure to work with folks more closely to make ministry happen.

While you are in the building through the week for ministry, worship, or service to our community, please check out the screens on the wall in the gathering space and near the kitchen in the hallway. The goal is to run a slideshow on these screens daily to welcome members and guests in our building and to remind folks of upcoming events in our congregation and among the Hollins area. I’ve been putting together these slides as I finalize announcements, so if you would like to include information about your ministry, please let me know by noon on Thursdays.

Elijah's Backpack Ministries Newsletter

600 Jars for 60 Years

On February 25, St. Philip will celebrate 60 years of ministry in the Roanoke Valley. (see page 1) Throughout the church’s history, congregation members have seen a need in our area and around the world and have sought a way to fill that need through mission and ministry. From creating a preschool – one of St. Philip’s first ministries – to 20 plus years of blood drives to community holiday meals to support of sister parish in Mponela, Malawi to Elijah’s Backpack, a feeding program that reaches children in five local schools.

In celebration of 60 years of ministry in the Roanoke Valley, the coordinators of Elijah’s Backpack have issued a challenge to the congregation – raise 600 jars of peanut butter in the month of February. That’s 100 jars of peanut butter per decade of service to St. Philip’s neighbors. Each week Elijah’s Backpack serves 64 children in need at Burlington Elementary, Mountain View Elementary, Glen Cove Elementary, Northside Middle, and Minnick School Main Campus. Six hundred jars of peanut butter will help feed these children through the end of the school year.

Beginning February 11 and running through Anniversary Sunday on February 25, you are invited to donate jars of peanut butter to Elijah’s Backpack. There will be a display set up in the Fellowship Hall for you to place your donations. The size peanut butter the ministry uses is 16-ounce jars, any brand. If you have any questions about Elijah’s Backpack or the 600 Jars drive, please speak to Judy Brammer or Nancy Shadix. Elijah’s Backpack also welcomes volunteers to help pack bags.

Let’s have a big tower of 16-ounce jars of peanut butter in the Fellowship Hall as the congregation moves into its 7th decade of ministry. St. Philip is truly a congregation that Lives Like †hat!