What is the Laundry Shower Ministry?

Our Laundry Shower Ministry, an inter-church partnership, continues to serve the poor and homeless in our city.  The primary purpose of our ministry, in addition to providing services and donations, is to build friendships and to share God’s love with our guests, and to affirm the value and dignity of each person. During the health crisis, the ministry has had to adapt to social distancing and other guidelines, but we are serving more guests than ever.

There are many ways to participate in this ministry!  

Serving “on site”:

We offer our ministry on the first and third Saturdays each month. Our current hours run from about 9:00am to 1:00 pm. We need help with a variety of tasks, including set up and tear down, sack lunch preparation, greeting and serving guests, and distributing clothing, hygiene items, and local resource information. We also host “Laundry Nights” for our guests at a local laundromat twice a month. We provide laundry supplies and quarters and spend time with our guests while they do their laundry. 

Providing needed supplies:

We provide our guests with tangible items to help improve our guests’ lives, such as travel size hygiene items, new shoes, gently used clothing, new underwear, backpacks, blankets, bus passes, and gift cards for gasoline or groceries. If you would like to contribute any of these items, we can arrange for pick up!

If you would like to serve on the ministry team, provide donations, or simply want to know more about this vital ministry, please contact Marsha Grim, Homeless Ministry Director, at marsha@thevineoc.com.

MATTHEW 25:40:  "The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for me."

“We think sometimes that poverty is only being hungry, naked and homeless. The poverty of being unwanted, unloved and uncared for is the greatest poverty.”   (Mother Teresa)