By Ngoc Vo

With its mission to address the needs of the community, Christian Life Church has held several outreach programs to assist local children and families.

The CLC donated $100 each to the Troy Elementary and Troy Middle School lunch program, according to Anthony Askew, the church’s pastor.

“If we can help a family to pay for a balanced lunch for a child, we would do that,” Askew said. “We just want to help in any way we can with the children the families who are in need.”

The church also gave $100 to the Troy Nutrition Center.

“As for senior citizens, we want to say we appreciate them and we would like to give them an enjoyable time at the center through our outreach,” Askew said.

He said the church plans to continue giving back to the community, sending donations to the schools and the center every couple of months.

In the effort to reach out to the community, Christian life Church also held the Dunbar Community Project, offering 500 hamburgers and 500 hot dogs to local citizens.

“The project offered fellowship to whoever came to the outing,” Askew said. “The purpose was to meet the community and to show the love of Christ. We want them to know who we are and we could get to know who they are. We want to show that we, the Christian Life Church members, care.”

According to Askew, the church played Christian music throughout the event and held a prayer at the end.

“People enjoyed the music, enjoyed the hot dogs, and enjoyed themselves,” Askew said. “We had a nice crowd with a steady stream of people coming by to hang out with us and give encouragement and gratitude.”

Christian Life Church did not want to get up formally to do its teachings but instead, it allowed that to be done through its community service, Askew said. The church wants people to see more of what it does rather than hear what it says.

“I feel like the cookout is to make the community feel as a part of the church, part of the family,” said David Brook, a Christian Life Church member. “We were able to mingle and talk to people up-close and personal.

“(Community service like this) brings joy to my heart because giving is what life is all about. I find myself very fortunate to be able to reach out and help. It’s a blessing in itself.”

The church’s upcoming projects are programs for the Christmas and Thanksgiving holidays, according to Askew.

“Our design is to just plug in and be a help to the area,” he said. “We want to assess the need of the community and try to meet those needs through the church program.

“The service projects come out of the church’s budget with donations from community businesses. We want to extend our welcome to any person and business who want to help us meeting the community need.”