Rise Against Hunger (formerly Stop Hunger Now)
Rise Against Hunger is an organization dedicated to fighting hunger on this earth. Its vision is “A world without hunger,” and its mission is “To end hunger in our lifetime by providing food and life-saving aid to the world’s most vulnerable and by creating a global commitment to mobilize the necessary resources.”

One way Rise Against Hunger works to fulfill its mission is to provide the opportunity for interested organizations to sponsor and host a Meal Packaging Event. This is a fun and inspirational opportunity for people to gather together in a spirit of fellowship and do good work by packaging meals that Rise Against Hunger then distributes all over the world to deserving organizations that provide the meals to people in need.

Our Manakin community has sponsored and hosted annual Meal Packaging Events since 2011, packaging a total of 233,742 meals. Events are usually held each January. Details may be found on our calendar and in the news section of the web site and on Manakin’s Facebook page.

Additional information about Rise Against Hunger may be found at www.riseagainsthunger.org

Feeding Program
The Feeding Program is an outreach project that we share with St. Matthias Episcopal Church. Each church covers six months out of the year. One Saturday a month, we gather in Denny Hall at 9:00 a.m. to pack lunches for approximately 140 homeless people who are housed in shelters in Richmond. Lunches consist of a meat and cheese sandwich, condiment packets, a piece of fruit, a single serving bag of chips, and cookies. These lunches are prepared by volunteers and are then delivered to the designated shelters by two or three volunteers. This is a rewarding and meaningful experience for all ages and only takes an hour (or two, if you help deliver the lunches).

Habitat for Humanity
Manakin has been involved with Habitat in the Greater Richmond area since 2001. We have helped build 12 homes and have contributed over $30,000 to provide homes for qualified families in need. Since 2007, Manakin has been helping to build homes for our Powhatan affiliate, and we continue to support this effort with contributions and labor.

We schedule work days by posting them in the Sunday bulletins, the monthly newsletter and sign-up sheets in Denny Hall. It doesn’t matter whether you are a skilled carpenter or a helper because we are all in this together. Children 16 or older are encouraged to participate, and lunches are provided.

Please consider joining us in this effort to bring a better life to those in need.  There isn’t a happier or more emotional time than when you get to see a new family during the dedication of their new home!

If you want to get involved, please see John Carnwath and Don Marsh, Habitat Coordinators.