Tiny Historic Church Achieves Major Milestone in Fighting Hunger!

For the past 6 years, Vale United Methodist Church has hosted an annual event to package meals for the global anti-hunger organization Rise Against Hunger, (www.riseagainthunger.org), formerly Stop Hunger Now. Volunteers from around the community join church members to package between 50,000 – 75,000 meals per event. This year, on January 21, Vale Church will cross the half-million meal milestone.

Ingredients for the meals are purchased from the proceeds of Vale Church’s annual Christmas tree sale.

In addition to sending more than 500,000 meals worldwide, Vale Church has multiple missions that feed those in need in the local community:

• Neighbors Feeding Neighbors/Backpack Buddies program provides weekend and evening meals for under-privileged elementary students living in Fairfax County.
• Vale’s food pantry feeds needy families in Anacostia, Washington, D.C., throughout the year, including Thanksgiving meals.
• Via FACETs, Vale Church provides hot meals to homeless people living along the Rt. 50 corridor in Fairfax.
• The Vale Youth Group prepares and delivers meals to the homeless in Franklin Park (Downtown Washington, D.C.) once a month.
• Vale members provide monthly meals Second Story, the teenage crisis shelter in Fairfax County.

These are just the Church’s hunger missions. Other missions include providing financial support and volunteers for Hypothermia Prevention Shelters and The Lamb Center (Homeless Shelter), Just Neighbors, (immigration legal service to low-income immigrants and refugees), Shepherd Center (services for Senior Citizens), The Closet Thrift Store (Herndon), White Doves Christmas Program, sponsoring 32 kids in SE DC to supply school supplies, Christmas and birthday gifts, ESOL tutoring, a summer mission trip to Guatemala, and more.

Vale welcomes more volunteers to help spread their impact. At Vale Church, help is provided to those in need, regardless of religion, race or ethnicity. Members of the community looking for ways to get involved and make a difference are invited to come join Vale in serving the community near and far.

About Vale United Methodist Church

Vale Church is known for being a small church with a big impact. All are invited to visit the little white church on the corner of Fox Mill and Vale Roads in Oakton. For more than one hundred years, the Vale United Methodist Church congregation has gathered for worship and fellowship in this beautiful and historic church. Founded in 1894, Vale Methodist Protestant Church held their first meetings at the Vale School House. In 1896, the church building still used today was built on property donated by Thomas and John Clarke. More information can be found at www.valechurch.org.