What We Do
Pastoral Support to the Homeless
Walking alongside folks in the very toughest places in our town. Over time the prayer is to see a change in direction with relation to self and God. Timelines and expectations are left at home; fellowship, prayerfulness, and discernment are put on. Hope in lament, fellowship in sorrow, peace in tribulation, strength for today and bright hope for tomorrow. Bringing the presence of Christ where it is not expected.
Grief Support
Loss comes to us: whether the loss of someone close, or a natural disaster or a man-made catastrophe; we walk through the valley of the shadow of death. And M2M seeks to bring the presence of Christ to that place: ‘ . . . for I know that you are with me, your rod and your staff comfort me.’
Community Support & Advocacy
There are issues that affect individuals and sometimes these expand to the whole community. We work to advocate for, to stand alongside and support and defend the cause of the widow, the poor, the orphan and all those on the margins.
Volunteer Opportunities
It might be giving a ride to the dentist, or helping fix a phone stuck on silent, or getting someone to a parole appointment, or unclogging a toilet, or helping someone fill out a government form. In all these is the chance to listen, to engage, to serve. Opportunities to volunteer can be big or small; either way lives are impacted on both sides - we are changed.
DIY Bicycle Repair Clinic
When you live on little, owning a reliable bike is a critical piece of personal infrastructure. And just as important: having a reliable, consistent bank of tools and a place to work on it. Mission to the Margins operates a Free DIY (Do It Yourself) Bike Repair Clinic at our Gathering Place Outreach.
Mentorship
It begins by just being there; being present and engaged with the person in front of us. From there as trust develops, then guidance, motivation, and emotional support flow naturally. Both the roles of mentor and mentee can be explored and developed through your involvement with Mission to the Margins.
Volunteer Opportunities for Church Groups
We can always use more hands in the kitchen: a team cooking hearty nutritious warm meals for those on the margins every Thursday and Saturday evening. Bring a friend, your small group, or on your own. Join the M2M Food Army: make a difference once a week, once a month, once every 6 weeks - it’s up to you. Send us an email or check out the ’Volunteer’ section to learn more.
Community Clothing
Part of our regular Gathering Place Outreach includes a Free Clothing and Housewares room. Here our guests can come in and chat with a volunteer, look through the racks and find some things to help stretch the monthly income. All items are donated. This is another way we as the church are being a tangible blessing to those with very little. Please consider getting involved with Mission to the Margins.
Food Bank
Feeding people’s stomachs is an important aspect of our mercy ministry. Together with our partners at Urban Hope we are able to open the community food bank room where guests can fill up a grocery bag of whatever has come in. It’s another way to help stretch the fixed incomes of singles, seniors, and families living on the margins in our town. Join us in the work: check out the ’Volunteer’ section to learn more.
Social
Services Navigation Support
Trying to navigate the bureaucracy can be a lot. Mission to the Margins helps people access and navigate social supports and services.
Bible Study/
Discussion Groups
We live among a community highly suspicious of the trustworthiness of the Bible as God’s revealed Word. At Mission to the Margins we believe that, because we can be confident that we have the original text of the Bible in the copies and translations we possess today because God has preserved those writings, therefore we hold to and teach the unique authority and complete truthfulness of the Bible. Twice each week we offer Bible study discussion groups, designed to be casual and conversational while still ultimately sitting under the Word of God.
Gathering Place Outreach
One of the best first steps in local outreach ministry: join one of our teams doing Gathering Place Outreach. We pray together, serve together, make friends with guests from the community, eat together, and serve through the tangible mercy ministries onsite … we make it a place to belong; for the last, the least, the lost. Mission to the Margins is cross-cultural ministry right at home. Join us!
Laundry Facilities
As part of our Gathering Place Outreach: a place to do a load of laundry for free. We provide everything a person needs to leave with a clean load of laundry. This is the church being that peculiar aroma in the lives of folks walking through deserts and valleys. Mission to the Margins partners with churches and ministries to see the poor engage with the gospel and the church engage with the poor. We can always use the help of volunteers from local churches. Come Join!
Shower Facilities
Currently the one and only place in Cambridge where a homeless person or someone living in their vehicle or in some other precarious form of housing can reliably expect to take a shower is at our Gathering Place Outreach and our ministry partners Urban Hope. What an honour to bless our community in this way and be the hands and feet of Jesus. Mission to the Margins is cross-cultural ministry right at home. To bring the presence of Christ where it is least expected. Join us!