Outreach ministries connect people and the Gospel in service beyond the parish. Here you may read about these ministries or express your interest in learning more about them or participating.

You may find it helpful to view these pages on a larger screen such as a desktop, tablet, or laptop. To navigate from page to page, click the “Next” or “Back” buttons found at the end of each page.

Each page begins with a brief summary and a list of the ministries on that page. Below that, you may indicate your interest(s) or scroll down further to read more about each ministry. The final page collects contact information.

Here is an index of the kinds of ministries you will find on the following pages.

1. Farmers Market
2. Food Ministries
3. Community Partnerships
4. Other Opportunities
5. About You - contact information, and "SUBMIT" this form

To get started, click the “Next” button at the end of this page. 

 

Q&A

What time commitment is expected? Opportunities in outreach ministry vary from weekly or monthly commitments to one-time efforts for special projects. We ask you to consider serving one year so that you have ample time in your ministry to develop new skills and relationships.

Do I need prior experience? Each ministry provides "onboarding" and training as necessary. Some ministries involve standing, lifting, or other physical activities.

How do I join a ministry? On each each page, you may either request a follow-up conversation to learn more or become a participant.

The Farmers Market @ St. Stephen’s is open year-round on Saturdays. The market features local farmers and producers who grow or create what they sell. It is a wonderful community gathering point and a place where people can get to know where their food comes from. The market accepts SNAP funds (formerly known as food stamps) and participates in Virginia Fresh Match, a program that doubles shoppers’ SNAP money for fresh produce.

Volunteers greet and help with clean up at the market.

Greeting - greet customers, track attendance, help with SNAP benefits, take pictures, etc.

• May to September: 2 shifts, 8-10 a.m. and 10 a.m.-noon
• October to April: 1 shift, 9 a.m. to noon  

Clean up: noon-1 p.m.

• Put away tents, cones, signs, etc.

Food ministries are at the heart of St. Stephen's life. On this page:

1. Food Pantry
2. Fruit Ministry
3. Grocery Packing and Delivery
4. Other food ministry opportunities

 

Food Pantry

Our flagship food ministry is the Monday afternoon food pantry, which uses a choice model in which shoppers choose the groceries they need and want, instead of receiving a pre-packed bag. Vendors from the farmers market generously supply the bulk of our fresh produce, and the rest of the groceries come from parishioner donations, Feed More, and purchases from the grocery store. We also pack bags of groceries for residents of Virginia Supportive Housing, and deliver to a handful of shoppers who cannot make it to the pantry in person. Whenever possible, our food outreach efforts focus on fresh, nutritious foods, and building relationships with those we serve.

There are two shifts for volunteers for the food pantry.

• Monday morning shift, 9-10:30: put away donated groceries, display farmers market produce, tidy paper bags
• Monday afternoon shift, 12:30-3:30: assist shoppers in the pantry, clean up afterwords (pantry hours 1-3 p.m.)

Fruit ministry

The fruit ministry is the longest running food outreach effort at St. Stephen’s. Parishioners package and deliver fresh fruit to seniors living in public housing each week.

This group of dedicate helpers meets at 9:00 on Monday mornings at St. Stephen's to pack and deliver fresh apples, oranges, and bananas to four residences on a rotating basis: The Rosa Apartments, Shockoe Hill Senior Apartments, Baker Senior Apartments, and Highland Park Senior Apartments.

Grocery Packing and Delivery

Each Wednesday morning at 9:00 a.m. we pack groceries which are delivered to people in need later. About 50 bags are for residents of Virginia Supportive Housing. VSH provides studio apartments to hundreds of people around Central Virginia who have come out of addiction or homelessness. A handful of bags are for our food pantry clients who lack transportation to make it to the pantry in person.

Deliveries occur on Wednesdays and Thursdays mid-morning. On Wednesdays, parishioners deliver the bags in pairs to an established route of 3-5 addresses. On Thursdays at 10:45 a.m., parishioners deliver the groceries to residents of Virginia Supportive Housing.

Other areas to serve with Food Ministries 

There are several other areas for involvement in the food ministries: 
 
1. Feed More pickup on Thursday mornings: Arrive at Feed More at 10:30 a.m., pick up pre-ordered groceries for the pantry, plus bread and any items in the Feed More “store.” Helpful to have plenty of space in your car and to be able to bend and lift 20 pounds repeatedly. (Feed More is located at 8020 Villa Park Dr.) 
 
2. Saturday shelf stocking in the pantry, 10:30-11:30 a.m. (timing is somewhat flexible): put away Feed More groceries and donations from the week. 
 
3. Gleaning from the farmers market, 11:30-12:30: collect donations of fresh produce and other local foods from market vendors, store in refrigerators. Donations are used in Monday pantry. A lovely way to get to know our generous farmers market vendors. 
 
4. Panera bread pickup, every other Sunday, 8:50 p.m.: arrive at Panera (Willow Lawn) just before they close to pick up a donation of leftover bread. Bring it to the pantry on Monday morning by 9:00 a.m. 
 

St. Stephen’s has a long history of partnering with and building relationships with community organizations in the East End of the city. They focus primarily on education and community development. Parishioners have built life-long relationships with students and other residents of the neighborhood. St. Stephen's extends God's love around the entire Richmond area. 

Fairfield Court Elementary School: Our parishioners serve as tutors or mentors working with small groups of students as well as some one-on-one time with the same student each week No teaching or education experience is necessary. A weekly commitment of 1-2 hours is suggested. Interested volunteers will complete a one-hour orientation class and undergo a background check by Communities in Schools. There is orientation in late summer/early fall and another in the winter for the spring semester.

New this year: Register for the Special Events roster. Throughout the year there are opportunities to engage with students and teachers that are one-off activities requiring a few hours of time on a particular day. Help out with the Welcome Back Teachers Celebration, Halloween Trunk or Treat, Easter Egg Hunt, Teacher’s Appreciation Breakfast, etc. No orientation needed.

Another way to volunteer at Fairfield is to deliver weekend food backpacks to the school on Thursdays. Each week, a volunteer picks up 40-50 prepacked bags of food from Feed More and delivers them to the school. Pick up is any time between 8:00 and 11:00 a.m. Volunteers generally deliver once a month.

Anna Julia Cooper School: St. Stephen’s was instrumental in the founding of this K-8 school in the East End. AJC offers volunteer training and opportunities for classroom assistants, study hall tutors, lunch buddies, reading group leaders, and admin support.

Peter Paul supports the East End community through after-school programming, young adult programming, senior programming, and more. Volunteers are needed to serve as mentors for the after-school program to help with social skills, math, and English. Volunteers are also welcome for gardening and site beautification projects, both popular opportunities.

ReWork Richmond: founded by a partnership including St. Stephen’s, St. Peter’s, the city’s Office of Community Wealth Building, and Challenge Discovery Projects, ReWork Richmond empowers underemployed adults in the East End to find living-wage, stable, thriving careers. They are seeking volunteers to serve as financial coaches and resume writers/coaches. You do not need professional training for these roles.

Christmas Store at Fairfield Court Elementary: Each year, parishioners donate gifts and set up a "store" at Fairfield Court. Fairfield parents are able to select gifts for their children and either have them wrapped or wrap the gifts at home. This is in place of an "angel tree" and empowers parents to choose their children's gifts. Volunteers are needed to transport, set up, and wrap gifts. The Christmas Store will be in mid-December. 

Turkey Boxes: Each Thanksgiving we send about 200 boxes of holiday meal ingredients to families identified by our East End partner schools. Many parishioners pack a box or two at home, and there will also be an opportunity to pack boxes together at church. You can indicate your interest here in communal packing.

Rebuilding Together Richmond: RTR has an annual “Rebuild Day” on which churches, businesses, and other organizations work on home repairs in a particular neighborhood. There are build days planned for the fall and the spring, and our team will be assigned to a house. The next work day is Saturday, November 15, 2025. There are opportunities for anyone, but do let us know if you have skills in carpentry, painting, etc.

HANDS Ministry (Small Project Home Repairs): Occasionally, there are opportunities to participate with our own HANDS (Hammers and Nails in Devoted Service) Ministry or with Project Homes to make small repairs to houses.  We need people with construction, repair, and landscaping skills but we can also use helping hands with tasks that do not require those skills. HANDS volunteers are simply asked to be “on call” if and when repairs are needed and requested.
 
Racial Healing: St. Stephen’s is committed to the work of racial healing, which we understand to be a ministry of both spiritual transformation and radical discipleship. We are working to expand and strengthen this ministry, using formation offerings, worship, conversation, and outreach to imagine what a just and flourishing world could look like. Together we seek to make that world a reality here in Richmond. Outreach opportunities will be posted here.