By MICHELLE COSTA
In the fifty days after Easter, Safe Harbor Presbyterian Church plans to conduct a Season of Kindness campaign. During this time, Safe Harbor will ask North Coast residents to think about and express gratitude for an act of kindness received or offered. Safe Harbor members will be on hand at the Farmers Market on Friday April 12, and Friday, April 26, to collect expressions of gratitude and to publicize the ongoing efforts of the Estero Bay Kindness Coalition.
The EBKC operates three programs tailored to make life a little easier for North Coast families in need. These efforts include the Bags of Love supplemental grocery program, the Sunshine and Seeds clothing program, and the Got Your Back weekend nutrition program for elementary and middle school students. In Cambria and San Simeon, volunteers from Safe Harbor and The Vineyard Churches fill backpacks with nutritious food items each week.
Safe Harbor’s daily devotions and its daily inspirational online videos (all available at safeharborcambria.org) will reflect the theme of “gratitude for acts of kindness.” The devotions are written by author Reverend Eugenia Gamble and produced into one-minute videos by Safe Harbor’s social media shepherd, Wink Farrand. Thousands regularly view the videos on Instagram, Tik Tok, YouTube, Facebook, and through other social media outlets.
“We collected people’s prayers and prayer requests that were previously left on our Advent tree. Now we want our neighbors to tell us about acts of kindness,” says Reverend Gamble. “We want to do our part to make the world a little more kind and a little more grateful.” The expressions of gratitude for an act of kindness will be shared in Safe Harbor social media outreach and in acknowledgement in worship.
The “Bee Kind” exhibit will also make an appearance at St. Paul’s Episcopal Church on Saturday, April 20, during the hours of the next Cambria Unplugged concert.
Information about the Season of Kindness and Gratitude project, Safe Harbor’s Sunday 2 p.m. hybrid worship, the church’s daily social media devotional videos, Safe Harbor Conversations podcast, and other activities are available by calling 805-395-1521 or by email at: info@shpres.org. For information regarding the Estero Bay Kindness Coalition, a 501c3 non-profit, visit: esterobaykindnesscoalition.org
Below, Lana Cochrun and Deb Donaldson prepare weekend nutrition packs for Estero Bay Kindness Coalition’s Got Your Back program.
