Giving time to your church
Many people in St Michael le Belfrey find that giving time to God's work in the church is one of the most fulfilling things in their lives, where what they do makes a real difference.
If you spend a few minutes browsing our website or attend one of our congregations you will see that St Michael le Belfrey is a busy place. We have a great staff team, but the staff are there to facilitate our volunteers across the church, rather than do all the work themselves!
It would be impossible for us to do all that we do without many people volunteering. There are opportunities for volunteering from a few hours in a month to several days a week - just depending on you, on the time you have to give and how God might be calling you to get involved.
If you know you want to get involved, but you're not sure how, it's time to experiment. Whether you start by offering a skill you have, or look to an area of interest you'd like develop, below are some of the teams that members of The Belfrey are involved with, and how to contact them. Get in touch, find out more about the teams that interest you and maybe try some things out. We'd love to hear from you.
Music - We're always open to new worship musicians for congregations with the right gifts, calling and commitment - details of who to contact are on the music pages, which is regularly updated with any particular areas of need.
Hospitality - People willing to offer to help at the cafes at Easter summer and Christmas, commitment of a couple of hours or a morning or afternoon now and again. Contact Olly Seymour - oseymour@yorkdiocese.org
Visitors - We also keep the church open Monday to Saturday during the day for the 50,000+ tourists who come to visit each year. We always need two people on duty for this. You don't need to be an expert in the history of the church (we will train you in what you need to know) and it's a great way of meeting people and introducing them to the church. Contact mark.rance@belfrey.org if you can help a few hours a month.
Maintenance team - Gardening, decorating, general DIY, plumbing and electrical work. Contact Steve Mulrooney, Facilities Manager steve.mulrooney@belfrey.org
i:Cafe International Cafe - A cafe offering friendship, fellowship and hospitality to people from overseas living in York. Contact ingvild.hovda@friendsinternational.org.uk
Welcome and church opening team - Last year we welcomed 50,000 visitors to St Michael le Belfrey. You could be part of the team welcoming on the door of the church during the week. Contact John Mills - admin@belfrey.org
Lay Chaplaincy - Visiting round the shops in the parish. Contact David Fletcher - admin@belfrey.org
Healing on the Streets (once a month). Contact Mary Jobling - admin@belfrey.org
Grace congregation - Someone who can co-ordinate feedback from mission partners - more people who can pray for people at Grace as part of Prayer Ministry (training will be offered). Contact ben.gunter@belfrey.org
Pray-ers - More people to come to Dynamic Prayer each Tuesday morning 7am in St Michael's, Contact Fiona Duff - admin@belfrey.org
Office - From folding service orders and stuffing envelopes to helping maintain our database, answering the phone or staffing reception, there are lots of ways to help the administration of your church be the best it can be. Contact paul.millard@belfrey.org
PCC - would you like to serve on the Parochial Church Council , which is the governing body of the church? Members are elected each year at the Annual Meeting in April. Contact mark.rance@belfrey.org if you are interested.
Catering - People to help with catering at lots of levels across the church - making tea and coffee at services, making sandwiches for small scale events and meetings, baking cakes for events or which can be stored in the freezer - making meals which we could freeze for those in need, cooking full meals for special events (fundraisers, staff meals, senior members events etc. Contact mark.rance@belfrey.org
Media & Production Team - The team doing sound and visuals in our services and at special events, making films, taking photos, building websites, making posters and other publicity, tweeting & posting on facebook, lighting and... what can you offer? Contact matt.seymour@belfrey.org
The Besom
- Group givers - Give time as a Belfrey group/student group etc... - do a project for a recipient in York. In the past groups have decorated houses, cleared gardens, created safe areas from children to play in, helped recipients move house, transformed a playground at a children's day-centre and many more things ... This is an exciting opportunity to make a difference as a group and really change someone's life.
- Individual givers - Give their time to use a specific skill or talent - whether it's laying carpets, putting up shelves, sewing and making curtains, sorting things in the office, driving the van or doing something completely different. If you have another skill you'd like to use to make a difference for someone in need we'll try to help you use it. Contact your congregation rep. (Grace - Eve Ridgeway; The Seven - Sam Tyndall) or visit the Besom website www.thebesominyork.co.uk
Restore - Give time and skills to help house and support homeless people in the city. Contact Barrie Stephenson or Jo Bloss or email office@restoreyork.co.uk
Youth & Children's work - There are lots of opportunities to get involved with our youth or children's work. There are many different groups and clubs, and many different ways to serve. To find out more contact tom.clark@belfrey.org for youth or chris.lee@belfrey.org for children
Pastoral visiting - Be part of the team helping people who are unwell or struggling remain connected with their part of The Belfrey. Contact john.donaldson@belfrey.org
Of course having looked through that list, you may feel God is calling you to lead the church in something new. Whether that's developing a new ministry or a prayer meeting, get in touch and let us know - admin@belfrey.org