St. Margaret s Community Outreach (SMCO) HISTORY & MISSION St. Margaret s Outreach began in 1991 at St. Margaret s Episcopal Church in Carrollton, Georgia at the hand of the late Father James Callahan. Inspired by the church s matron saint, Margaret, Queen of Scots, and her compassion for the poor, Father Callahan hired the late Barry M. Staples, attorney, community activist and schoolteacher, to design and implement a ministry of compassion to the local poor. During the years since its inception, the program has expanded beyond the boundaries of St. Margaret s Episcopal Church into the community. In 1995, the National Episcopal Church designated St. Margaret s Outreach a Jubilee Center, that is, an exemplary ministry to the poor. Over the years, numerous alliances and partnerships have been forged throughout the area, fostering a working philosophy of collaborative ministry. These alliances and partnerships include religious and secular organizations, private and governmental bodies, individuals, families and groups. The mission of the current St. Margaret s Community Outreach (SMCO) remains consistent with the mission of the original organization: to provide for the unmet needs of the poor and disadvantaged throughout Carroll County and beyond without discrimination as to race, religion, color, creed or national origin. ORGANIZATIONAL STRUCTURE SMCO continues to operate as a ministry of St. Margaret s Episcopal Church. St. Margaret s Episcopal Church Vestry serves as the Board of Directors for SMCO. St. Margaret s Rector serves as the Chief Executive Officer of St. Margaret s Episcopal Church. The Outreach Director, employed by St. Margaret s Episcopal Church, serves as Administrator for St. Margaret s Community Outreach. A part-time Outreach Office Assistant is grant-funded. Volunteers assist with all programs of SMCO. Student internship opportunities are sometimes available. (For more information about volunteer or internship opportunities, please contact Outreach Director at smcommunityoutreach@gmail.com.)
SMCO appreciates the volunteers who assist with all its programs. A grant from the Alice Huffard Richards Foundation funds a part-time Office Assistant. PROGRAMS & SERVICES SMCO pursues organization s mission of providing for the unmet needs of the poor and disadvantaged in a number of ways: GENERAL ASSISTANCE for clients takes many forms, including, but not limited to, payments made on behalf of clients for housing, utilities, food, gasoline and/or medicine. Assistance may also be given to clients with clothing, as well as information and access to educational programs and employment opportunities. The General Assistance Program is partially funded by the Community Foundation of West Georgia. Those seeking assistance are invited to call SMCO at (770) 834-5282 for appointment. Telephone greeting instructs caller of current schedule. Clients seeking General Assistance are interviewed during office appointment to determine most urgent need. The BACKPACK SNACK PROGRAM provides nutritious weekend snacks to children identifies as at-risk for hunger at a local middle school. SMCO participates as a team player with numerous other local players providing snacks for students at other area schools.
Members of St. Margaret s YAC Sunday School Class stuff the Backpack Snack bags as a regular part of their weekly class. The HOMEWORK HELPER PROGRAM conducted by SMCO gives elementary-age school children opportunities they otherwise would not have. One afternoon a week, volunteers from St. Margaret s, local high schools, the University of West Georgia and the community conduct the Homework Helper program in a low-wealth apartment community in Carrollton. Special programs and projects supplement basic tutoring and skills-building. Carrollton Golden K Kiwanis Club provides partial funding for the Homework Helper program. Volunteers and students work together to complete homework assignments and then proceed to seasonal projects and celebrations.
The PAPER PANTRY PROGRAM provides essential personal care products (which may not be purchased with food stamps) to those in need. Products are delivered to the hospital rooms of new mothers by program volunteers from St. Margaret s and the community. Products are also available from the office of SMCO. The Paper Pantry Program distributes gifts from many different individuals and organizations, including, among others, Carrollton Dawnbreakers Rotary, St. Margaret s ECW, and Grace Lutheran Church. The Paper Pantry Program received funding from the first Power of the Purse (a component of the Community Foundation of West Georgia) grant award. The COMMUNITY FAMILY MENTORING PROGRAM (CFMP) offers a year-long program of instruction and support to families identified as participants. The program seeks to introduce the concept of self-sufficiency to participants; assists participants in establishing goals; utilizes mentor families to model and encourage; teaches techniques to equip participants with proper tools to overcome obstacles to success; and, recognizes and rewards progress toward and achievement of established goals. SMCO serves as Program Administrator
and partners with a number of local community churches, Program Partners, and numerous Resource Partners to present the program. Representative (Mentor Coordinators) from each Program Partner Church form the CFMP Board. The Community Family Mentoring Program is primarily funded by the Community Foundation of West Georgia, Alice Huffard Richards Foundation, and Program Partners (For more information about the Community Family Mentoring Program, please click here. During the last program year, five families, including six Mentees, worked with Mentors to achieve program goals and graduate from the Community Family Mentoring Program.
Other SEASONAL / OCCASIONAL PROGRAMS & PROJECTS require coordination and oversight. SMCO frequently administers charitable programs for other entities (civic clubs, school groups, etc.). St. Margaret s Community Outreach recently assisted with the distribution of Carrollton City School s system-wide homecoming collection of enormous proportions of personal care items to area non-profits for further distribution into the local community. Groups of children and adults alike utilize the distribution allocation mechanism St. Margaret s Community Outreach offers. The above groups (left, Girl Scout Troop 481; right, St. Margaret s J2A Sunday School Class) conducted food collections for the Backpack Snack Program. Below, SMCO assisted in the distribution of coats for the Carrollton Rotary Club, followed later by gently-used evening gowns.
THE FUNDING OF SMCO Funding for SMCO comes primarily from private individual and corporate monetary gifts and in-kind donations. Community organizations and civic clubs also frequently contribute. Additional funding comes from grants and fund-raisers. Contributions are tax-deductible and go directly into its programs and services, or as directed, toward Endowment funding. St. Margaret s Episcopal Church Women (ECW) conducts an annual Valentine Luncheon as a fund-raiser for St. Margaret s Community Outreach. Carrollton High School Show Choir has entertained luncheon guests for a number of years. TO CONTRIBUTE FOR CURRENT PROGRAM NEEDS Contributions intended to assist with current programs and services may be made to St. Margaret s Episcopal Church, 606 Newnan Street, Carrollton, GA 30117. Please note Outreach on check. Or donate online TO CONTRIBUTE FOR GENERATIONS TO COME In celebration of the 20 th Anniversary of St. Margaret s Community Outreach, and in preparation for the years to come, contributions are needed to fund an Endowment. This Endowment, when fully funded, will provide a minimum level of core funding on a monthly basis, enabling the continued pursuit of the organization s mission. Contributions to the Endowment may be made to St. Margaret s Episcopal Church, 606 Newnan Street, Carrollton, GA 30117. Please note Outreach Endowment on check. Or donate online Click here for SMCO Program-and-Services-At-A-Glance.