Adopt-a-Highway
Calvary is responsible for cleaning a portion of Bamber Valley Road in SW Rochester. Parish volunteers 12 and older spend a few hours several times a year cleaning the roadside.
Community Garden
In 2009 Calvary obtained a garden plot near Essex Park, Rochester. The garden measures 100 x 200 feet. Each year Calvary members of all ages participate in tilling, hoeing, and planting of seeds and plants and then harvesting the produce in the fall. Produce is donated to Channel One, Rochester's local foodshelf. Read more about the Calvary community garden.
Cookie Ministry
Every year, in January, Calvary volunteers deliver home-baked treats to Hope Lodge in Rochester. These treats tempt the appetites of those whose normal appetites have been diminished by illness or medical treatments. A signup list for bakers is posted in December in Brackenridge Hall.
Dorothy Day House Meals
Calvary works with other Rochester churches and organizations to provide an evening meal for clients of Dorothy Day House, a shelter for homeless people. The number of clients varies but never exceeds 25 for a meal. Various groups from Calvary are responsible for providing dinner the first Wednesday of the month. Volunteers prepare the main course, salads and side dishes, and serve the meal.
Episcopal Pastoral Services (patient visitation)
EPS is a hospital-visitation ministry conducted jointly with St. Luke's, our sister parish in Rochester. As probably the only church in the world surrounded by a major medical center, we consider this hospital ministry to be a vital part of our outreach efforts. Volunteers visit patients at Rochester hospitals who indicate they are Episcopalian upon admission. These visits generally are an opportunity to chat and arrange for communion or a clergy visit, if desired. The time involved is usually a couple of hours every two months or so, at a time convenient for the volunteer.
Fruitcake
Since 1939, members of Calvary have been making fruitcake to a secret parish recipe for sale locally and nationwide. We now make over a ton for fruitcake—roughly 1,700 cakes—each year. More than 125 men, women, and youth assist with the various jobs associated with the project: cutting dates, weighing fruit, mixing fruit, and baking the cakes, and decorating and wrapping cakes. This is a wonderful way for parishioners to get better acquainted.
Migrant Workers Hospitality Ministry
Every summer, a worship service and a light meal or snack are provided to the migrant workers at the Seneca food processing plant in Montgomery, Minnesota. The diocese's Region 5 parishes share in this intergenerational outreach program. Volunteers have the opportunity to share their faith and a Sunday afternoon - rain or shine.
Oasis Garden
Although Calvary has served Rochester and the world since the parish's founding, the specific notion of an "oasis" for all people began in 1986. At that time Calvary's southeastern lawn was enhanced to become a lovely green space surrounded by thousands of flowers, which are planted by parishioners each spring. During the summer months, Calvary hosts weekly lunchtime concerts in the Oasis Garden which have become very popular. The rest of the time the garden remains a remarkable spiritual enclosure where flowers, trees, and cool grass provide a sharp contrast to the pace out in the street. Clinic patients, employees, and others who work downtown come into the garden to enjoy lunch, re-group, or just find some quiet seclusion. All are welcome to engage in the peaceful, healing presence of God! Read more about the Oasis Garden.
Pie Patrol
Calvary volunteers provide a freshly baked pie and parish information to visitors and new members at Calvary. Baking skills and a friendly smile are the only prerequisites for this activity - all are welcome.
Refugee Resettlement
Calvary works with other Rochester churches to assist new refugees in adapting to Rochester and establishing a new life in the U.S. Assistance includes finding housing, furniture, and clothing; and transporting the new families to various agencies and schools to get them started in the community.
Stitches-n-Prayer
This intergenerational group meets the first and third Sundays to pray and to stitch, knit, or crochet a variety of items for those in need of prayer support. The group also presents a handmade shawl to every newly baptized person at Calvary.
Shut-In Visitation
Volunteers visit with those unable to attend church services. The time commitment is individual; however, the goal is to establish contact once or twice a month. Volunteers should have an automobile.
Sidewalk Café
Join Father Nick at 7:30 several weekday mornings a year for a fun time greeting persons hurrying to work downtown. Offer a bit of Calvary and yourself to brighten their day.
Youth Mission Trips
Calvary's high-school students go on a mission trip every other summer, chaperoned by parish volunteers. Fundraising events are held throughout the year.