Preach the gospel, when necessary, use words.
At Hancock, we follow Jesus’ call to work for the kingdom of heaven here on earth. We follow his example of feeding the hungry, healing the sick, providing hope for downtrodden, and fighting for justice for the marginalized. Service is central to the life of the church at Hancock.
We invite you to join us as we strive to put our faith into action. You can make a difference, feel inspired, and work alongside a community committed to doing justice, loving kindness, and walking humbly with God.
Mission & Justice Overview
The Mission and Justice Team has the joy of organizing and facilitating most of the mission work of Hancock Church. We are grateful to the Hancock community for giving generously of their time, talents, and money in acts of service and caring. To learn more about the scope of Hancock’s mission work, read the summary we submitted for the most recent Annual Report, or visit some of the other tabs and links in this Serve section of the website.
Volunteer opportunities to serve abound, both in church and in the community. Take a look at the “Volunteer in Church” and “Volunteer in Community” tabs and see if there are one or more that call to you. Volunteering is a great way to make a positive difference in people’s lives while also getting to know and enjoying the fellowship of others here at Hancock.
Our youth participate in a service trip every year to Neon, Kentucky, where they work with HOMES, Inc. to provide affordable housing to low income families. Adult service trips in recent years have been organized to help build low-income housing, provide assistance following natural disasters, and help in other ways. To learn more about our service trips, click here.
We provide financial support to organizations doing God’s work of healing and justice in three ways:
- The congregation devotes a portion of the budget each year to support these organizations; to learn more, read about our mission budget and the mission partners we work with.
- In early 2019, we made the decision to give away our plate offering every week to an organization doing important work in the world. Many weeks the offering is donated to one of our mission partners; other weeks the offering is donated to one of the United Church of Christ’s special programs, or to disaster relief, or to a worthy organization addressing a particular need or challenge. During this first year, we gave away $56,618 from the plate.
- Finally, we hold special dinners, bake sales, auctions, and other events to raise funds to help those in need here at home and around the world.
If you have an idea about a service or justice cause you’d like to pursue, in fellowship with other Hancock members, speak to any member of the Mission and Justice Team, attend one of our monthly meetings, or speak with our clergy. If it advances the mission of Hancock Church, we want to help.
Volunteer In Church
Our church community, and the impact we have, depends on many volunteers. We serve together, have fun together, laugh and cry together, and make a difference in people’s lives. Volunteering not only helps others, but is also a great way to meet others in the Hancock community, enjoy the pleasures of fellowship, and learn new skills.
We hope you will consider getting more involved with Hancock. Take a few minutes to review the opportunities to volunteer in the church community in the boxes below. If you find an area of interest, simply click the Volunteer button and we will reach out to you. There’s no commitment to an inquiry.
Help Run Audio/Video in Sanctuary
We are in need of volunteers to help during our Sunday morning service. Volunteers would be responsible for running the projector when video clips are being shown and also monitor the sound system during the service using the ipad. This could be filled by one or two people each week and can rotate among a group of volunteers. Training will be provided. If you would like more information or are interested, please contact Office@HancockChurch.org.
Lexington Food Pantry
Food donations are now being collected at the front and back of the church. Please note that expired dates are not accepted. A monthly “Wish List” will be posted on the containers at each location. The “Wish List” can also be found here and in the Bulletin.
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED
Several volunteers are needed to bring food donations collected at the church over to the Lexington Food Pantry located at the Church of Our Redeemer, 6 Meriam St.
Flower Delivery
Seeking Flower Delivery Volunteers!
Help us love and care for our community by delivering flowers after Sunday Services. Questions? Contact Office@HancockChurch.org.
Leadership Teams
We believe our members and ministers partner together to lead our church into the future: Our ministers provide important theological frameworks for the work of our members in areas such as finance and faith formation, among many other ministries. This work is primarily done through teams. No one is required to serve on a team, but choosing to do so can be a rewarding way to serve our community and lead our church. Every January, our Nominating Team begins the work of finding church members to serve on our teams.
Our Mission Partners
Through our mission budget, Hancock provides ongoing operating support to a number of organizations locally here in Lexington, in the Greater Boston area, and around the world, carrying out Christ’s call to minister to those in need.
These are organizations doing great and vital work. We encourage you to consider them when you think about your own charitable giving.
The mission of the American Medical Resources Foundation (AMRF) is to improve health care around the world by donating medical equipment and supplies to hospitals that serve the poor in underdeveloped and developing countries of the world. Hancock member Kay Barney is chairman emeritus.
BasicNeeds US is a non-profit organization serving the health, social, and economic needs of people with mental illnesses and neurological disorders in the world’s poorest communities. BasicNeeds’ focus is on grant making, technical assistance, and advocacy for the people in these communities. Hancock members Dick and Charlotte Dougherty serve as president and executive director. Learn more at
The Bristol Lodge Men’s and Women’s Shelters in Waltham provide temporary, emergency shelter overnight accommodations for homeless adult women and men. Upon completion of the intake process, clients are given access to individualized case management services, meant to address and provide referrals for a wide spectrum of topics, including housing, employment, mental health, substance abuse, financial insecurity, nutrition and more.
City Mission Society is the oldest multi-service agency in New England, serving the educational, economic, and social needs of impoverished area residents since 1816. City Mission catalyzes action to root out poverty in our neighborhoods, with a strategic focus on homelessness prevention. Hancock has been a partner and supporter for more than a century, and Hancock members Carol Bukys and Russell Schutt serve on its board of directors.
Concord Prison Outreach, founded in 1968, is a coalition of individuals and faith communities committed to helping people who are incarcerated build better lives for themselves and their families. They work cooperatively with the Massachusetts Department of Correction to offer educational programs that focus on skill-building and personal growth in eight prisons and one jail.
Since 1972, Friendly Independent Sympathetic Help (FISH) has been offering Lexington residents one round-trip ride per week to medical appointments in Lexington and vicinity, including Boston. FISH relies exclusively on volunteers to provide rides and on donations from generous Lexington residents and organizations to cover operating expenses.
The Greater Boston Interfaith Organization (GBIO) is a broad-based organization that works to coalesce, train, and organize the communities of Greater Boston across religious, racial, ethnic, class, and neighborhood lines for the public good. Their primary goal is to develop local leadership and organized power to fight for social justice. Hancock joined as a member in 2018.
The Lexington Food Pantry distributes food every week to approximately 75 families in need of food assistance, with the help of many volunteers. Food is purchased with monetary donations or donated directly by individuals, organizations, and businesses; fresh produce is provided in season by the Lexington Interfaith Garden.
LGBT Asylum Task Force in Worcester, a ministry of the Hadwen Park Church, supports LGBTQI individuals fleeing persecution and violence in their home countries and are seeking asylum in the United States. While their applications are processed, the Task Force provides housing and financial support to help them get established in their adopted country.
The Massachusetts Council of Churches is a network of individuals, congregations and denominations convinced that what binds us together in Christ is stronger than what divides us. With members from many Christian denominations including the UCC, it engages policy issues on which all member denominations agree, and seeks to promote mutual understanding of one another’s theologies and doctrine. The goal is to promote Christian unity while honoring diversity.
The Outdoor Church serves homeless men and women in Cambridge. It brings the church to those who cannot or will not reach it on their own; its ministries include Sunday services followed by a light meal and/or street outreach, Saturday meals, pastoral visiting and memorial services.
Place of Promise in Lowell provides Christ-centered programming for men, women, and children to help them rebuild their broken lives physically, emotionally, relationally, and spiritually. They offer a long-term residential addiction recovery program for adults, and through Kids of Promise, programming for elementary, middle school, and high school aged children.
REACH Beyond Domestic Violence in Waltham is a comprehensive domestic violence service agency serving 7,000 people a year through a combination of intervention and prevention services. Their shelter, 24-hour hotline, and community-based direct services provide domestic violence survivors with the help they need to achieve permanent safety and independence.
Sustainable Harvest International has been providing local, long-term technical assistance and training to rural farming families in Central America since 1997. They equip and empower low-income farmers with the resources to transition from slash-and-burn agriculture, sustain the land for future generations, halt tropical deforestation, and build strong, self-supporting communities through agribusiness.
The Lexington Interfaith Garden, located near the Battle Green in Lexington Center, donates all of its produce to local food pantries and hunger relief programs. Volunteers of all ages from over fourteen faith communities work and learn together while planting, tending, and harvesting organically grown produce.
From its beginning in 1807, the mission of Andover-Newton Seminary has been to educate learned clergy, particularly those who serve in the congregational traditions, such as the United Church of Christ and the American Baptist Churches (USA). Located in Massachusetts for most of its history, it affiliated with Yale University in 2017. In recent decades many Andover-Newton seminarians have enriched the worship and programs of Hancock.
Rosie’s Place, founded in 1974 as the first women’s shelter in the United States, provides a safe and nurturing environment that helps poor and homeless women maintain their dignity, seek opportunity, and find security in their lives. Hancock has a 30-year history of partnership with Rosie’s Place coordinated by the Mission & Justice Team.
Women’s Lunch Place is a day shelter serving homeless women in the Greater Boston area. Located in Boston’s Back Bay, it welcomes all self-identifying women with open arms and unconditional support, restoring dignity and empowering personal decision-making by placing their needs, preferences and aspirations at the center of their model of care.
On September 20, 2017 Category 4 Hurricane Maria devastated the island of Puerto Rico. Nearly 3,000 American citizens lost their lives. The damage to the island’s economy, agriculture, infrastructure and people’s lives was vast and will take years to restore. Hancock responded by launching Lexington Unites for Puerto Rico (LUPR), a town-wide and interfaith effort that in the weeks following the hurricane provided a 45’ container packed with humanitarian aid.
Mission Initiatives
In addition to working with our many mission partners, Hancock members are engaged in several ongoing special initiatives of service and justice.
Hancock Environmental Action Team
The Hancock Environmental Action Team (HEAT) educates and advocates for ways to reduce our impact on the earth, whether it be personally, as a church community, or as a society. HEAT has been a leader in the effort to green the church and a source of ideas and enthusiasm for reducing the impact of our congregation and facilities on the environment. HEAT meets periodically. Communication with HEAT members is facilitated with the use of a Google Group. If you would like to know more about HEAT or to subscribe to the Google Group, please contact Andy McClaine.
Immigrant and Refugee Justice
Currently more than 70 million people worldwide have been forced from their homes by violence, persecution, and natural disasters – the highest number since World War II. Here in the United States, immigrants and refugees have become a political target. Children have been separated from their parents, young people who have never known another home fear deportation, and the number of refugees being accepted into this country is at its lowest level since 1980.
Distressed by these developments, a group of Hancock members came together in 2018 as the Immigrant and Refugee Justice Team to explore these issues and promote action. The team offers programs to educate and raise awareness of these issues and informs members about opportunities to put their faith into action and make a difference. At the team’s initiative, in 2019 Hancock declared itself to be an Immigrant Welcoming Congregation.
Anti-Racism
With our missions to Build Community out of Diversity and Work for the Common Good, Anti-Racism is a core tenent of action at Hancock Church. Click LEARN MORE to find resources and upcoming events at Hancock and in the community.
Lexington Unites for Puerto Rico
On September 20, 2017, Category 4 Hurricane Maria devastated the island of Puerto Rico. Nearly 3,000 American citizens lost their lives. The damage to the island’s economy, agriculture, infrastructure, and people’s lives was vast and will take years to restore. Hancock responded by launching Lexington Unites for Puerto Rico (LUPR), a town-wide and interfaith effort that, in the weeks following the hurricane, provided a 45’ container packed with humanitarian aid to the communities of Aguadilla, Cabo Rojo, and Punta Santiago. Since then, LUPR has continued to provide assistance in the recovery and rebuilding effort, providing funds and materials for repairing homes, replacing fishing boats, and providing hot lunches and a community laundry.
Sustainable Harvest International
Sustainable Harvest International (SHI) has been providing local, long-term technical assistance and training to rural farming families in Central America since 1997. Over the years Hancock has undertaken several mission trips to Honduras and Panama, helping villagers implement sustainable agricultural practices, and also provides SHI with ongoing financial support. In 2019 we started a new chapter in our relationship with SHI. Thanks to the challenge of a generous Hancock family, the congregation has agreed to fund SHI’s work in the village of La Concepcion in Meambar County, Honduras for four years. The village’s main economic activity is subsistence farming, with occasional daily wage labor outside the community. Most of the farmland is on low quality soils on steep slopes. Malnourishment is a problem and the lack of local production of fruits and vegetables limits access to a healthy and adequate diet. SHI will train villagers in regenerative agriculture and support local economic development as feasible alternatives to emigration. We look forward to following SHI’s progress and getting to know the villagers of La Concepcion.Centro Romero
Since 2018 the Daniel F. Romero Center for Border Ministries and Strategies, commonly known as Centro Romero (a partner of Global Ministries CLICK HERE), has been working in Tijuana, Mexico, to care for 69 single mothers from Central America seeking asylum in the U.S. These women fled violence and poverty in their home countries to seek safety and a better life for their children, and Centro Romero has helped with housing, food, and other assistance while they wait for their applications to be heard.
But Centro Romero cannot afford COVID vaccines, and the government of Mexico doesn’t provide vaccines to migrants. The impact of a COVID outbreak among the families would be devastating since the children often have no one else to care for them. Learning of this, Hancock’s Immigrant and Refugee Task Force spearheaded a successful drive to raise the $7,590 necessary to provide two shots of the Moderna vaccine to every mother. Our thanks to everyone who generously donated to make this possible, and to the congregation as a whole for their contribution from the church’s mission budget.
Volunteer In Community
Our church community, and the impact we have, depends on many volunteers. We serve together, have fun together, laugh and cry together, and make a difference in people’s lives. Volunteering not only helps others but is also a great way to meet others in the Hancock community, enjoy the pleasures of fellowship, and learn new skills.
We hope you will consider getting more involved with Hancock. Take a few minutes to review the opportunities to volunteer in the church community in the boxes below. If you find an area of interest, simply click the Volunteer button and we will reach out to you. There’s no commitment to an inquiry.
Lexington Food Pantry — May Wish List
The outside storage cabinet at the Church of Our Redeemer is now locked for the winter. Donations can be dropped off at Stop & Shop, 36 Bedford Street, Lexington, between registers 1 and 2.
The pantry is asking for donations of personal care and paper products in lieu of food items. Many people do not know that if you are on the food stamp program, you can not use them for anything taxable — which includes these items.
- Lima beans
- Condensed soups, such as cream of chicken, cream of mushroom, chicken noodle soup, and vegetable beef
- Shelf-stable milk (whole or low-fat) and handled paper bags are always needed
Lexington Interfaith Food Pantry
Please note that, due to COVID-19, the Lexington Food Pantry is currently not accepting new volunteers.
Lexington Food Pantry is following pandemic model. Clients place an order for curbside pickup. The food pantry is currently servicing approximately 100 families weekly.
The outside storage cabinet at the Church of Our Redeemer is locked for the winter. Donations can be dropped off at Stop & Shop, 36 Bedford St., Lexington, between registers 1 and 2.
Items the Pantry is in need of include:
- baked beans (regular) 15-16 oz.
- cans, pineapple chunk or sliced 20 oz.
- solid white tuna 5-7 oz.
- whole kernel corn 15 oz.
- macaroni and cheese 7.25 oz.
- pasta 1 lb. box
- pasta sauce 18 or 24 oz.
- peanut butter 16 oz.
- rice
- toiletries
Or click on the link to purchase donations on the food pantry’s Amazon List.
Interfaith Garden
The Interfaith Garden, located across from the Lexington Green, donates all its produce to the Lexington Food Pantry. From March to October, Hancock sends 2-3 volunteers twice a month to work with like-minded folk to tend the garden on Tuesday afternoons or Saturday mornings. No experience needed! Come help plant, weed, water, harvest, chat, laugh, and build community as we grow nutritious fresh produce for those with food insecurity in our midst.
Home Building
The Fuller Center for Housing and Habitat for Humanity are two international organizations, both founded by our friend Millard Fuller, whose mission is that everyone deserves a decent place to live. Hancock has had a long history of working with both groups, ranging from a 10-day build in Hawaii to individual days working on a new home in Tewksbury. It’s an incredible experience; come and help a needy family with a gift that lasts a lifetime. No experience is needed – part of the fun is learning new skills – and complete newcomers are welcome.
To learn about social justice events in the wider Lexington community, click here. Please note that many events have been temporarily suspended due to COVID-19.
