Outreach Ministries

Mission Partners

Our mission partners are companions in making the world a better place—a place more in tune with God’s vision of justice, love and peace.

Fifth Avenue Presbyterian Church pursues mission partner relationships with local, national and international organizations whose vision and ministries align closely with our own. In this way, we extend the love and hope of Christ far beyond our corner of Midtown.

We invite you to support our mission partnerships through prayer, service, action and engagement.

Local Partners

Asylum Support Clinic

As part of the New Americans Committee activities at Rutgers Presbyterian Church, the church is the fiscal sponsor for an Asylum Support Clinic. The volunteer-based clinic meets weekly at Rutgers. The clinic provides no-cost individual consultations with migrants over a period of 7 weeks to help them prepare for pro se appearances in their requests for asylum. Volunteers also assist in completing documentation migrants need to apply for work authorizations.

The Church of Gethsemane

This Presbyterian congregation, located in Brooklyn, cares for incarcerated and formerly incarcerated individuals and their families through its Project Connect outreach program. The church sponsors visits to prisons, monthly letter writing, care packages and re-entry peer support. Through the Christmas Angel Tree Project, Fifth Avenue collects Christmas gifts for children of the families served by the Church of Gethsemane. churchofgethsemane.org
#justice   #economic-insecurity   #children

Garden of Hope


This non-profit organization serves survivors of gender-based violence - domestic violence, human trafficking, and sexual assault - by providing critical resources, such as safe and confidential emergency housing, counseling, legal services, economic empowerment workshops, and wellness programs. Its programs operate primarily within Chinese communities based in Queens and Brooklyn. https://gohny.org/

Search and Care

Search and Care is a nonprofit agency serving older adults in the Yorkville, Carnegie Hill and East Harlem neighborhoods who need help managing daily activities or accessing essential services. Search and Care provides the support and companionship older adults need so that they can age at home for as long as possible. Fifth Avenue volunteers assist the agency’s staff at various times throughout the year to deliver food, prepare care packages, make check-in calls and assist individuals in navigating financial matters. searchandcare.org
#older-adults   #economic-insecurity   #justice

Urban Outreach Center NYC

A ministry of Avenue Church NYC (formerly Jan Hus Presbyterian Church), the Urban Outreach Center is a nonprofit organization with a 30-year history of social justice ministry with low-income New Yorkers. Located in a recently renovated space in East Harlem, the Center offers a food pantry, weekly community dinners, clothing distribution, hygiene services, resume writing workshops and other services. uocnyc.org
#justice   #economic-insecurity   #homelessness

West Side Federation for Senior and Supportive Housing

This community-based nonprofit organization, known as WSFSSH, develops and manages low-cost housing for independent seniors, frail elderly individuals, older persons with serious mental illnesses, homeless individuals, persons with physically handicapping conditions, grandparents raising grandchildren, and families in need. WSFSSH properties in Manhattan and the Bronx provide both shelter and permanent housing with supportive services for members and friends of Fifth Avenue. wsfssh.org
#older-adults   #justice   #economic-insecurity #homelessness

Regional Partners

The Farminary Project

The Farminary Project, a program of Princeton Theological Seminary, integrates theological education with small-scale regenerative agriculture. On its 21-acre farm, the program trains faith leaders in ecology, sustainability and food justice, and challenges them to follow a rhythm of life governed by the seasons and Sabbath. Every year the confirmation class of Fifth Avenue visits the Farminary to work and learn. ptsem.edu/farminary
#education   #sabbath   #justice   #ecology

Holmes Camp and Retreat Center

Holmes is a 550-acre camp and conference center located 55 miles north of New York City in the Hudson River Valley. Its pristine forests, lakes, cliffs, trails and wetlands provide an ideal environment for the study of conservation, ecology, peace, community and justice. Operated by the Presbyteries of NYC, Long Island and the Hudson River, Holmes welcomes persons of all ages and faith traditions. Fifth Avenue holds its annual Family Camp here each summer. holmescamp.org
#children   #justice   #education   #sabbath   #ecology

International Partners

Hands Along the Nile Development Services

This U.S.-based nonprofit orgranization develops partnerships between Egyptians and Americans to raise intercultural understanding through exchange, dialogue and educational opportunities, and to help bring socioeconomic stability to communities in Egypt. HANDS contributes to development projects, such as microloans for businesses, and supports Egypt-based organizations that offer literacy and job-skills training for children from the garbage collector community of Cairo. Fifth Avenue hosts an annual crafts fair featuring merchandise created by women and girls who have learned to weave, quilt and recycle paper in an effort to empower themselves and support their families. handsalongthenile.org
#justice   #economic-insecurity   #education   #children   #women

Ministry of Hope Lesotho

Ministry of Hope Lesotho is a refuge for impoverished and orphaned infants, children and youth in Maseru, Lesotho, in southern Africa. A full-time social worker, a tutor and round-the-clock caregivers create a safe, loving home for as many as 30 children in a modest, three-bedroom house. Ministry of Hope nurtures the quality of life for these children before returning them to their families or placing them with adopted families. Members and friends of Fifth Avenue have taken two mission trips to Lesotho to witness the ministry first-hand, engage with the children and lend volunteer support. ministryofhopelesotho.org
#children   #justice   #education   #economic-insecurity

Parity

Parity is a faith-based nonprofit that works to empower queer faith and justice leaders, guide secular organizations and communities in affirming LGBTQ+ spirituality, and promote LGBTQ+ religious liberty and freedom. Parity and its partner organizations provide mentoring, retreats, classes and workshops to help families, faith communities and schools understand what it means to embrace an LGBTQ+ person and affirm their faith. Fifth Avenue has been a member congregation of Parity since 2005 and cooperates in outreach efforts with LGBTQ+ youth experiencing homelessness. parity.nyc
#justice   #LGBTQ   #education

Madagascar: Mission Co-workers Dan and Elizabeth Turk; Doug Tilton; Christi Boyd

Dan and Elizabeth Turk, mission co-workers of the Presbyterian Church (USA), partner with Madagascar’s Church of Jesus Christ in the areas of health, environment, agriculture and safe drinking water on behalf of the Malagasy population. Doug Tilton serves as the Presbyterian Church (USA) regional liaison in Lesotho, Madagascar, Mauritius, Mozambique, South Africa and Zimbabwe, and provides support for other mission personnel in the region. Christi Boyd works in Congo, Madagascar, Niger and South Sudan. She accompanies global partners as they seek to remedy the marginalization of women and children in their communities. Members and friends of Fifth Avenue’s congregation have taken two mission trips to Madagascar.
Learn more about the work of Dan and Elizabeth Turk.
Learn more about Doug Tilton’s work.
Learn more about Christi Boyd’s work.
#justice   #education   #ecology   #children   #women

Philippines: Mission Co-workers Cobbie and Dessa Palm

Cobbie and Dessa Palm are mission co-workers of the Presbyterian Church (USA). Working alongside the United Church of Christ in the Philippines, Cobbie Palm trains and supports local church pastors throughout the Philippines, enhancing their skills in church development and revitalization. He also develops curricula and trains churches in peace and reconciliation for the Philippine Ecumenical Peace Platform. Dessa Palm coordinates the United Church of Christ’s Theater for Evangelism and Advocacy, which trains church workers and members to creatively communicate the gospel and bear witness to the transformative role of a caring and compassionate church.
Learn more about the work of Cobbie and Dessa Palm.
#justice   #education   #children

U.S.-Mexico Border: Mission Co-workers Mark Adams and Miriam Maldonado Escobar

Mark Adams and Mariam Maldonado Escobar are based at the Presbyterian Border Ministry Frontera de Cristo, which offers vital humanitarian assistance to migrants escaping poverty and violence in Mexico and Central America. The ministry supports residents of Agua Prieta, Mexico, in church development, women’s economic empowerment, fair trade enterprises for coffee farmers, substance abuse treatment and educational enrichment for children. Frontera de Cristo hosted a delegation from Fifth Avenue during a week-long mission immersion trip to border in 2019.
Learn more about the work of Mark Adams and Miriam Maldonado Escobar.
#refugees-immigrants   #justice   #education   #economic-insecurity

Heritage Mission Partners

Fifth Avenue members and friends are invited to engage with and support the work of the following former mission partners.

The Bowery Mission
#justice   #economic-insecurity   #homelessness   #older-adults   #children

The Bridge
#economic-insecurity   #older-adults   #justice

Habitat for Humanity New York City
#economic-insecurity   #justice

Haiti Reforestation Partnership (formerly The Haiti Fund)
#justice   #education   #ecology

Operation Exodus
#children   #education   #justice

Project FIND
#older-adults   #economic-insecurity   #justice

PSS (formerly Presbyterian Senior Services)
#older-adults   #economic-insecurity   #justice

#womensempowerment #survivors