Deacons are a bridge between parishioners and the communities where they live. They are called to ensure the poor, the weak, the sick, and the lonely are served. Throughout 2025 and 2026, our deacons will be reflecting on how their ministries intersect with food insecurity in Connecticut. Two of ECCT’s deacons, the Rev. Dinushka De Silva and the Ven. Ellen Adams, share a bit about how their home parishes are helping feed the hungry across Connecticut.
St. John’s, Stamford
St. John’s, Stamford outreach team, on a monthly basis, gives meals to men who work as day laborers in the Stamford area. These men are food insecure and many times do not know where their next meal is coming from.
Our Outreach Committee also has a harvest garden that provides hundreds of pounds of fresh vegetables every year to the Food Bank of Lower Stamford.
We have an Interfaith Community Thanksgiving meal distribution every year, delivering 250 meals to the homebound and to those who are food insecure.
We provide food gift cards to individuals and families with low incomes through Person to Person, Family Centers, the homeless at Homes for the Brave, and the men who work as day laborers.
We provide and serve dinners for men who are homeless at Pacific House shelter.
We assemble bags of food at the Filling In the Blanks warehouse for children from low income families that are food insecure.
The Rev. Dinushka De Silva
Deacon
St. David’s, Gales Ferry
At the end of the service on Sunday, the deacon or priest gives the dismissal. The congregation disperses. Many members of the congregation volunteer for an organization that offers food to others.
St. David’s in Gales Ferry supports the Ledyard Food Pantry. Ed is our liaison and finds out what groceries they need, and we publish it in the weekly eNews. The food pantry is one of the services LICEAF (Ledyard Inter-Church Emergency Assistance Fund) provides for those in need. Two members of our parish, Lisa and Polly serve on the LICEAF Board.
Pat and Joe and Pete worship at St. David’s but live 15 miles away. They volunteer for Care and Share (a non-profit organization) in their town, Old Lyme. This local group offers food assistance as well as other services.
Susan volunteers at Hope Garden during the growing season. This community garden supplies fresh vegetables to the Ledyard Food Pantry and St. Vincent de Paul Soup Kitchen in nearby Norwich.
St. David’s used to serve a meal at the New London Community Meal Center every fourth Tuesday. They always made Shepherd’s Pie because it was a favorite with the guests. They do not have enough people that can do this ministry anymore, but they still support this soup kitchen from our Outreach budget. Bill and Pete pick up leftover food from the schools every Friday and deliver it to the meal center. They also go to stores and pick up donations during the week.
It is important to remember that we do God’s work all week, as the church gathered and as the church scattered.
The Ven. Ellen Adams
Archdeacon
Browse the Deacon’s Page on ECCT’s website or talk to a deacon or priest about this ministry. You can also contact ECCT’s Canon for Lay & Ordained Vocations, the Rev. Rebecca Hatch to learn more about the diaconate.