Reverend Tedd Pullano of Ogden Presbyterian Church has always had an action-oriented focus in his heart. “There is more to faith than worshipping,” he said. Rev. Pullano believes it is important to not only meet the spiritual needs of those in and outside of the church but to meet their physical needs as well.
Rev. Pullano has been at OPC for the last four years. Before that, he served as Pastor at New Life Presbyterian in Rochester. “We have been very active in getting out of our building and engaging in the needs of their community,” he said. OPC provides outreach ranging from providing meals to Eagle Star veterans home, providing parenting support classes in the school, ministry at the Spencerport Ecumenical Food Shelf, and assisting with meals and volunteers at Aurora House hospice care home.
John Caloritis, an elder at the church, brought the idea of participating in the Sleep in Heavenly Peace program to the congregation. Sleep in Heavenly Peace is a national program that believes a bed is a basic need for a child’s proper physical and emotional health. Shawn and Donna Ritchie direct the Rochester Chapter. The program utilizes a group of volunteers to build, assemble, and deliver handcrafted, quality beds to children in the community whose family is in need.
On Saturday, October 10, Ogden Presbyterian Church and a team of volunteers built 20 beds, which will be delivered complete with sheets, comforters, and pillows for children in need. The cost was covered by church funds set aside for missions. “We have a lot of talent and skill in our church community,” said Rev. Pullano. The talents involved not only building the beds but also handcrafting quilts for the children as well.
The 20 beds constructed on October 10 will go to families in the Ogden area and in Rochester. The church hopes the beds provide the families a necessity for their children and help bring them to a better place. “Giving is great but building the relationship to help them get on their feet is very important to us,” said Rev. Pullano. He hopes to stay connected to the families after all the beds are delivered and set up.
The project was made possible through support from the OPC community as well as generous donations made by Matthew Fields.
For information on Ogden Presbyterian Church, visit https://www.ogdenpresbyterian.org.
