Missions of Hyde Park United Methodist – Hyde Park United Methodist supports various missions at the church. The Alternative Christmas Market is held each year and members of the congregation purchase gifts to benefit people in need. On Sunday mornings, Hyde Park’s Open Arms Ministry provides a nourishing meal to those in need. Click here for more missions and information on how to get involved.

Missions of Tampa and Hillsborough County – The church’s Faith Promise Mission Fund supports numerous activities in the Tampa Bay area such as Good Samaritan Mission, Metropolitan Ministries, Salvation Army and Steppin’ Stone Farm. Click here for more missions and information on how to get involved.

Missions of Florida and the Nation – The church’s Faith Promise Mission Fund supports activities in the state of Florida and other missions throughout the nation. Missions include United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) and Florida United Methodist Children’s Home. Click here for more missions and information on how to get involved.

Missions Worldwide – The Faith Promise Mission Fund supports activities worldwide. Missions include the Cuba-Florida Covenant, For the Love of Children and Upper Room Ministries. Click here for more missions and information on how to get involved.

Adult Mission Trips – In recent years, adult mission teams have traveled to Nicaragua, Cuba and South Africa. Click here for more information about adult mission trips and how to get involved.

Faith Promise Missions Pledge Fund — Each year a Missions Celebration is held in the early spring. At this time, we are asked to make a Faith Promise Misisons Pledge to support ministries in Tampa and worldwide. It is a promise to God. No one will ever come to you and demand payment for your promise; however, you can include your pledge with your other financial reports at your request, otherwise, it is anonymous. It is an act of faith. It is simply trusting God to supply the amount that God impresses on your heart to promise. It is a promise for one year.

Faith Promise Misisons Pledge Cards are made available during the Missions Celebration, anytime at the Ministries Office or here. You can also make you 2012 Faith Promise pledge online here.

Now is a great time to get involved! Find a mission you’d like to serve and contact the liaison for more information. A good starting point is this year's Mission Book. It provides a listing of many of the agencies we support, their immediate needs and the church and agency contacts.

You may also contact The Rev. Vicki Walker, Minister of Missions and Outreach, at 813.253.5388 or email. You can serve individually or with a group. What’s most important is that you get involved!

Homeless youth are an invisible - but very present - population in Hillsborough County. Formally known as "unaccompanied youth," these young people, ages 15 to 21, do not have a parent or legal guardian and no permanent night time residence. Most wind up becoming permanent residents of our criminal systems and develop mental health issues or drug addictions. Join the community to heighten awareness of homeless youth at a Homeless Youth Forum 9:30-11 a.m. Wednesday, June 13 at the Straz Center. Sponsored by the Homeless Coalition, the forum will include stories from homeless and formerly homeless youth. This event is free; advance registration is recommended. To register, visit this website, or contact Karen Buesing or Jeremiah Kerr, 813.223.6115.

There is a critical need for Wi-Fi enabled laptops in the missions we support in South Africa. These missions provide young people with up-to-date data processing training, and helps them acquire the skills they need to get decent jobs. Your donated laptop can mean a job for a young man or woman who otherwise would have limited employment options.

Here’s how the process works: Donated computers are sent to the United Methodist Church (UMC) headquarters in Nashville. Nashville completely reformats the hard drives on the machines. Unlike the deletion of files, this process completely erases the contents of the drive, and returns it to a factory default condition. The computers are then sent to the Africa Upper Room Ministries in South Africa, where a new operating system and applicable licensed software for use by the UMC in South Africa are installed.

Here is what Roland Rink, the Director of Africa Upper Room Ministries, says about this project:
“Thank you for your efforts to secure these computers for us. If I may be so bold as to speak on behalf of the young people who will benefit from the hands-on training as a result of these PCs — you have no idea what a life-changing gift this will be! It takes them a giant stride closer to employment, which for the vast majority of them is ultimately their single goal in life right now. To be gainfully employed and thereby support their families — things we probably took for granted when we left school and college.”

You may leave your laptops at the Ministry Offices during the week, and donation receipts are available there by providing information on the make, model, and serial number of each computer. If that's not convenient, pickup can be arranged.  

If you have any questions or would like to arrange for pickup, please contact Rocky Ryland, 813.281.8813.

Hyde Park members Doug and Cheri Roland are responding this summer to a lifelong call to service, by moving to South Africa to volunteer at the new Seth Mokitimi Methodist Seminary about 350 miles from Johannesburg. Read Tampa Tribune reporter Michelle Bearden's article about them published June 26, 2010.

Click here for the Roland's blog.