PBJ, that is our peanut butter and jelly project, had its debut at Gashland in May of 1997. The idea was brought to us by one of our members, Mary Larrick, who passed away a number of years ago. Mary and her husband Bob had been visiting relatives in the D.C. area and were introduced to the PBJ idea by the church the relative attended.  Liking the concept, she brought it back to us. The project was a simple one: make peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Anyone who was interested in helping out was recruited.  

The peanut butter and jelly have been provided by donations from the congregation. The money for the bread comes from the Outreach budget. The ongoing date for making the sandwiches was set as the second Tuesday of the month at 9:30 A.M. All congregation members willing and available were encouraged to be a part of the program. That is not to say participation has been limited to our congregation only, as we currently have had a few participants who are friends of GEPC members. 

If you are free the second Tuesday morning of each month, you are most welcome to join our PBJ crew.  It’s a relaxed time of visiting with other GEPC participants as we make, bag and box approximately 500 sandwiches each month.These sandwiches are then taken to City Union Mission by one of the helpers. The sandwiches are included in lunches C.U.M. provides for men they have going out on various work details. Also they are there for someone coming in any time of the day wanting something to eat, or as an additional part of a regular meal.

There have been very few months, less than ten, over the years of the PBJ program that we have not been able to make the sandwiches. A few of those times have been this year due to Covid. A few other times have been due to inclement weather. During those times, however, we have been able to take peanut butter and jelly and sometimes also bread to C.U.M., allowing them to do their own sandwich making. Not many years ago our VBS kids were involved in making sandwiches for C.U.M. as they learned about helping others.

In conclusion, we are always looking for more helpers with this outreach project. If you are free each second Tuesday morning mark “9:30: PBJ, Fellowship Hall” on your calendar, then come and be a part of the PBJ team. We are currently wearing masks and social distancing, so join us in a worthwhile program.