On Sunday, September 27, we will taking a special collection for a memorial offering in honor of Larry Walton, a former rector of St. Mary’s who passed away this past summer. We will be making a donation in Larry’s name to the Wareham Area Committee for the Homeless. Donations can be made by either cash or check made out to WACH and placed in the collection plate that Sunday, or delivered to the church office.
After retiring from St. Mary’s, Larry and Joan Walton moved to their home on Glen Charlie Pond in Wareham, MA. They joined the Church of the Good Shepherd in Wareham. As members of the Outreach Committee they saw the need to help those in Wareham and surrounding communities who were falling through the cracks and becoming homeless. In 2002, joined by other clergy and business people in the area, they established the Wareham Area Committee for the Homeless (WACH). From the very beginning Larry and Joan insisted that all donations must go directly to help the needy.
In 2003 Larry and Joan opened an office for WACH at the Church of the Nazarene in Wareham. They helped financially and worked hard to establish the program until they moved to Florida.
Today the Wareham Area Committee for the Homeless sponsors three programs: 1. Turning Point assists tenants to obtain and remain in decent housing and provides assistance to the needy, whether a check to pay the rent or a gas card to ease the pressure at the pump. 2. Baby Point assists individuals and families with infants and young children struggling with the high cost of basic child care 3. Health Point provides basic health services, helps people sign up for government health programs and helps with transportation to medical appointments.
In 2007 Wareham Area Committee for the Homeless served 333 clients; and in 2008 the number grew to 1471.
A donation to the Wareham Area Committee for the Homeless would support Larry and Joan’s vision of helping the homeless and near homeless help themselves.
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