Members and friends of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Perth, Western Australia participated in a community service-themed event earlier this month.
The first-of-its-kind "CommUNITY Expo" brought together members of churches and other faith groups, charities, not-for-profits, and the public to celebrate and share ways to relieve suffering; strengthen individuals, families and communities; and care for the environment.
The event coincided with the beginning of the 2022 Light the World Christmas initiative.
Visitors took away samples and suggestions from the various stalls, including a Light the World calendar with daily service suggestions, and an invitation to watch the video, The Christ Child, during the Christmas season.
Having built friendships over the years with representatives from other churches and groups, members of the Church of Jesus Christ in Western Australia decided to host a Community Expo this year. The aim was to connect people to different organisations with whom they could volunteer, donate to, or support in other ways.
A weekly farmers market provided the perfect environment to showcase valuable local services with a range of charities, churches and not-for-profits.
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Self-reliance volunteers talk with guests at a CommUNITY Expo in Perth, Western Australia on 5 November 2022.© 2022 by Intellectual Reserve, Inc. All rights reserved.As people chose their fresh vegetables for the week, caught up with friends for breakfast and toe-tapped to live music, they took the opportunity to stop and chat to the various stall holders.
Volunteers showcasing the genealogical website, FamilySearch, were on hand to answer queries and get people set up on their mobile devices, whilst the JustServe team connected guests to local volunteering opportunities through JustServe.org.
A self-reliance stall introduced free courses and resources to visitors.
BIZLINK representatives were on hand to discuss inclusive employment pathways.
Caroline, representing local charity Joondalup Christmas Lunch—which provides a safe, welcoming and festive place on Christmas Day for those going through tough times—attended the expo.
"Bringing everyone together in the one place has many benefits because sometimes people want to volunteer but they do not know where to go...or even which place they would like to volunteer with, so I think this is a brilliant idea!"
Being able to access a variety of services and information in one spot proved helpful to many people and valuable to the organisations in attendance.
According to expo organisers, by uniting to amplify our collective efforts, we truly can #LightTheWorld at Christmas and throughout the year.
Elder Dallin H. Oaks, an Apostle of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, recently stated: “God is using more than one people for the accomplishment of his great and marvelous work. … It is too vast, too arduous, for any one people.”