Ministries

The word Philoptochos means “friend to the poor,” in Greek, “Φίλος τον Προχόν.” The primary purpose of the Philoptochos is to serve as a service organization to all those who may be in need. This is accomplished by offering one’s service and talents to the organization in the operation of fundraisers, special event receptions, donations to charitable organizations and direct help to those in need.

Hosting the Feastday reception for the Great Vespers of the Dormition (Falling asleep) of the Virgin Mary.
Annual Vasilopita auction to raise money for St. Basil’s Academy – a residential school for school-age children.
Preparation of Thanksgiving baskets for those in need.
Hospital and home visitations.
Baking the pastries for the Greek Cultural Festival and the Annual Christmas Pastry Sale.

A true Christian offers one’s time, talents and treasures the Lord so that the Church may help all those in need. The Philoptochos is one of the primary organizations solely dedicated to philanthropy.

The Orthodox Bible Study is designed to allow for the study of Holy Scripture within the Patristic mindset of the Orthodox Church. A particular book of the Bible (this year – St. Paul’s 1st Letter to the Corinthians) is studied in sequence with commentary derived from the Holy Father’s of the Church; i.e. St. John Chrysostom, St. Gregory of Nyssa, St. Basil the Great, etc.

A segment of time at the end of each session will be dedicated to questions and answers regarding other topics that may arise regarding the Theology and Tradition of the Orthodox Church. Please consult the Church Calendar for the schedule.

Beginning the 2nd Sunday in September and concluding at the end of May, the School age children of the Assumption attend Sunday School following Holy Communion each Sunday. The objective of Sunday School is to aid our families in the formation of our youth in the basics of the Worship, Theology and Basic expressions of the Orthodox Church.

St. Nicholas Gift Project – Each child brings in a wrapped gift to be presented in the Church to the Icon of St. Nicholas which will be later distributed to different shelters or hospitals in the community.
Christmas Pageant – A presentation of the Nativity of Christ by the Children of the parish.
Godparent Sunday – Children attend the Divine Liturgy and receive Holy Communion with their Godparents.
Sunday of Orthodoxy – Children bring icons from home and walk around the Church in the procession with the Clergy and Altarboys to celebrate the Sunday of Orthodoxy.
Vacation Bible School (VBS) – Held each June, the Children come to the Assumption for a week of learning about the faith with much fun, fellowship and food.

Serving in the Altar is an awesome and rare privilege. Boys who are given this privilege serve during the Divine Services of the Church by tending to duties in the Altar as well as participate in the Divine Entrances and Processions. The Altarboys also have an annual fellowship outing to a sporting event.

The purpose of the Choir is to offer prayers by singing praises to the Lord during worship services. The Church Choir offers the Liturgical responses as the Divine Liturgies, Holy Feastdays and during Holy Week and Pascha.

This is a wonderful opportunity for our parishioners to begin learning the Greek Language or to “brush up” the old vocabulary. There are 2 levels of classes:

Beginning Greek - No precious knowledge required (only a high degree of motivation). This class will introduce spoken and written Modern Greek including the Alphabet, grammatical sentence structure, declension of nouns, conjugation of verbs, conversational drilling and reading simple texts.
Advanced - This class is designed for the individual who knows some Greek and wants to improve reading and conversational skills, vocabulary and conversational fluency. The focus will be on greater variety of styles and levels of discourse and usage with an increased study in the written language and more formal grammar and syntax.

The Greek Cultural Festival is primarily organized and operated by the parishioners of the Assumption Parish. Its function is to outreach to the Community of the Quad Cities with exposure to Orthodoxy and to the Greek Culture. Each year the Greek Cultural Festival donates thousands of dollars to many worthwhile charitable organizations.

With an endeavor such as this, which is a community event, it is important that all parishioners give of their time and talents. Outreach is imperative in today’s culture.

Children get together monthly to participate in a planned activity. Activities are designed to build fellowship in a safe and fun environment. Events include retreats, service and outings to local places of interest (bowling, apple picking, sledding, etc.).

GOYA is an organization in which teenagers can gather together to participate in fun activities, to get to know each other and talk about the Greek Orthodox religion. In addition, service projects are planned throughout the year, as well as, participation in Parish, Metropolis and Archdiocesan youth retreats, athletic programs and summer camps.

To bring together all adult Orthodox men within the Church community 2 to 3 times a year for the purpose of creating fellowship among one another through various social activities. Events have or will include lamb roasts, outing to sporting events, athletic activities, etc.

The purpose of the Ladies’ Club is to provide fellowship events 2 to 3 times a year to the ladies of our Parish who often give much of themselves in service to the community and to Philoptochos. Newly formed, our first event was a “Dessert and Appetizer Pot Luck,” which was a great success.

The Cana Married Fellowship is a social organization. Its function is to give young married couples in the Greek Orthodox community an opportunity to meet and enjoy Christian fellowship. Our activities include: dinner parties and social gatherings at members’ homes, outings to restaurants, plays and baseball games, etc. This is a great opportunity for young married parishioners to socialize and make friends!

The Golden Circle provides fellowship 2 to 3 times a year for our retired parishioners with day trips and at events at the Cultural Center. Events have or will include visits to the St. John Chrysostom Monastery, Luncheons, Fall Foliage Tours, Specialty Shopping, etc. Although it is designed for older adults, events are open to anyone.