Street Team | St. Pete First UMC

Street Ministry

Who We Are

Street Teams at St. Vincent dePaul

St. Pete First's Street Ministry cooks and serves meals to the homeless 5-6 nights per month.

Approximately 64 people serve with St. Petersburg First United Methodist Church Street Ministry at St. Vincent de Paul. A team of 4 to 7 cooks prepares the food in our church kitchen. Each of our teams at the shelter, consisting of 4 to 11 individuals, served meals to between 100 and 150 people each night for many years.

A volunteer will donate about two hours each month on this very worth-while cause. No prior experience in cooking or serving food is needed.

Our current monthly schedule is:

1st Mondays - Cooking and Serving
1st Tuesdays- Cooking and Serving
2nd Tuesdays - Cooking and Serving
2nd Wednesdays - Cooking and Serving
4th Mondays - Cooking and Serving
5th Mondays - Serving only

Street Ministry Thursday Lunch

Beginning in April 2024, Street Ministry has a new opportunity to serve the less fortunate. We are partnering with Metropolitan Ministries and Christ United Methodist Church to serve lunch every Thursday out of a facility at Christ UMC. Volunteers set up food and drink (beginning at 11:00 am), serve these items to patrons (11:30 am to 12:30 pm) and clean up the area (12:30 to 1:00 pm). You don't need to be available every week to volunteer. A welcoming heart is all the experience needed.

4th Wednesday Born to Serve

Street Ministry helps with the 4th Wednesday Born to Serve program, in partnership with Gift'd Ministries, which provides showers, haircuts, healthcare, and meals for unhoused individuals on our church campus.

Street Teams at the Salvation Army Job Center

Volunteers at St. Pete First help staff the Job Center at the Salvation Army One-Stop in South St. Petersburg (1400 4th St. S.). People staying at this shelter and other individuals, primarily from the surrounding area, come for assistance in finding a job. We train and help clients to prepare resumes, establish email accounts, conduct online job searches, and perform other skills needed for a job search. Any person can use this free service, but the target group of clients typically have employment barriers such as being homeless, not having appropriate clothing for a job interview, having a prison record, not having a Florida Driver’s license/ID or needing to rely on public transportation.

Other services available at the Job Center include assistance with ordering a free phone, getting a free monthly bus pass, applying or renewing SNAP (Food Stamps) benefits, obtaining information about getting a State of Florida ID or Driver’s License, etc. PSTA daily bus passes are available for clients to attend job interviews when needed. Additionally, some job interview clothing is available.

Volunteers serve as little as 1 day a week for two hours. Volunteering at the Job Center requires some prior experience in operating a computer, otherwise all training is provided. Hal Heitler is the Job Center Leader and can be contacted at 727-448-6291 or halheitler@gmail.com.

Volunteer Times:

Monday thru Thursday— 9:30 to 11:30 AM

Interested in serving on a Street Team?

Click here, choose "Street Ministry Team," and submit your info to let us know you're interested. We'll answer any questions that you have and make sure you get connected.

Hal Heitler is the Coordinator for this Ministry. You may also contact him at 727-448-6291 or by email at halheitler@gmail.com