Volunteering

Lianna Gourmos, 20 years old, grew up in the exceptional town of Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, where she was only around five minutes away from her Greek Orthodox church. The church has always been something

New York, New York—I am a product of prison ministry. I often try to distance myself from my past; however, I do not want to be like the healed leper who, after he is healed,

QUEENS, NY — Theodoros Psahos, a Greek American raised in Astoria, Queens, is proving that the values of community, service, and mentorship he grew up with in the Greek community are alive and well and

“Yousef is smiling again,” his mother said. “That is something that I thought I’d never see.” Yousef (not his real name) has undergone more hardships than any 10-year-old child should endure. He and his family

New York, New York—Before Rassophore Monk Michael was called to monasticism and before he was called to prison ministry, Michael struggled with addiction. “A big part of my story is addiction. Before I came to

Bachuki’s family had faced years of hardship. Two of his five children have disabilities, his wife became bedridden after illness, and their house had been destroyed in a powerful windstorm. The sole caregiver for his

St. Nicholas Greek Orthodox Church and National Shrine at the World Trade Center is expanding its commitment to serving those in need through two ongoing charitable initiatives: the monthly “Feed the Hungry” outreach and the

“Africa … missions.” Those were the words Tess Emanuel typed into her computer’s search bar one summer afternoon, not knowing exactly what she was looking for—only that she wanted something more. That simple search would

One year after Hurricanes Helene and Milton caused widespread damage across the southeastern US, International Orthodox Christian Charities (IOCC) is marking a year of bringing hope to those affected through emergency response, recovery, and rebuilding

“It felt like the whole world was there to celebrate. There was no time more joyous.” This is Justin’s childhood memory of Divine Liturgy on Pascha at his home church in Philadelphia. But life had

Picture this: you and a few other people from your church are hearing Christ’s call in Matthew 25:36 in a new and deeper way (“…I was in prison, and you came to Me”). With the

Fr. John Chagnon of St. Ignatius Antiochian Orthodox Church in Madison, Wisconsin, has had a heart for people in prison for many years, ever since he personally knew Fr. Duane Pederson, founder of Orthodox Christian Prison Ministry.

The patron saint of the Orthodox Volunteer Corps (OVC), an organization that places twentysomethings in lines of volunteerism in Pittsburgh and Boston, is Mother Maria of Paris—a Russian poet, nun, and member of the Parisian resistance who was killed in the Holocaust and later canonized as a saint by the Ecumenical Patriarchate. Her life of service, Boston OVC volunteer Harry Parks points out, was two-fold.

This striking—and sobering—claim opened Orthodox Christian Prison Ministry (OCPM)’s reflection for Prison Ministry Awareness Sunday, July 27, 2025.

From Camp Saint Paul to the streets of Hamilton Heights, New York, this week the generosity and stewardship of our Direct Archdiocesan District family extended far beyond the campgrounds.

On July 8, International Orthodox Christian Charities (IOCC) issued a statement on its operations in Uganda, after powerful storms badly damaged a school and disrupted life for its students in the region. 

When The Prison Policy Initiative, a team of experts on cutting-edge research around the U.S. prison system, released its annual “big picture” report in 2024, one statistic stood out to us more than any other: 113 million adults in the United States have an immediate family member who has been to prison or jail. 

The Greek Orthodox Metropolis of San Francisco Young Adult League (YAL) is pleased to announce the 2025 YAL Conference, taking place over Labor Day Weekend, August 28 – September 1, 2025, in Seattle, Washington at the Seattle Marriott in Bellevue. 

Madeline Cano served as Orthodox Christian Prison Ministry’s first Social Media Intern from 2024-2025. When she was asked to write a culminating essay on her experience, OCPM was so moved by her reflections on the heart of prison ministry that they asked to share her thoughts with the greater community.

The Orthodox Parish Leadership ministry of the Greek Orthodox Metropolis of San Francisco is offering a webinar on “Becoming a Dynamic Parish Ministry: Approaches for Building, Engaging and Serving.” Peter Panagis will lead this engaging discussion on Monday, June 16, 2025. 

On Friday, June 6, 2025, Michael Sider-Rose, Chief Executive Officer of Orthodox Volunteer Corps, shared the following reflection with OVC’s supporters.

Fr. Peter Spiro, Director of the FREEDOM Ministry of the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese, was a featured speaker at the 2025 Safe Environment Conference, engaging all three Catholic Dioceses across the state of Tennessee.

IOCC is continuing Hurricanes Helene and Milton response efforts in Florida and Tennessee. Rebuilding is in full swing! This year, IOCC has hosted more than ten volunteer teams, as well as an AmeriCorps NCCC team, who have helped repair over 35 homes. Volunteers have learned how to lay flooring, cut and install drywall, mud and tape walls, and install doors and trim. Each task a volunteer completes brings homeowners one step closer to restoring their homes to pre-storm condition.

It all started with one priest writing letters to just one man behind bars. Now, sixteen years later, 21 Orthodox clergy and laity serve 69 people in four different prison facilities across Michigan.