M.O.M.

Church World Service Blankets + • February 2012

Wed, 1 Feb 2012 18:44:58 -0500

Kenya – By 2013, many communities in Kenya will be using new biogas digesters, with the help of CWS and partner the Kenya National Federation of Agricultural Producers (KENFAP). Through this new technology, CWS is hoping to help farmers establish some 240 biogas digesters. A biogas system produces methane gas, using water and cow manure. A latrine can also be attached to the digester to consume human waste. The decomposition process eliminates diseases in the waste so that the slurry that remains can be used as a very effective agricultural fertilizer. Methane gas collects at the top of the digester and is kept under pressure from the liquid mixture in the tank. A gas pipe is installed in the top of the dome to collect the gas to pipe as fuel. The end result is a cleaner-burning and a byproduct to be used as fertilizer for crops.

Domestic Blankets+: CWS continues to provide blankets and other assistance to low-income families or those affected by emergencies in the U.S. For example, recently CWS has provided 1,020 CWS Blankets for distribution through the First United Methodist Church, in Fargo, North Dakota, for needs of people affected by flooding in the region.

One thing we are proud of at Collenbrook is that our Women’s Association has had a long interest in CWS’s blanket program. Between them and the rest of the church, we have given over $1,000 each year for 10 of the last 11 years. Have you noticed the banner at the back of the sanctuary? You are the plus in Blankets+!

Homeless Shelter at Old First Reformed Church • January 2012

Sun, 1 Jan 2012 20:04:07 -0500

Mary Ann Davis sees to it that toiletries and other needed items get taken to the Life Center of Eastern Delaware County (box at the back of the sanctuary). She also takes pull tabs from aluminum cans to be recycled by Ronald McDonald House.

December’s Mission of the Month gifts total $890, which will be divided equally between the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)’s Christmas Offering for retired ministers’ assistance, and the All Saints’ offering of the Southeast Pennsylvania U.C.C. Conference, also for retired ministers’ assistance.

Special Collections for Retired Clergy • December 2011

Thu, 1 Dec 2011 11:39:57 -0500

We have made it our habit over the past few years to dedicate our December Mission of the Month to benefit retired ministers and others assisted through our denominations, divided equally between the United Church of Christ and the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.). We send half of our offering to the Presbyterian “Christmas Joy Offering” and half to the Southeast Pennsylvania Conference of the U.C.C.

“Christmas Joy” Offering: For more than 70 years, Presbyterians have given generously at Christmas to support the unmet needs of families who have devoted their lives to the mission of the PC(USA). Today this Offering is shared equally by the Assistance Program of the Board of Pen-sions, which provides critical assistance to Presbyterian church workers and their families, and Pres-byterian-affiliated racial ethnic schools and colleges, which enable students to develop their gifts and find their calling. The Offering dates back to the 1930s. Equally important to the financial help provided is the spiritual benefit received. Again and again, the individuals and families helped by the Offering say that as crucial as the financial assistance is, what really sustains them is the knowledge that the church is standing with them in their time of need.

In the “All Saints” offering, the Pennsylvania Southeast Conference remembers the saints among us, our retired pastors, many of whom are still active in ministry. But some of our pastors who retired years ago are now in need of special assistance. Because the retirement income of these pastors is low, churches of the PSEC supplement the cost of their health benefits. Your generosity through this offering will bring peace of mind and even improved health to those who have served the church so faithfully in the past.

Please use the brown pew envelopes, or the M.O.M. envelope in your giving envelope box, or mark your check M.O.M.

The “Christmas Offering” envelope in our offering boxes is used for our Deacons’ Fund. Any such gifts are used locally for people in need. Occasionally someone stops by the church for help. We try to be as faithful and responsible as possible.

Neighbors In Need • November 2011

Tue, 1 Nov 2011 17:55:01 -0400

The Neighbors in Need (NIN) offering is a special mission offering of the U.C.C.

One-third supports the UCC's Council for American Indian Ministry (CAIM). CAIM supports local churches and their pastors; encourages youth and young adults; supports those preparing for Christian ministry; empowers American Indians who are members of non-Indian congregations; and advocates for justice on issues affecting American Indian life.

Two-thirds supports program initiatives and direct grants offered by the UCC's Justice and Witness Ministries. Small grants are made throughout the year to congregations and organizations engaged in community organizing, public policy advocacy, and direct service. Although grants are made to address a wide range of justice priorities, a significant portion of these grants are made to address issues of hunger and poverty.

Here’s an example of one of their many grants:
Formally incorporated in 2005, Mano en Mano | Hand in Hand is the “go-to” agency in Downeast Maine for Latino/Latina, immigrant, and farmworker issues. As a 2010 Neighbors in Need grant recipient, Mano en Mano provides a wide variety of direct services in English and Spanish. The three general programmatic areas are:
• Educational Services & Scholarships comprise the bulk of our programming and the heart of our mission. From free English classes, to college scholarships, to one-on-one tutoring and after school support, Mano en Mano believes that education is a tool that can make dreams possible and realize social justice.
• Outreach & Community Events ensure that Mano en Mano can effectively reach and serve their constituency while building bridges between various and diverse communities.
• Affordable Housing provides farmworkers who want to settle in Milbridge, ME with an opportunity to live somewhere that is safe, decent, and designed with their needs in mind.

Church World Service CROP Walk • October 2011

Sat, 1 Oct 2011 11:02:39 -0400

We are doing something different this year with our CROP Walk by asking everyone to walk with the Swarthmore-Wallingford Presbyterian walk on October 16, beginning at 1:30 at the Swarthmore Church on Harvard Avenue in Swarthmore. The community nature of the CROP Walk, with people carrying signs to announce why we do what we do, has a lot to do with why CROP walks began in the first place. We walk because others walk (that is, people in third world countries), but also for the joyful experience of being part of a people who want the world to know the good news of God who loves all. Our walkers won’t take pledges, but we ask everyone to give generously to our M.O.M., which gifts will be joined with those of others in this walk by the end of the month.

C.R.O.P. stands for “Communities Responding to Overcome Poverty” and is the community hunger appeal of Church World Service. During the CROP Hunger Walks season, tens of thousands of people in communities across the U.S. will sacrifice a few hours (and a blister or two) to raise money and show solidarity with impoverished people struggling to become self-sufficient.

"It still surprises some Americans that there are people here in the richest nation in the world who go to bed hungry because they cannot afford to buy food," says Rev. John L. McCullough, executive director and CEO of Church World Service. "These local CROP Hunger Walks, organized by individuals and faith communities in cities and towns all across the U.S., raise awareness about hunger and give people a way to help both in their own communities and around the world."

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture report, “Household Food Security in the U.S.”, 12% of U.S. homes do not have access to enough food for an active, healthy life for all members at least some time during the year.

Up to a quarter of the money donated to CROP is returned to the community where it was raised to help local soup kitchens and food pantries. CROP Hunger Walks link the lives of people in the U.S. with impoverished people around the world.

Last year we gave $1025 to C.W.S./C.R.O.P. from October’s Mission of the Month.

Find more information about CROP at: http://www.churchworldservice.org/CROP