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Conference United Church of Christ |
| Ohio
Conference United Church of Christ |
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Outreach and Mission • Racial/Ethnic Empowerment Committee |
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Grants
fund racial/ethnic empowerment |
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March 2005 Each of these ministries and programs received a grant from the Racial/Ethnic Empowerment Committee (REEC) of the Ohio Conference during the past nine months. The grants are awarded twice a year by the Conference Board of Directors, upon recommendations from the REEC, to local churches, Associations and UCC-related organizations in the Ohio Conference that focus on racial/ethnic empowerment and/or racial reconciliation. The Racial Justice Youth Ministry (RJYM) in Cincinnati received a grant of $10,000 to hire support staff who will drive the ministry bus and assist Director Rodney Sutton, Sr. with program activities. The RJYM, sponsored by the UCC Congregations of Greater Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky and housed in St. Peter’s UCC, was developed in 2002 as a proactive response to the racial unrest in Cincinnati in April of that year. This specialized ministry reaches out to unchurched black and white at-risk youth, getting them involved in the life of the church and helping congregations to be more accepting of all youth. The ministry also seeks to facilitate workshops and seminars on issues that confront today's youth. These issues include racism, diversity, sex, violence and conflict resolution. It is hoped that the additional staff will enable the program reach more young people. The clients of the Spiritual Spa Clinic located in Shaker Heights are primarily elderly and low income people who are taught alternative ways to augment and accelerate the healing of their body, mind and spirit. The clinic was designed and begun by the members of Christ Church in Hough UCC and their pastor, Joan SalmonCampbell. Thirteen members were trained to become Reiki Practitioners and provide services to spa clients. Christ Church closed in 2003; today the Spiritual Spa is supported by its clients, small gifts and volunteers as well as the Ohio Conference. The $10,000 granted in November 2004 was the second grant given to the Spiritual Spa by the Conference Board. The Safiri Rites of Passage Program of Mt. Zion Congregational Church UCC in Cleveland received a grant of $4,000 to support its program, intended to teach females of African descent at Mt. Zion and the surrounding community, ages 6 – 18, how to become strong women as they experience life at different stages of development. The program is based on the Nguzo Saba (Seven Principles) of Kwanzaa: unity, self-determination, collective work and responsibility, cooperative economics, purpose, creativity, faith. It is hoped that Safiri will address the needs of young females in crisis as well as build church membership from within the community. Read related UC News story. Strawberry Hill Childcare Center, located at Trinity UCC, Thornville, provides quality childcare and educational assistance to families in the local school district. The Rev. Leslie Carole Taylor, pastor of Trinity UCC, also serves as the Center Director. The Center, which serves a racially diverse community, intentionally provides a multiracial/multicultural experience for children that enhances respect and appreciation for the gifts of diverse people, helping one generation of children to reduce the cycle of racism. The $9,000 grant will be used to purchase books, develop curriculum, parental workshops, and for scholarships for children whose parents’ income is too high to receive government-subsidized daycare but is still inadequate to pay full tuition for childcare. The Advent Arts Academy (AAA), operated by Advent UCC in Columbus, is a Summer Arts Education Enrichment Program targeted primarily to African American youth, ages 4-16. AAA, which has been in operation for several years, is intended to provide a safe, secure learning environment in which youth are encouraged to develop a passion for learning by using the arts. Other objectives are to empower young people through meaningful experiences at camp, instill ethnic pride, develop leadership skills and self-esteem. The curriculum includes hands-on instruction, field trips and production/performance of works of art. The $1,350 grant will support AAA program costs. Oasis UCC on West Elm in Lima is involved in a revisioning and revitalization process. The 40-member congregation—which numbered 250 in 1985—is expanding outreach and on-site activities to better serve the people in their neighborhood. The $10,000 grant will allow the congregation to hire two summer interns who will survey the community to discover needs the church can fill, establish a midweek “coffee house” program for at-risk youth, and help develop worship experiences that will appeal to the diverse community in which the church is located. Applications for the next round of REEC grants are due August 15 for September funding. All applications must be accompanied by a full budget, noting income from all sources, including in-kind contributions and any other contributions from the congregation applying for the grant. For
information about the Racial/Ethnic Empowerment Committee and/or an
application, contact committee chair Kim Martin Sadler, 3692 Rawnsdale
Road, Shaker Heights, Ohio 44122, (office) 216-736-3756
or ksadler@thepilgrimpress.com. |
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Questions or information about the Racial/Ethnic Empowerment
Committee, |
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Ohio Conference UCC, 6161
Busch Blvd., Suite 95, Columbus OH 43229 • 800-282-0740 • 614-885-0722 • ohioucc@ocucc.org |
