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Loose Change
Collections: A Recap
The present A&HT strategy for Helping
Our Neighbors In Need is about enabling, encouraging and supporting our church
members to help their neighbors in need. Therefore we focus most of the
budgeted financial support on agreed local ministries that provide volunteer
opportunities for our church
members: Valley Interfaith Food &
Clothing Center; Interfaith Hospitality Network; Community Dinners and Academy
of Multilingual Immersion Studies. Many of our church members are active in
"outreach" ministries other than those on which we focus. To encourage and
support these members, the Vestry has reaffirmed that loose change collections
may be donated to the outreach ministries of these individual members. In this
way A&HT provides encouragement and support without diverting our focus from
our agreed local ministries.
The procedure
for loose change is for a church member to request financial support from loose
change for a specific ministry. The Helping Our Neighbors In Need Mission Group
is informally polled for agreement that the ministry is compatible with A&HT's
mission and, if so, a future month's loose change is
allocated to that ministry. The
church member requesting support is required to write a paragraph for
Connections about the to-be-supported ministry. In addition to responding to
church member requests, from time to time loose change months are allocated to
A&HT outreach-related special needs, such as "scholarship" funds for mission
trips. Please talk with Noel Horne about loose change support for your
individual ministry.
In practice, it
is rare for us to have loose change requests for all months of the year.
Collections from unallocated months are saved and used to respond to special
requests generally of an emergency nature, like last year's need to respond
promptly to the Haiti earthquake emergency.
Loose Change
Collections: Current Plans.
March loose change was donated to the
Academy of Multilingual Immersion Studies to support the school's annual
international festival. This special event scheduled in May will feature each
grade level presenting a program using music, dance, art or drama about a
different country. Our contribution will help defray the cost of decorations
and refreshments. Look for an invitation to join Susan Hopple and Dee Damico at
this event.
April loose
change was dedicated to the suffering people of Japan through Episcopal Relief
& Development and in support of the Sunday School bake sale dedicated to the
same need.
May loose
change was not allocated at the time of writing. If a suitable request is not
received, the collection will probably be allocated to support "scholarships"
for this summer's mission trips. |
Summer Mission Trips
Friday, July 15, 2011
is the deadline to sign up for our family-friendly mission trip to Good
Earth Farm in Athens, Ohio (about 3 hours from Cincinnati). We will share
the simple life, feed the hungry and build community with the young people
who founded Good Earth Farm by helping with daily farm work and light
construction. The trip may also include educational off-site activities in
Athens and/or the nearby Ohio University campus. The A&HT delegation will
depart Cincinnati around 5:00 p.m. on Thursday, August 4, 2011 and will
return Sunday afternoon, August 7, 2011. Anyone old enough (5 yrs+) to
carefully pick vegetables and work hard is welcome! Cost is $125 per person
plus $20 per night if staying in the air-conditioned Ohio University
dormitory. Camping on the farm (free of charge - the farm has camping
equipment) is also an option. Generous scholarship funds are available. We
don't want cost to prevent anyone from participating! Please confirm your
participation by writing your name on the sign-up sheet in the Narthex,
calling Laura Bence at 513-521-6224 or emailing Laura at laurabence95@gmail.com.
Deadline for signing up is Friday, July 15 so we can make final
preparations and schedule activities for the trip. For more information,
you may speak with last year's A&HT participants...the Andersons, Guests,
Madisons and the Huxley Millers. You may also visit the Good Earth Farm
website
http://www.chogs.org/goodearth.htm or
http://commonfriars.wordpress.com/good-earth-farm/.
Nursing Student In Liberia
Rachel Fakoli, the nursing student we
are sponsoring in Liberia continues to make good progress with her studies.
Here's an excerpt from her recent letter;
My thanks to you for sponsoring me
this semester through Partners
In Ministry In Liberia. The
semester was very successful and attached is my grade sheet.
I attend the Cuttington
University. I am studying to become a Nurse.
Come Semester 2, 2010-2011, I will
be doing the following courses:
Chemistry; Clinical Chemistry II;
Biology; Anatomy and Physiology I; Nursing; Fundamentals of Nursing I.
I am 37 years old and the fourth
of six children of my parents. I am
interested in reading and writing.
I also love playing kick ball during
my fun time.
My thanks and appreciation for the
financial assistance and may
God richly bless you all.
Yours sincerely,
Rachel Fakoli.
Noel Horne. Chair,
Anghorne@aol.com
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