The Diocesan Dialogue
Current Issue
August 2007

St. John's Endorses U.N. Millennium Development Goals

By Steve Sturgeon

During its annual meeting in January members of St. John's voted to support the United Nations' Millennium Development Goals (MDG). This was a follow up to the decision last year by the General Convention of the Episcopal Church to commit itself to support the MDG, and to call upon the various dioceses and parishes of the church to make a similar commitment.

The Diocese of Utah also voted to support this program during the diocesan convention last October. Now individual Episcopalians and individual parishes are being called upon to give their financial support.

St. Michael's Brigham City, holds an annual chicken dinner with the public invited to raise funds for ERD. Last year's dinner raised $1,531.87. Among those helping last year were, from left, coordinator Rose Trollinger, Deacon Deanna Sue Adams,senior warden Bert Hall and Dot Bolieau.

At St. John's, thanks to the generosity of an anonymous parishioner, the church was able to commit $1,500 to the program. In January a series of three Sunday Forums were held to allow members of the parish to suggest possible groups to fund. These groups were then evaluated for their financial viability and responsibility using the website Charity Navigator (www.charitynavigator.org/index.cfm). Using this information reduced the list to five possible charities, which were then submitted to the parish at the annual meeting in order to determine the three that the church would fund.

The three groups selected at the meeting were: the Grameen Foundation, Safe Passage (Camino Seguro), and the Good Shepherd Home.

The Grameen Foundation provides micro-credit loans to help people in impoverished areas start their own businesses. The founder of this group won this year's Nobel Peace Prize.

Safe Passage provides schooling and other help to the children who live in the Guatemala City dump, and was the subject of an Oscar nominated documentary this year.

Good Shepherd Home in Cameroon provides a home and school for children who have been orphaned by AIDS and other diseases, and is run by an order of Anglican Benedictine nuns. The sisters of the Community of St. John Baptist, located in New Jersey, are the American liaisons for this program, and coordinate aid and support from the United States. Each of these groups received $500 from St. John's.

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