Episcopal Press and News
Presiding Bishop's Fund for World Relief Announces Grants of $667,000
Episcopal News Service. November 8, 1990 [90293]
At its October 30 meeting in New York, the board of the Presiding Bishop's Fund for World Relief announced grants totaling $666,974, bringing the total for the year to more than $2.5 million.
There were no requests for major grants for disaster relief, although three grants continued support for previous relief efforts: a grant of $100,000 for relief efforts in South Carolina and one of $200,000 for rehabilitation work in the Virgin Islands in the wake of Hurricane Hugo, and another $60,434 for earthquake relief in north central Philippines.
Most grants from the fund tend to be small grants to encourage development projects aimed at making people more independent and selfreliant, according to Bishop Furman Stough, the fund's director. Stough noted an increase in requests to fund AIDS programs, both in the United States and abroad.
As an example, Stough pointed to a $10,000 grant to a program in Uganda that helps AIDS patients and their families. The grant will assist a diocesan program that trains volunteers and clergy trying to work in the midst of continuing civil chaos and an AIDS epidemic that affects an estimated 1.5 million Ugandans.
A domestic grant of $5,000 was given to the Northwest AIDS Foundation in Seattle to assist in providing housing for people living with AIDS. Short-term transitional housing is provided by the foundation, especially for those with low incomes, and the grant will increase the number of "bednights" available.
A majority of the grants from the fund focus on social ministry with people who are experiencing major problems in their lives.
A grant of $15,000 will support a therapeutic group home for teenaged girls in Mississippi, for example, providing a new beginning for those who are victims of abuse or neglect. Halfway around the world, the school-aged children of Onyang City in South Korea who are trying to support their families will be helped by The Mission of Love, a social outreach program that provides shelter, education, and counseling services.
In Liberia children who have been orphaned and injured by the civil war desperately need help. A grant of $10,000 will help provide shelter, clothing, and medical attention for children until the war ends and the nation is able to rebuild.
War has also affected the health and safety of people in other parts of the world. In the drought-stricken area of Eritrea in Ethiopia, for example, villagers are being trained to drill, operate, repair, and maintain wells with the help of a $7,529 grant to an ongoing water supply development program.
In Guatemala refugees from conflict are returning from neighboring Mexico. Under a $11,000 grant from the Presiding Bishop's Fund, communities comprised of repatriates are able to grind corn with machines, so that extra time can be spent in efforts to support families.
The rural poor in North Carolina receive help from the Shepherd's Staff, an ecumenical service ministry that provides affordable housing. A $10,000 grant supports the salary of the project director, a retired Episcopal priest described by Stough as a "dynamo."
"So many of these innovative programs depend on strong leadership," Stough observed as he looked over the list of grants. "It is one of the first things we look for as we sift through applications for millions of dollars of good, legitimate requests for help."
One of the most unusual requests funded this time was a small grant to enable participation in a fact-finding team sent to Russia to assess the damage from nuclear fall-out following the accident at Chernobyl four years ago. The team, under leadership of the World Council of Churches (WCC), visited the Minsk area last summer, and the WCC plans to launch a major appeal based on the team's report.