Episcopal Press and News
PB's Fund Makes 'Historic' Grant to Russian Church; Responds to Global Litany of Needs
Episcopal News Service. November 21, 1991 [91231]
The Presiding Bishop's Fund for World Relief has made a "historic" humanitarian grant to aid local churches in former Soviet Republics, according to officials of the fund.
The grant of $100,000 was presented to His Holiness Aleksy II, patriarch of Moscow and all Russia, during his recent tour of the United States. (See separate story in this ENS.)
"The grant was made with the knowledge that winter is fast approaching," said Bill Caradine, assistant deputy of the fund. "The reality of Russian people without food and heat moved the PB's Fund board to make this grant."
Caradine said that the grant represented the first official direct relationship of the fund with the Russian Orthodox Church. "We were very pleased to work with them because we are assured that the money will be used for what it is intended."
During a ceremonial presentation of the grant at the Washington National Cathedral on November 16, Patriarch Aleksy thanked the Episcopal Church for the gift, which he said "would help thousands to survive the terrible winter we face -- especially the children and the elderly. We will do everything in our power to prevent their dying and suffering. May God bless each of you that took part in this sacred deed."
Caradine reported that the fund continues to receive "numerous calls from around the country" from Episcopalians who wish to support the Russian people during the coming winter.
The gift to the Russian Orthodox Church was only one of 58 grants responding to a litany of human needs throughout the world. More than $775,000 in grants were approved by the PB's Fund board during a meeting in New York, October 29 and 30. Approximately 66 percent of the recent grants supported international projects, according to officials at the fund.
"At this time the fund is receiving a growing number of applications requesting assistance with the increasing number of cases related to HIV/AIDS," said Nancy Marvel, director of grants for the fund. "In Africa there is a shattering realization that a whole generation will be affected by this disease," Marvel said.
A grant of $25,000 to the Diocese of Shyira in the Church of Burundi, Rwanda, and Zaire will provide support, medical equipment, and the training of doctors and local parish leaders on the ways to stop the spread of HIV/AIDS.
In Uganda, a grant of $25,000 will help develop a school and community health education program aimed at stopping the spread of AIDS. The project will work closely with the government, UNICEF, and other organizations to design educational seminars and materials for health workers and teachers in the schools.
"We have also received several requests for AIDS-related grants in this country," Marvel added. The fund has provided $20,000 to Project Hope in New York, a program supported by the Diocese of New York that provides pastoral ministry to persons living with HIV/AIDS and their loved ones. A $3,000 grant to the House of the Redeemer in the Diocese of North Carolina will assist the illiterate, handicapped, and persons living with AIDS identify the social services available to them.
Months after the end of the Gulf War, the fund is still fighting battles against disease and devastation caused by the war. A grant of $50,000 will help complete construction on the Middle East Neurological Center in Amman, Jordan. The hospital is "inundated with refugees who are victims of the war," Marvel reported.
Closer to home, the fund has provided grants to projects that support Haitians. "During this time of great concern for the people of Haiti, the board has responded to projects there, and in this country," Marvel said.
A grant for $15,000 to the Haitian Caribbean Foundation in New York for homeless Haitian families will provide assistance for job counseling, child care, and permanent housing. A grant for $9,100 will support a health clinic in Jeannette, Haiti. The clinic, supported by a partnership between the Diocese of Haiti and the Diocese of Milwaukee, provides education, preventative health care, prenatal care, and nutritional assistance to more than 2,000 people in the community.
The fund's largest domestic grant --$33,000 -- will assist in what the applicants referred to as a "battle" for the welfare of inner-city young people. The Teen Development Program of the Church of the Messiah in Detroit provides leadership development meetings, job training and employment opportunities, tutorial and study programs, counseling, recreation, and summer camp for junior high and high school students, and young adults.