wfn.org | NCCCUSA ANNOUNCES $555,700 MORE FOR BURNED CHURCHES

[CAROL_FOUKE.parti@ecunet.org]

National Council of the Churches of Christ in the U.S.A.
Contact: Carol J. Fouke, NCC, 212-870-2252
Internet: carol_fouke.parti@ecunet.org

NCC10/18/96                   FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

$555,700 MORE IN BURNED CHURCHES FUND REBUILDING
GRANTS VOTED;
TOTAL NOW AT MORE THAN $2.3 MILLION FOR 33 CHURCHES

 NEW YORK, Oct. 17 ---- A predominantly white
church with a ministry to Mexican immigrants who
work in meat packing plants in Ottumwa, Iowa, was
one of 12 burned churches to be voted a total of
$555,700 in rebuilding grants today (Oct. 17) by the
Burned Churches Fund Grants Committee.

 The fund, established by the National Council
of Churches, is supported by a broad ecumenical and
interfaith community.  These latest grants bring to
more than $2.3 million the total allocated from the
fund to date for restoration of 33 churches, most of
them African American.

Hickory Grove Community Church in Ottumwa,
destroyed by arson Sept. 2, 1996, will receive up to
$10,000 to be used in the planning stages of
reconstruction.  It also will receive a modular unit
from GE Capital for temporary use.

The Burned Churches Fund Grants Committee,
meeting at The Interchurch Center, New York City,
also approved rebuilding grants for two Richmond,
Va., churches represented at today's meeting.  The
Rev. Wilson E. Shannon, pastor of the First Baptist
Church, and Elder Duane Bell from the Glorious
Church of God in Christ, invited by the committee,
each accepted a $50,000 check for their
congregations' rebuilding efforts.

Pastor Shannon reported that his 800-member
congregation is the largest Black church in a
predominantly white county.  The church's building
had been vandalized prior to the April 16, 1996,
fire, including KKK signs and pentagram graffiti.
Three white people were arrested for arson and are
awaiting trial.

Other churches newly voted rebuilding grants
from the Burned Churches Fund were: Greater Gospel
Temple Church of God in Christ, Dallas, Texas,
Liberty Baptist Church, Collins, Miss.; Beacon
Baptist Church, Yazoo, Miss.; St. Mark's Missionary
Baptist Church, Tyronza, Ark.; Willis Temple Church
of God in Christ, Forrest City, Ark.; Greater New
Zion Missionary Baptist Church, Phoenix, Ariz.; St.
James African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church,
Maysville, N.C.; St. John Baptist Church, Dixianna,
S.C.; St. Stephen’s Baptist Church, St. Stephens,
S.C., and Summer Grove Missionary Baptist Church,
Williston, S.C.

 The awards approved today ranged from $10,000
to $100,000.  All amounts are specified as "up to"
the designated amount because the actual cash needed
could be less than currently estimated or could be
reduced by use of in-kind goods and donated labor.
Any church needing more than the designated amount
will be encouraged to submit a further proposal.

 In most cases, grants are disbursed in
installments in close consultation with the
respective congregations as they proceed through the
various stages of rebuilding.

 At the meeting, the committee also received an
updated report on Burned Churches Fund income and
expenditures.

 As of Oct. 16, $4,696,679 in cash had been
received from foundations, church bodies,
congregations and individuals, with an additional
$1,412,500 anticipated from foundations and
churches.  In-kind contributions totaled $3,400,394,
including wood products from International Paper,
modular units from GE Capital and a $2 million
preconstruction loan fund from the Enterprise
Foundation.

 Of the $8,097,073 in resources in hand, just
under $7 million is budgeted for rebuilding and $1.1
million for anti-racism programs and program
administration.

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