wfn.org | Commission awards half-million in self-determination grants

[NewsDesk <NewsDesk@UMCOM.UMC.ORG>]

Oct. 20, 1999	News media contact: Joretta Purdue·(202)546-8722·Washington
10-21-30-71B{548}

LITTLE ROCK, Ark. (UMNS) - More than $500,000 has been awarded by the United
Methodist Commission on Religion and Race to aid ministries with ethnic
minority groups.

The commission gave a total of $552,500 to 28 groups and projects at its
recent fall meeting. This is roughly double the usual amount available for
the semi-annual grant giving. The increase resulted from the board's action
last spring authorizing the transfer of almost $210,000 into the Minority
Group Self-determination Fund from reserves in the commission's operating
budget.

The new round of grants will go to the church's ethnic caucuses and 23 other
congregational or community efforts. Organizations and projects that
received funds are:

MARCHA, Hispanic caucus, Lakewood, Calif. -  $55,000

The grant will aid MARCHA, the national Hispanic caucus of the United
Methodist church, in its work to advocate, represent and support Hispanic
churches and ministries in the United States and Puerto Rico.

Tolutasi Pacific Islanders United Methodist Church, Los Angeles -  $25,000

This project will help the church respond to the needs of a large number of
Pacific Islanders (particularly Tongans, Samoans and Fijians) by helping to
form a caucus for self-determination.

Office of the Executive Director, NFAAUM, Oakland, Calif. -  $55,000

The grant undergirds the National Federation of Asian American United
Methodist (NFAAUM), the national organization representing all
Asian-American local congregations in the United Methodist Church. 

Administrative and programmatic support, BMCR, Dayton, Ohio - $60,000

Black Methodists for Church Renewal Inc. (BMCR) programs empower
African-American Methodists for effective witness and service throughout all
levels of the church. 

The Native American International Caucus, Oklahoma City - $60,000
The denomination's Native American International Caucus works to prepare
Native American people for greater service to God's church while preserving
the distinct qualities of their cultures. 

Meeting Needs and Changes, Wesley United Methodist Church, San Diego, Calif.
- $8,000
The grant will assist a Vietnamese congregation in offering educational
programs to adults to help overcome poverty and give children and youth a
positive after-school activity as an alternative to gang involvement. The
grant also will fund work with older refugees, to help them adapt and find a
good life in America.

Westminster Vietnamese Outreach, Westminster, Calif. -  $10,500		
The Westminster Vietnamese Outreach Project will provide much-needed
information to residents and immigrants who are literate in Vietnamese
through literature, language classes and services. 

Immigrant Assistance Program (IAP) of the San Luis Valley Christian
Community Services, Alamosa, Colo. - $20,000 
The IAP, led by local immigrants and supervised by immigration attorneys,
provides a confidential place to address immigration-related questions and
legal needs. The program encourages immigrants to take the legal steps
necessary to obtain green cards, citizenship, work permits and asylum, and
it provides reliable information about their options and rights under
current U.S. Immigration Law.

After-school program, Atlanta -  $9,500
Bethel United Methodist Church, a predominantly African-American
congregation, has identified a need to assist working parents with their
children's supervision after school. The after-school program will provide a
safe environment, help children with their homework and offer enrichment
activities. 

Woodlawn Youth Center/Immanuel Center Inc., Chicago - $10,500 
Woodlawn Youth Center/Immanuel Center exists to bring about life
transformation for the spiritual, educational, financial and social
amelioration of young African-American people.

Broadway Asian Ministry, Indianapolis - $18,000
Broadway Asian Ministry is the only program in Indianapolis assisting
approximately 350 Asians annually by providing comprehensive, direct client
services including:  English language classes, job information and
placement, medical assistance, family counseling, cross-cultural counseling,
translation and interpretation, and advocacy. 

Moving Beyond Our Comfort Zone, Wichita, Kan. -  $5,000
This pilot project will link churches from across a jurisdiction using
needs-specific models for urban, rural or suburban churches. The goal is to
help them reclaim their neighborhoods and cities as well as respond to
racial and economic justice issues.

IMAN project for a Hispanic community, Chicago -  $9,500
The project is designed to provide educational programs to benefit the
residents of a Hispanic community.
	
Hispanic Empowerment Center, Bethesda, Md. - $9,000
The Hispanic Empowerment Center focuses on empowering the Hispanic
population of Montgomery County by enabling children and youth to succeed in
school through tutoring, and enabling adult Hispanics to learn English and
find better jobs. The center also helps connect people with schools and
community agencies to meet important needs such as health services,
employment, counseling and housing.

Read-A-Lot, Hattiesburg, Miss. - $16,000

The Read-A-Lot project is a primary, intensive reading program focusing on
literary, verbal communication and writing for African-American children.

St. Paul After School Educational Program, Jamaica, N.Y - $10,500

The program is a collaborative effort between the church and the community
to provide youth of underprivileged African-American families with remedial
classes in reading, writing, speech and mathematics. Conflict resolution and
Christian leadership skills are also incorporated in order to foster
self-esteem, respect for other people's cultures and learning styles, and an
ability to resist violent behavior. 

Computer Excellence Program, Houston- $11,000				
The Computer Excellence Program serves primarily minority people of the
inner city by providing an opportunity to learn or improve computer skills.

Monte Sinai Community Developer Project, San Antonio - $12,500

The Community Developer Project of Monte Sinai United Methodist Church is an
effort to be faithful to the mandate of Christ in a changing community. The
grant will be used to fund a community developer who would focus on
addressing racial and other issues through education and organization in the
community.

United Methodist Welfare to Work Project, Richmond, Va. -$13,500	
The project seeks to empower people moving from welfare to work.  This will
be done through the development of faith-based mentoring support sites,
which will help people attain spiritual discipline, emotional stability,
economic viability and personal growth.

Custodial Grandfamilies Facility Project, New Orleans - $19,000
The project will provide housing help to people who are rearing their
grandchildren in a largely African-American neighborhood. Grandparent
housing will allow these families to go from welfare to work. 

Center for Multiple Service "LaMontana," Utuado, Puerto Rico - $15,500	
This project aims to open a center for multiple services geared to immigrant
school children, adults and youth.

Young People for the 21st Century, Anaheim, Calif. -  $15,000

The project provides workshops, seminars, training sessions, camps, retreats
and literature materials to the Vietnamese children, youth and young adults
in the community in an effort to help them develop positive aspirations,
build self-esteem, grow spiritually and assimilate in America without losing
their own heritage.

Autonomous Movement of Women, Los Angeles -$16,000
Autonomous Movement of Women is a nonprofit organization formed to provide a
way for individuals to resolve violence, discrimination and unemployment
issues in the Hispanic communities of Los Angeles. The goal is to develop
self-managed projects that can generate economic development and to identify
sources for education projects, alternative health services and community
leadership.

Children and youth program, Atlanta - $15,000
Capitol Area Mosaic (CAM) provides an after-school and summer camp program
for 100 African-American youth ages 5 to 17 of the Capitol Area Community.
CAM programs provide a safe structured environment for educational,
recreational, social, and spiritual enrichment. The organization was started
more than 40 years ago as an outreach ministry of Trinity United Methodist
Church.

Project SPIRIT, St. Paul, Minn. - $12,000		
Project SPIRIT is a holistic, daily after-school tutoring and cultural
enrichment program, serving African-American 6- to 12-year-olds and their
families. Project SPIRIT seeks to enhance self-esteem, provide a sense of
ethnic history, improve academic performance, provide experimental learning
activities, and help parents become more effective in advocating for their
children's education.

TREATY Total Immersion School, Porcupine, S.D. - $7,500
The school seeks to empower Indian children to excel through cultural
immersion techniques based on the successful New Zealand Maori Tribe's Model
School. Adults and elders of the community will re-institute the matriarchal
system of Lakota thought and philosophy through traditional instruction in
songs, dances and ceremonies; art and traditional skills; botany, biology,
astronomy and geology; and language and storytelling.

The Summer Youth Leadership Institute, Seattle -  $19,000

The institute seeks to build leadership skills by providing intensive
training workshops led by accomplished artists, performers, community
activists, and local and national leaders. It serves Latinos, Filipino
Americans, Chinese Americans, Vietnamese Americans, African Americans and
Native Americans.

BEAT/Ensley Forum, Birmingham, Ala. - $15,000				
Bethel-Ensley Action Task Inc. (BEAT) is a community transformation effort.
It is organizing low-income residents to restore the African-American Sandy
Bottom neighborhood in the inner city into a healthy and growing community.
BEAT works in the areas of housing and community development, economic
development, youth, community organizing and leadership development.

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