Justice and Mission
In 2009 the Ministry of Justice and Mission redefined and clarified our mission statement, designed a graphic to explain that statement, and created a flow chart to help in the discernment of our gifts. We have a responsibility to connect people with opportunities to give of themselves and to be transformed by getting to know others whose life experiences are different from their own. In the organizations and mission work that we support, we strive for a balance between the commitment of our financial treasures and the commitment of our time and talents. We also strive for a balance between opportunities for direct service to others and opportunities for seeking systemic change. By building relationships that facilitate social change, we witness to our faith in Jesus Christ.
The Ministry supported the Big Give Project and encouraged FHC members to use their creativity to multiply their gifts. Through the ingenious endeavors of our talented members, $13,200 was collected. The Ministry of Justice and Mission awarded special gifts to four separate mission projects that emphasized our determination to not just award money but to choose projects that afforded opportunities for direct involvement with the organizations. We sent $3000.00 to Aduhima, Ghana to continue our commitment to the people of Sam Manu’s village to complete the building of their Presbyterian church; $2500.00 for the renovation of a family center for Interfaith Hospitality Network, an organization we support both monetarily and with volunteer efforts; $1800.00 to Montreat for the continued support of their renewal and educational programs; and $2500.00 to E City, a program designed to help urban youths pursue independent enterprises to learn responsibility for their own economic future.
With the remaining $3400.00, we again turned to the congregation to submit proposals for projects that had a sustainability component, were local, and were faith-based. Based on our mission statement that projects we support should connect members with volunteer opportunities we funded FAITHS Alive! submitted by Joan Bacon. The major goal of the project is to coordinate the efforts of local faith-based institutions to help meet the needs of students in the Cleveland Heights/University Heights elementary schools, modeled after Forest Hill Church support of Boulevard School. We also funded Big Give Gardens, proposed by Steve Sedam, a project to assist area families-in-need by facilitating cultivation of their own vegetable gardens. This project will build on our successful Abundance Acres, initiated and coordinated by Laura Steiner, and extend our help into the local community.
Through our Endowment requests Justice and Mission provided supplies for our IHN program at FHC, provided money for the Home in the Heights Program at HRRC, and provided monetary support for the Bright Stars of Bethlehem Scholarship Program that provides funding and support to local initiatives serving the educational, medical, professional and scriptural development needs of people living in Christ’s birthplace.
We have maintained a strong connection to Boulevard School through donations of school supplies, the Christmas Angel Program, coordinated by Joanne Shaner, to provide families with gifts and food for the holidays, and a used book collection so children have books to read over the summer.
Justice and Mission successfully hosted 15 homeless families in the Interfaith Hospitality Network in 2009. Close to 100 Forest Hill members have become involved in this program working both side by side with the families and behind the scenes to make them feel safe, comfortable, and welcome. In addition to hosting homeless families, we also supported the Homeless Stand Down by providing more than 50 personal care kits. Several FHC members, Dick Obermanns, Sue Lafferty and Scott Lafferty, also spent time volunteering at the 2009 Stand Down.
Justice and Mission initiated talks with four local churches (Noble Road Presbyterian Church, Disciples Christian Church, Bethlehem Lutheran Church, and Fairmount Presbyterian Church) and formed the Heights Mission Collaborative. This group will continue to focus on local mission and justice issues together whenever appropriate.
2009 was an action-filled year in which Justice and Mission members reached out to Forest Hill members and to others that we serve in the community to build relationships and make differences in our lives. Thank you for your support through the year.
Ministry of Justice and Mission
Elders Julie Lustic, Scott Lafferty, Dick Obermanns,
Elected Leaders Anne Smith, Sue Lafferty, Carol Leslie