Trinity Grants Total $1.2 million
Episcopal News Service. August 7, 2006 [080706-1-A]
[Trinity Church] Trinity Church-St. Paul's Chapel, New York, has distributed 27 grants totaling $1,260,776 for social and spiritual transformation initiatives throughout the world, the Rev. Dr. James H. Cooper, rector, has announced.
One of America's oldest philanthropies, Trinity Church–St. Paul's Chapel makes grants within four key areas: social transformation in metropolitan New York, the Church in the Global South, spiritual formation and development, and telecommunications in the Anglican Communion as a whole. Today's grant announcement represents the largest of Trinity's three annual funding cycles.
"Trinity Church deeply believes in the shared mission of our partners across the Anglican Communion," Cooper said in announcing the grants on July 25. "Through these funding commitments, we celebrate the hope these humanitarian leaders provide, to both the Church and the wider world."
Grants are allocated as follows:
Metropolitan New York
In Metropolitan New York, 11 grants totaling more than $300,000 will be distributed to organizations including the Apostles' House, Cathedral Community Cares, ArtSpirit, Misión San Juan Bautista, Interfaith Assembly on Homelessness and Housing, and St. Paul's Episcopal Church. The money is targeted towards innovative community-based programs which include workforce development in Chinatown, hunger programs, and HIV/AIDS prevention with Latino women in the South Bronx.
Church in the Global South
Nine grants totaling more than $500,000 will be directed towards building leadership in the Global South with a primary focus on Africa including initiatives in Zambia, Sudan, Uganda, and Tanzania. The funds will support the Province of West Africa's health ministry in confronting challenges such as malaria, tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS, training of pastors in the Sudan, as well as counseling youth and women in Uganda about sexual abuse.
Telecommunications
Four grants totaling nearly $200,000 will be used to further the technological capabilities of seminaries and institutions of higher learning as well as international organizations such as the Province of Mexico and the Diocese of Puerto Rico. Churches without access to the internet run the risk of being excluded from important decisions that affect the entire Communion. The rise of a "digital church" makes connectivity for the whole Communion a priority. The funds in this category will be used to bridge the gap within worldwide Church communication.
Spiritual Formation
Deepening the spiritual lives of Episcopalians in the United States and addressing cultural change will help the Episcopal Church equip itself for the future. Three Grants totaling nearly $200,000 will be extended to churches across the country including: Charles River Church in Belmont, Massachusetts; the Episcopal Church at Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y.; and St. Hildegard's Community in Austin, Texas. The programs will foster deeper engagements with the community at large and offer spiritual hospitality to many who are beyond the realm of traditional church membership.
"For over 300 years, Trinity Church has played a pivotal role identifying exceptional opportunities and creative programs that can effect real change within the greater world community," said the Rev. Canon James G. Callaway Jr., deputy for Faith Formation and Development. "The Trinity Grants Program expresses Trinity Parish's overall mission to spread the Gospel and participate in God's salvation according to the divine intention, using the tools of philanthropy to strengthen the Church's witness both locally and globally."
About Trinity Church-St. Paul's Chapel
Established in 1697, the Parish of Trinity Church has a diverse congregation drawn from the New York region and offers 18 worship services during the week as well as daily interdenominational prayers for peace at St. Paul's Chapel. The church and the chapel in Lower Manhattan attract more than 1.8 million visitors annually.
The parish's outreach programs in lower Manhattan include John Heuss House, a 24-hour drop-in center; St. Margaret's House, government-supported housing for the elderly and disabled; full childcare services for children six months to five years in the financial district through Trinity Preschool and Nursery; a transitional men's shelter at St. Paul's Chapel; and an exhibit at St. Paul's Chapel, "Unwavering Spirit: Hope & Healing at Ground Zero" that focuses on its unique ministry to 9/11 workers during the recovery efforts at the former World Trade Center site. The parish has a strong musical tradition, with a family choir, a professional choir with CD recording contracts, and a popular twice-weekly concert series.
Trinity's web site, www.TrinityWallStreet.org, is a resource throughout the Anglican Communion for faith formation, with weekly online telecasts of concerts, liturgy, and special events.