We are hearing a great deal about the church at the grassroots level these days. The release of the Zacchaeus Project [TLC, July 11] is the latest attempt to reach persons in "in the pews" in local congregations. The national Executive Council, the elected body that does the business of the church between sessions of General Convention, has been pointing toward the grassroots level for years. Its recent meeting in the Diocese of Fond du Lac [TLC, July 4, 11] is council's latest visit to the church at the regional level. Fond du Lac is one of the church's smallest dioceses, a section of northeastern Wisconsin known best for its adherence to catholic liturgical traditions. The visit to Fond du Lac afforded an opportunity for council members to experience first hand the piety and ceremonial for which the diocese is known.

Council members found in Fond du Lac, as they have in other dioceses where they've met, warm hospitality and a genuine interest on the part of local people to experience the national church in action. In these visits, council members usually get an opportunity to see or to hear presentations by persons involved in significant ministries at the local level.

The visits by council also provide an opportunity for members of the local diocese to hear the Presiding Bishop and the president of the House of Deputies express their views of the church, and sometimes to meet them personally.

Executive Council's days of holding all its meetings at national church headquarters are all but forgotten. Future meetings are scheduled for other dioceses, including one later this year in Honduras where council members will see for themselves some of the Episcopal Church's most effective ministries. We salute council's willingness, even enthusiasm, for holding meetings around the church. The benefits are significant for many.