Sheltering Arms Foundation Partners with Episcopal Congregations
MINNEAPOLIS, October 19, 2009—The Sheltering Arms Foundation announces a new round of its ongoing grantmaking partnership with Episcopal congregations. Twelve grants totaling $11,150 will support a diverse range of activities, including food and nutrition programs, academic enrichment, tutoring, arts programming, partnerships with community organizations, and more. Created to commemorate the 125th anniversary of Sheltering Arms, the grants program recognizes the important role churches play in helping at-risk children increase their potential.
“The efforts of congregations to improve life for children and their families are even more important in these difficult times,” said Denise Mayotte, Foundation executive director. “Week in and week out congregations create and carry out creative programming, partnerships, and community outreach activities that benefit children who face significant obstacles. This grant program acknowledges the goals and values we share with congregations.”
The grant program provides individual grants of up to $1,000 for projects conducted by Episcopal congregations that seek to improve the lives of Minnesota’s vulnerable children and their families. Guidelines for 2010 will be available on November 1 and applications are due on April 1.
This year’s grants are going to:
All Saints Episcopal Mission, Minneapolis, to educate Native children about healthy eating through a weekly program.
Episcopal Church of Gethsemane, Minneapolis, to provide baby food, diapers, and other products to infants and children living in The Francis Drake Hotel, a single room occupancy shelter.
St. Bart’s Episcopal Church, Bemidji, to develop a children’s health ministry in partnership with The People’s Church, providing food, educational toys, and other support for children of low-income and homeless community members.
St. John in the Wilderness, White Bear Lake, for a tutoring program in partnership with the O. H. Anderson Elementary School in Mahtomedi.
St. Luke’s Episcopal Church, White Earth Reservation, for a children’s program in partnership with Dreamcatcher Homes, a supportive housing complex in Ogema on the White Earth Reservation. Parents will participate in a family financial education program while children take part in the children’s programming.
St. Mark’s Cathedral, Minneapolis, to support the involvement of low-income children in a new Cub Scout pack focusing on academic enrichment.
St. Martin’s Episcopal Church, Fairmont, for a meals program to feed vulnerable children in Martin County, Minnesota, and on the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota.
St. Mary’s Episcopal Church, St. Paul, for books to use in a tutoring partnership with Longfellow Elementary School.
St. Matthews Episcopal Church, St. Paul, for a tutoring program that works with immigrant children on reading, math, and college planning.
St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Owatonna, for a summer educational enrichment program for low-income children ages 4-9 and their parents.
St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Duluth, for a service program in partnership with agencies serving low-income children, including providing families with baskets of food or supplies.
Trinity Episcopal Church, White Earth Reservation, for an arts program in partnership with the Naytahwaush Community Charter School on the northern end of the White Earth Reservation.
About the Sheltering Arms Foundation
The mission of the Sheltering Arms Foundation is to invest in the lives of children and help them reach their full potential. The foundation funds nonprofit organizations and supports policies that benefit children and their families who have the least access to resources. Since its inception as a grantmaking foundation in 1983, the Sheltering Arms Foundation has provided over 750 grants totaling over
$11 million. The next deadline for grant applications is January 21, 2010, with grant applications from Episcopal congregations due on April 1, 2010. For information about submitting a grant request, volunteering, or donating to the foundation, visit http://sheltering-arms.org or call 612-871-9210 (toll-free: 866-871-9210).
