Plains and Peaks offering to Hunger Fund

At the August meeting of Plains and Peaks Presbytery, it was voted that the offering collected go to the Presbyterian Church USA, General Hunger fund #H999999

This is tremendous support for Hunger work! The fund helps support five major areas:

• Direct Food Relief
• Development Assistance
• Influencing Public Policy
• Lifestyle Integrity
• Education

For more information visit: Hunger Fund! at http://www.pcusa.org/hunger/give.htm

HR 2139 has 100!

Bread for the World President David Beckman just sent this email message of good news:

Hallelujah! As of today, we have just reached 100 cosponsors for H.R. 2139, the Initiating Foreign Assistance Reform Act of 2009! Thank you. This would not have happened without your phone calls, visits, personal letters, and emails.

Reform of U.S. foreign aid is getting the momentum and traction it needs!

If you would like to see if your Representative is co-sponsoring this bill, please go here and click on SHOW COSPONSORS
You will find a complete list of current co-sponsors. To date, our regions only cosponsor is Rep. Diana DeGette [D-CO1]. Please continue to contact your representative and urge them to co-sponsor.

Also- during the fall recess, Bread for the World is encouraging home state visits to both your representative's office and senator. Please check back to this blog for further information as these meetings are set up. Or- contact me directly!

Central's Zambia team ready to go!

Longmont's Central Presbyterian Church is sending a short term mission team to Chawama, Zambia July 16-29th. Chawama is a compound just outside of the capital city Lusaka.
The team will work with the Presbyterian Church of Chawama, their school and AIDs volunteers as they move towards the possibility of a long term partnership.

This mission team is just one of the ongoing African missions supported by the churches of this Presbytery. Fort Collins First Presbyterian, Yuma 1st Presbyterian and others also are working to help those in poverty or that are hungry. If you know of a mission, and would like to report it here...please contact me or place a comment on this blog post!

Letters make a difference!

Many thanks to folks who wrote letters advocating for Foreign Assistance reform! Our Colorado delegation was able to meet with Congressman Pollis and Congresswoman Markey. We had good meetings with aides for Bennett, Perlmutter and Udall. We even stopped by DeGette's office. Thanks to your letters we were able to make a huge impact!

Because folks like you took the time to write, we were able emphasize to our members of congress the importance of this bill.

At the time of this posting, there are 60 Co-Sponsors of HR 2139 including Colorado Representative Diana DeGette For a complete list of cosponsors, click here.

15 minutes of fame!

Bread for the World has a great monthly podcast that contains great articles and interviews that explain and support advocacy work. While we were in Washington I had the opportunity to meet Monica Mills and thank her for her Legislative Updates. I would encourage you to listen to these fine pieces because they really help explain not only the bills we are working on, but also the other pieces we need to know to be more effective in our efforts.

As I was listening to this months Breadcast I heard Monica mention my name! I'm famous now! The best part of that, is that there were over 300 folks just like me in Washington DC lobbying leading to great success. Thanks to all of you who raised your voices on behalf of those who are hungry.

Subscribe to the podcast in iTunes and listen every month!

Offering of Letters

* just posted this to my local church Newsletter

Every spring members of our congregation faithfully write personal letters to their representatives in Congress urging our leaders to find ways to help hungry people and those suffering from poverty. It is truly an “offering” because we prayerfully offer them to God before sending them to Congress. This outpouring of concern sends a powerful message to our political leaders and helps us move closer to our goal of ending hunger.

On or before June 7^th we are hoping that many of you will participate in this campaign by writing letters regarding Foreign Assistance reform. This issue is of great interest to our congregation because of the implications it can have for our brothers and sisters in Zambia. An example of how this foreign assistance is working is the Presidents Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief. A big element of this program is the provision of antiretrovirals for people with the HIV virus. If it not for this program over 2 million people would not be alive today.

Please use the links below to educate yourself and write Congress to urge them to continue to reform and strengthen Foreign Assistance by:

• Making poverty reduction a primary goal of U.S. foreign assistance.
• Make foreign assistance more efficient and effective so that it will have a greater impact on poor and hungry people around the world.
• Have the institutional capacity and organizational structure that has the ability to implement the types of foreign assistance that is needed.

Letters need to be written on or by June 7^th where they will be offered from our congregation to congress. Phil and Alex Goerner will gather all available letters and hand deliver them our congress people when they visit them June 16^th.

More information and updates will be available in during the coffee hour from now until June 7^th. Recently the House has introduced a reform bill, H.R. 2139 and we are asking members (Rep Betsy Markey, Rep Jared Polis) to co-sponsor that bill.

Important links:

Foreign Assistance background info and principles:

http://www.offeringofletters.org/our-goals.html

Urgent message from Bread for the World President, David Beckman

http://www.offeringofletters.org/component/content/article/88.html

Great background information can be found on the podcast: Breadcast http://www.bread.org/get-involved/on-the-web/breadcast.html

Or- contact Phil Goerner (pgoerner@gmail.com). Thank you for your help!

Foreign Assistance Bill ACTION!

Now is the time to act with in support of foreign assistance reform. There is now a House Resolution submitted by Rep Howar Berman (D-CA-28) and Rep Mark Kirk (R-IL-10). On April 28th introduced H.R. 2139, the “Initiating Foreign Assistance Reform Act of 2009,” to direct the president to develop and implement a comprehensive national strategy to further the U.S. foreign policy objective of promoting global development, and for other purposes. For more information.

Your calls and letters are already making a difference. Now, we urgently need your help to win passage of this truly historic legislation:

• Call or write a letter to your representative in Congress and ask them to cosponsor H.R. 2139

David Beckman, President of Bread for the World urges us to write. He states "U.S. foreign assistance is helping save millions of lives, improving agricultural productivity and increasing school enrollment. But more lives can be saved and more can be done if we improve how we deliver foreign aid."

Please take action today!

Interface Boulder - Hunger Summit 09 part 2

Final presenter was Amy Telligman is working on her Doctorate, but also works with the campus Environmental Center as the Sustainable Foods Coordinator and has worked to bring sustainable foods to campus.

Amy presented 5 ways to make eating a more spiritual experience. Try these:

Remember importance of fellowship and community. (dinner club, don’t stand up to eat)

Show gratitude. (giving thanks, reflection what we have and others don’t)

Be a citizen first, not a consumer first. (think beyond daily necessities – ask how is this food that I’m buying nourishing the rest of the world?)

Think of eating as an agricultural act. (participate in food production, prepare your own food, find out where your food is produced and waste taken care of)

Fasting. (time of reflection, prayer and repentance) (unique fasting – coffee, blackberry, tv, internet)

Interface Boulder - Hunger Summit 09 part 1

Dave Wann, author of Simple Prosperity spoke briefly about things we can do to create a more sustainable relationship with the land and our food.

Kipp Nash has turned numerous former lawns into productive gardens and farms, encouraging homeowners to replace decorative grass and shrubs with food-producing gardens, and transforming blocks and neighborhoods all over Boulder. He has a really neat idea for Urban Gardens.

Colorado Food Stamp Update

Colorado Public radio reports on March 12th that the number of people applying for food stamps in Colorado increased by 20 percent since last year. Almost harder to bear is the fact that those needing assistance have had to wait longer than the 30 days set up...sometimes waiting twice that for their services. According to KCFR's Megan Verlee this fiolates federal rules. Listen to the podcast to see what you can do!. News Feature: In Times Like These - Colorado's Food Stamp Backlog

Eco Palms by March 9th!

There is still time to order eco-friendly palms to have them in time for Palm Sunday! Offer your congregations the option of purchasing responsibly harvested eco-palm branches for Palm Sunday services. Take advantage of this opportunity to order palms because It is an easy, hands-on project that your church can do to make a big difference!

2009 Eco-Palm pricing with check by March 2, credit card by March 9th

• Small Case (180-200 Stems) $49.00 palms + $12 shipping per case (Approx. $.32/palm with shipping)
• Medium Case (270-300 Stems) $71.25 palms + $17 shipping per case (Approx. $.30/palm with shipping)
• Large Case (540-600 Stems) $138.00 palms + $22 shipping per case (Approx. $.27/palm with shipping)
• Bunches (18-20 Stems) $6.00/bunch + $10 shipping* (Approx. $.84/palm with shipping)

Here is the PCUSA site:
http://www.pcusa.org/palms/

call or write:
Email Josh Gamble at or call (612) 624-7418

Order online:
http://www.ecopalms.org/

For more information:
Why order Eco-Palms
http://www.pcusa.org/palms/why.htm
Eco Palms and your church
http://www.pcusa.org/palms/church.htm

PCUSA News service story...
http://www.pcusa.org/pcnews/2007/07024.h

Hungry experience worst year ever?

The US Conference on Mayors released their Hunger study a few weeks ago and it looks bleak. Emergency food assistance increased an average of 18 percent in the cities surveyed, with a record number of first time requests. Those of you working in hunger already know- this is going to be a rough year! Pass the word, pass the hat and help out today! Take a look at the Food Research and Action Center's (FRAC) overview of the hunger report.