Monday, March 29, 2010

24th Annual CROP Walk - Carrboro and Chapel Hill

The CROP Walk links families and communities together to raise money in order to provide food and other resources for people locally and around the world.   
The 24th Annual Chapel Hill CROP Hunger Walk was a success!
Many thanks to those who participated, including about 500 walkers, and all who sponsored them. 

And....thanks to Darryl & Mary Freedman who made the video clip below.

Wednesday, March 24, 2010

An invitation to join our community discussions from Chris Moran

Dear Friends,

The Inter-Faith Council is preparing for a number of “community discussions” about the new Community House beginning on March 31 at the Southern Human Service Center facilitated by Phil Boyle and F. Scottie Seawell of Leading and Governing Associates. We cordially invite you, our congregations, our donors, our volunteers and our friends to turn out and share in this learning experience about IFC’s new transitional housing program for homeless men.

Not everyone is supporting our move from the Old Municipal Building to the proposed site at 1315 Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd. The IFC has sent invitations to about 1,500 neighbors near the MLK location so we can share the facts about our plans, learn more about opposing views and hear suggestions. The invitation is attached for your review with our hope that you will be able to attend one of the three dates that have been scheduled. We need everyone at the table to share and learn together about a community challenge that affects us all.

In other words, “WE are Community House”.

We need your attendance, your voice and your experiences told in your own words about your connection to IFC programs, our residents and our neighbors in need.

We would also like for you and your congregation or group to support and join IFC’s Facebook, I Support Chapel Hill's New Community House, found on our website at http://www.ifcweb.org. Note that both individuals and groups (congregations, businesses, agencies etc.) can become fans of the new Community House. After the “community discussions”, the IFC will implement a special use permit process (SUP) with the Town of Chapel Hill which will involve the submission of a formal SUP Community House application on June 8. The IFC has been very deliberate about wanting to share information, answer questions and discuss some of the various aspects of our new transitional housing model before submitting our SUP application. You can find more information about Community House, homelessness and other community challenges here on this site, our 'March on Poverty' blog at http://marchonpoverty.blogspot.com.

Do not hesitate to contact me if you should have any questions and need additional information out our plans for the future. We hope to see you at the “community discussions”.

Thank you,

Chris Moran
The Inter-Faith Council for Social Service


Thursday, March 11, 2010

A different kind of extreme makeover: The poverty line

Below is an article by Megan Greenwell at Change.org. The article discusses some modifications that directly impact those in need and the organizations (like the IFC) that serve them.

The definition of poverty has not been changed since 1965. Although inflation has been a part of the equation, the rising costs of food, rent and utilities have NOT. In other words, while so much has changed in America since 1965, the working definition of poverty has not changed.......in over 40 years.

Read more about how, in 2011, American poverty will increase "from 13.2 to 15.8 percent".
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Government definitions don't mean a whole lot to most people. If you're poor, you're poor, no matter where you sit in relation to someone's arbitrary classification.

Friday, March 5, 2010

Sunday offering: Surgery for the needy (CNN)

Below is a video clip from CNN.com. This clip highlights Dr. Andy Moore, creator of Surgery on Sunday. Since 2005, Dr. Moore has treated over 3,000 patients who do not have health care. He believes that "It's our duty to help people that fall between the cracks in the health care system".......

Take a look!


Monday, March 1, 2010

$694,000,000

According to the N.C. Health Access Coalition, North Carolina hospitals provided $694 million dollars in free health care in 2008. The link to the full report is HERE.

Current estimates for the cost of universal health care are at about 1 Trillion dollars. 

While the debates rage on, let us remember that there is ultimately a greater cost for doing nothing.

Welcome to March on Poverty

The Inter-Faith Council (IFC) believes that now is the time to stop poverty in its tracks. Many in our community are struggling to hang on; and many need the inspiration of our community leaders to do something about poverty's influence and prominence. We need everyone who cares about reducing poverty's hold over increasing numbers of Carrboro and Chapel Hill households and unsheltered persons. Our new March On Poverty blog summons you to our call and the original call of Martin Luther King, Jr. and the countless among us who have followed in his footsteps. You ask, "how long will this take?" Dr. King said "Not long, because the arc of the moral universe is long, but it bends toward justice." Poverty is the primary cause of homelessness and hunger, two community challenges IFC volunteers and staff cross swords with daily. A lack of an adequate response by state, federal and local governments enable and procrastinate these conditions. We seek to create a just community, one that is committed to overcoming social problems by a greater commitment to the common good. We hope our blog will bring you more in touch with these issues. We hope you will come to know the facts about IFC future plans, new program models and new facilities commonly called Community House and FoodFirst. We hope you will join us.

Stay tuned! Stay in touch! March On!

Chris Moran, Executive Director

View the Community House Mission & Vision

View the FoodFirst Mission & Vision