Special Offerings
On designated Sundays we take special offerings for a variety of ministries:
Episcopal Relief and Development, ERD
United Thanks Offering, UTO
Heifer Project (during Lent), Heifer International
Calvary Outreach Grants (Grant Applications)
Calvary’s outreach grant cycle begins in the fall with the request for applications and ends with the approval of the recommended grants by the vestry at their March meeting. The following criteria are used when considering grant requests:
- Calvary's mission statement, making God’s love visible in downtown Memphis, expanded to include all of Memphis;
- opportunities for volunteering by parishioners;
- how the funds will be used;
- and the soundness of the organization making the request.
Grants are made available through parishioners' pledges and through fund raising efforts.
Recipients of 2008 Calvary Outreach Grants Totaling $103,829
BRIDGES, Inc.: $7,000
BRIDGES provides experiential, hands-on learning for youth and adults to be leaders in fighting racism, poverty and educational challenges. BRIDGES helps youth and adults find their voice, experience their power and build positive relationships in order to create strong lives and extraordinary communities.
The Church Health Center: $12,000
Gift of a Week sponsorship will help fund a week of care at the Center benefiting over 700 patients at the Medical Clinic or hundreds of Memphians at the Hope & Healing ministry.
Clovernook Center for the Blind & Visually Impaired: $2,000
Clovernook’s mission is to promote independence and foster the highest quality of life for people who are blind or visually impaired, including those with additional disabilities. This grant will help support Discovery Camp for Kids (visually impaired children participate in activities and job training), Low Vision Clinic (testing and care for visually impaired who cannot afford care), Low Vision Devices, and Emergency Use Funds (unique individual needs).
Community Legal Center (Legal Services for the “Working Poor”): $5,000
This grant helps the “working poor” in Shelby Co. who are living above the poverty level by providing legal services to people of limited means who would fall within the jurisdiction of the courts located in Memphis and Shelby County and to educate them as to their rights and responsibilities under the law. Calvary members who are attorneys can volunteer pro bono for clients. Spanish speaking volunteers, people with skills in marketing and development, or people who can help with day-to-day client intake also are needed.
Door of Hope, Inc.: $2,000
Door of Hope provides a welcoming place where people living on the streets may come to learn healthy living skills and to build positive relationships with others. This program benefits those in Midtown Memphis who have fallen through society’s safety net and need compassion and friendship. Volunteers are needed. For more information, call 725-1140.
Downtown Memphis Ministry, Inc. (Street Ministry): $20,000
This historic partner of Calvary serves the needs of the homeless, particularly those with mental illness. The Street Ministry, now located at 600 Poplar, began in the basement of Calvary in 1980. It now houses five programs that work with homeless: one basic walk in, two mentally ill and two substance abuse. Three of these provide residential housing for 88 people total. There are opportunities to volunteer in the walk-in program and to work with mentally ill in either an event or project situation or an on going basis. Contact Malcolm McRae to learn more, 527-0401.
Emmanuel Episcopal Center (Young Adult Ministry): $5,000
The ECC serves youth and adults in the Cleaborn and Foote Homes public housing communities located in South Memphis. This is a new program which has 40 participants (age 18-30). The program concentrates on: Spirit—relationship with God, self, family, and community; Soul/Mind—continuing education, emotional wellness, and other skills; and Body—physical health, nutrition, sexual wellness (purity). The group also meets weekly for Bible study. There are many opportunities to volunteer. For information, call 523-2617 or contact Angelia Johnson.
Friends for Life (Nutrition for persons living with HIV/AIDS): $4,000
This project provides necessary items to maintain proper hygiene to homeless
and low-income persons living with HIV/AIDS through the Nancy Fletcher Food Pantry and Feast for Friends. Feast For Friends is a free dinner on the first and third Mondays of each month for persons living with HIV/AIDS and their friends, families and caregivers. Volunteers are needed in the Food Pantry, Buddy Program, AIDS Hotline and Assisting the Volunteer Coordinator with filing and special events.
Hope House Day Care, Inc.: $5,000
Hope House provides day care, respite care and 24-hour emergency care to children who either have HIV/AIDS or whose family members are infected with HIV/AIDS.
Metropolitan Inter-Faith Association (MIFA): $14,000
MIFA’s Teen Job Services (TJS) provides job training, life-skills training, mentoring and employment. The Churches and Synagogues Emergency Fund (CASES) provides emergency assistance for individuals and families whose unusual needs are not covered by conventional emergency funds. Numerous Volunteer opportunities are available.
Partners for the Homeless: $1,000
Partners initiates, develops and drives implementation of data-driven, evidence-based strategies to break the cycle of homelessness.
RISE Foundation - Memphis Debt Collaborative: $2,000
This collaborative is an advocacy and information sharing network of 135 businesses, government agencies and individuals working together to improve financial health of Memphis. Its aim is to help poor citizens facing bankruptcy and foreclosures because of predatory lending. There are many opportunities to volunteer. For more information, contact George Yandell.
St. Andrew’s Sewanee School (Mastering Skills & Mountains): $1,000
Mastering Skills and Mountains is a combination of natural history, ecology, and field research focusing on the Cumberland Plateau and the Southern Appalachians. This summer program helps students learn through hands-on experience; develop academic skills and gain confidence in the ability to set goals; organize to be successful; and promotes personal maturity and leadership. This grant helps to sponsor students from Memphis and presents an opportunity to develop ongoing outreach and mentoring relationships with the students and their families.
St. George’s Independent School (Camp Dragon): $3,829
This is a summer camp for the Memphis campus of St. George’s Independent School which serves as a companion school to St. George’s Germantown (PreK-5) and a feeder for St. George’s Collierville (6-12). Volunteers (both adult and teenage) would be welcome and appreciated for the program, June 9-13. For more information or to volunteer at the camp, call 261-2200 or contact Andrea Walter.
The Samaritan Counseling Centers of the Mid-South, Inc.: $15,500
The Congregation Assistance Program at the SCC provides counseling for members of the congregation and for Calvary clergy referrals as well as enables low income persons and families to whom Calvary extends its care and outreach to receive SCC mental health and counseling through the Low Fee Supplement Fund. Learn more by calling, 729-3900.
Youth Leadership of Memphis: $5,000
This group conducts a Saturdays-only mentoring program involving primarily elementary and junior high men with high school participants who are guided and assisted by adult volunteers (mostly yard work). Calvary is asked to provide volunteers once a quarter to work with the young men. For more information, contact Bonnie Malone.