Each year, the Episcopal Church of the Advocate is committed to giving a minimum of 10% of our pledged income and plate offering received each Sunday to organizations in the community. In other words, for every $10 pledged, $1 will be given to those in need and those working for peace and justice in the world. This offering is called the Advocate Tithe for Community Engagement. Distribution of the Advocate Tithe is determined at the recommendation of the Community Engagement Group.
We distributed $16,335 in 2009. Grants were given to the following:
Diocese of Haiti for St Inncocent Church and School
Appalachian Service Project
Iglisia El Buen Pastor in Durham
The Family Violence Prevention Center
The Orange County Partnership for Young Children
TABLE of Chapel Hill
Club Nova
Human Rights Center of Carrboro
El Salvador Palliative Care
People of Faith Against the Death Penalty
Project Homeless Connect
Orange Justice United
The InterFaith Council
The InterFaith Council for the Community House for Men
The Vicar’s Discretionary Fund
Procedures for Requesting Support
- A form entitled Proposal for Support from the Episcopal Church of the Advocate is available to the congregation and members of the community who would like to request support from the church—whether that support be in the form of volunteer labor or logistical help, advocacy work, financial assistance, or other support from the church.
- Completed forms may be sent to the church at: Episcopal Church of the Advocate, P.O. Box 9, Carrboro, NC, 27510; or left in the collection plate at a church service.
- Proposals will be evaluated by how closely they match the guiding principles for community engagement developed by the group, as well as the priorities for giving and involvement identified annually by the congregation.
Decisions about supporting proposals are made by consensus among those present at meetings of the Community Engagement group. All proposals for financial or other support will be reviewed and approved on the basis of their fulfillment of our guiding principles, as well as in accordance with the rules and restrictions delineated in the Rules and Restrictions document.
In our decisions about how to engage with the community around us, we prefer to:
- Support projects that give voice to people who are marginalized and have very little voice.
- Provide not only financial support, but also the time and talent of members of the congregation.
- Support projects in which members of the congregation are already involved.
- Support projects and organizations that are accountable, sustainable, and willing to teach us about their outcomes.
- Support projects and organizations that are willing to send representatives to visit and help educate the congregation about their issues of concern.
- Support groups that promote change, as well as those that meet direct needs.
