Justice and Outreach Council
Monthly Digest
November 2021
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Welcome to the Justice and Outreach Council (JOC)'s monthly newsletter.
A place to find all the happenings of this active ministry at Trinity.
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Land Acknowledgement
The JOC committee devised this Land Acknowledgment statement to be read before meetings at Trinity and during services.
We honor and acknowledge the Chumash people, the traditional custodians of this land, and pay our respects to the Chumash elders, past, present, and future, who call this land on which we sit their home. We appreciate their wisdom, their culture, and their presence among us today as the host people of this land. We lament the injustices done to the original inhabitants and the injustices done to this land in the centuries since. We seek the courage and wisdom to heal the wounds of the past and build a better future together, in deep solidarity.
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October 18 JOC Meeting Highlights
Jeffrey Krutstch reported that from the JOC celebrations fund, a $1000 check to Episcopal Migration Ministries for Afghan and Haitian relief has been sent.
The $500 check to SBACT for relief help at La Cobina Shelter in Mexicali was also sent. Landon Ranck, from SBACT shares this acknowledgement letter from Sister Suzanne Jabro after she received a total of $3,700 from Trinity and other local faith communities.
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Also on our October agenda was to finalize our annual giving plan. Though we wait for
approval by the vestry, we voted to allocate $5000/each to the following organizations:
CAUSE, Foodbank of SB County, Immigration Legal Defense Center, and the Community
Environmental Council.
Further, we voted to donate $2000 each to the following historic ministries: St. Michael’s, Transition House, Sarah House, and the Harding Elementary School Foundation with the understanding that these four ministries would receive the same allocation next year, for the benefit of planning ahead. This also awaits approval by the Vestry.
A new Volunteer request for Payment Form was approved so, volunteers, please look for that form for JOC reimbursement.
Contact Laurinda Marshall at: laurinda@yahoo.com with any questions.
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Co-Chair Needed for
Alternative Christmas Market (ACM)
December 5, 2021
The Alternative Christmas Market is an opportunity for Trinity parishioners and friends to “justice shop” and support a wide variety of local and international charitable organizations. This event needs new leadership. Parishioner Anne Shaw did a wonderful job with this important ministry for many years and will be stepping down. Thank you so much, Anne!
Jennifer Bergquist, a veteran ACM volunteer and ex-chair for eight years, has volunteered to lead ACM this year, but we need someone to work with her and hopefully take over the position next year. We also need an accountant-type person who can reconcile payments and who knows how to process credit card payments. If you are interested in helping out, please contact Jennifer at jenniferbergquist@gmail.com.
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Santa Barbara Feeding Ministries
Dinner in Alameda Park Meal Ministry was on October 28. Thank all of you trusty volunteers who filled up the volunteer slots for this important ministry so quickly! There will be no meal served in November so the next opportunity to serve will be on December 23. Check the Trinity website for information on how to get involved.
Trinity’s Transition House Dinner Ministry is the fourth Saturday each month. Now that COVID protocols have loosened up, last month, Michael Arnold prepared dinner for 60 in the Transition House kitchen with the help of Anne Roediger. They still are not allowed to serve and intermingle with the families. Please email Teresa Pietsch
Trinity is collecting frozen casseroles in anticipation of the Freedom Winter Warming Center opening. Please consider making a fully-cooked casserole for the freezer. Frozen purchased casseroles are also welcome. This winter season is dedicated to the beloved Katrina Perez, tireless volunteer and advocate for the Warming Center. Our first chance to serve is the week of Nov 15-19. Please email office@trinitysb.org if you'd like to get involved.
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Immigrant Legal Defense Center (ILDC)
Molly Kellogg attended a fundraiser for the Santa Barbara Immigrant Legal Defense Center on October 21. JOC voted to support them with a $500 donation from the celebrations fund. She felt that this would not only get Trinity’s name out there, but also stimulate other donations. The ILDC is the only organization in SB County that offers free legal services to unaccompanied minors and adults in detention centers. The ILDC trains lawyers to become pro-bono immigration lawyers.
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Support the FoodBank
As the nights grow colder and the holidays draw near, more and more local residents are showing up at distributions for some healthy food and extra support. This increase in need is due to the "perfect storm" of factors that will impact hunger this fall and winter; many of our neighbors who work in seasonal sectors (hospitality, tourism, construction and agriculture) will lose jobs or hours.
Inflation is making it harder for community members to afford food, rent and other goods/services. Five essential federal programs that have kept many households afloat during the pandemic came to an end last month, which will plunge many families into deeper food and housing insecurity this fall and winter.
More people will be buying groceries instead of eating out at restaurants, so the Foodbank will not receive donated food from grocery rescue programs and retailers. That means we'll need to purchase more food to meet need in the community. Families, older adults and children will need more support to stay healthy this season. Donate today to lend a helping hand.
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More Local Justice News
Because of the powerful testimonies collected by the Cops Off Campus SB Youth Coalition, the SB Unified School District board voted unanimously not to renew the contract with the Sheriff’s office for an armed deputy at San Marcos High School. Learn more about taking action with the local chapter of SURJ (Showing Up for Racial Justice).
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Opportunities for Involvement
in our local community, at Trinity, and in the world
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Border & Migration Ministry Summit
Postponed until March 2022
The work of migration ministry is not without its challenges. The situations our migration ministries respond to can change unpredictably and crucial opportunities to serve our neighbors rarely arrive with much advance warning. In the midst of finalizing conference details for the 2021 Summit, EMM began working diligently to assist arriving Afghan individuals and families through our network of affiliates across the country.
Around the same time, the Immigration & Refugee Ministries of the Diocese of West Texas began responding to the crisis in Del Rio and are providing humanitarian aid to the displaced Haitians traveling through their diocese to family and sponsors throughout the U.S. These humanitarian crises require significant staff attention and time, limiting the co-hosts’ ability to provide the conference originally planned.
The fourth annual Border & Migration Ministry Summit will now take place March 30 – 31, 2022. To receive conference and registration information in the new year, sign up for EMM's newsletter. Learn more here.
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Stories of Justice Ministries |
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Every month we publish a story of ministry and volunteerism from a Trinity parishioner. This month’s story is from Jeffrey Krutzsch, Chair of the Justice and Outreach Council.
This past week, our digest editor Kathryn Dean, said to me “its your turn”. I said “what? No, I don’t have a story to tell” and she graciously said, “Yes you do, you volunteer a lot, tell your story”. So I thought about it and here we go. Volunteering is something we all do. Many of us don’t give the idea of volunteering a second thought, we just do it because we are asked to be a part of something bigger than ourselves. Click here to continue reading.
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Celebrate and Support Justice |
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Look for the blue celebration envelopes in the pews!
CELEBRATE!...a birthday, an anniversary, a special event of any sort for which you are thankful.
Turn your “celebration” into a donation to the Justice and Outreach Council. We will use these funds to provide comfort and safety to those in need—food, education for children, assistance to immigrants—any of our neighbors needing support….so they can celebrate. Together, these gifts make possible our community of welcome, reconciliation and service.
We would like thank Nollie Lei Dawson and Jeannie Christensen for their generous contributions to the JOC celebration fund in October.
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The Justice and Outreach Council (JOC) continues its important work in our community and beyond. Funding for the JOC comes from your pledges and Celebration offerings. The JOC’s funding is part of our annual Operating Budget where five percent (5%) of all pledges received during the year is put in the JOC account. As pledge income has remained steady this year, these funds continue to be set aside for justice work.
There are two ways you can continue to celebrate and support our justice work in addition to your pledges both now and in the future. You can send in a check made out to Trinity and simply note “Justice” in the memo line and provide the names of the persons or occasion you want to celebrate. You can also donate via Trinity’s PayPal account, select "Justice Fund" and under “special instructions” provide the names of the persons or occasion you want to celebrate.
Thank you for supporting our justice work through your pledges, donations, prayers, and most of all, the work you do in your lives to make this a more loving, peaceful, and just world.
Kathryn Dean, JOC
Michael Dean, Treasurer
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