Justice and Outreach Council
Monthly Digest
July 2021
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Welcome to the Justice and Outreach Council'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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JOC Sponsors Two DACA Applicants
DACA, the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, provides a renewable temporary protected status to undocumented youth (often referred to as DREAMers) who came to the US before their 16th birthday. If the applicant qualifies, they may then apply for a work permit to legally work in the US. DACA application/renewal fees are $495 per applicant. Due to the pandemic, many applicants are unable to pay the fee themselves. You can sponsor an applicant as a faith community/community organization, or by yourself as an individual. This donation is tax-deductible.
JOC has decided to sponsor two applicants and makes a challenge to other Trinity members to consider sponsorship so that we can generously support our neighbors during this difficult time!
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Foothills Forever Crosses the Finish Line and Finalizes Escrow
From an article in the SB Independent written by Jean Yamamura:
"In an amazing feat of energy, outreach, and no small amount of grace, ownership of 100 acres of grassland next to the San Marcos Foothills Preserve went into nonprofit hands this week. Given only 90 short days to raise $18 million, the dream to conserve the land conceived by Dani Lynch, Samantha Eddy, Julia Laraway, and Nancy Tubiolo — and supported by members of the Chumash tribes, high school and college students, and what’s come to be a nexus of Santa Barbara environmentalism and philanthropy — succeeded in safely passing escrow on the west mesa to Channel Islands Restoration, which has been managing the existing preserve, and the Allemall Foundation, which gave $3.6 million to the campaign."
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Mental Wellness Center Update and Thanks
Trinity’s Phylene Wiggins, liaison for JOC, received this thank you from Annmarie Cameron, CEO of Mental Wellness Center. To view, please click on this link.
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Opportunities for Involvement
Ways to get involved in our community, at Trinity, and in the world.
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Storyteller Children's Center Donations Welcome
Storyteller Children's Center is a therapeutic preschool that provides high-quality early childhood education for homeless and at-risk children in Santa Barbara County, as well as comprehensive support services for their families. The following are items that the center uses often, which need regular replenishing:
- Play Doh
- Sidewalk chalk
- Markers - preferably washable
- Tempera paints
- Finger paints
- Big rolls of paper for finger painting, etc. (usually available at Michael's)
- Baskets of various sizes for toys and storage
- New books - Spanish/English, about emotions, blended families, multicultural subjects, etc.
Please contact Adrienne De Guevara (preferred pronouns She/Her/Ella), at 805-730-0155 if you would like to make a donation.
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Help Healing Justice SB Keep the
Melanin Gallery
JOC member Lara Cooper reports, “Here’s the GoFundMe for the Healing Justice-sponsored gallery space I mentioned.”
“Beyond funds, definitely check out the space if you are downtown and feel comfortable. The Melanin gallery is showcasing Black artists from Santa Barbara and Ventura counties and they are also using the space for community events (you can find the whole schedule on Instagram– they did a lot around Juneteenth). Healing Justice is working to raise money to have the gallery stay up for six months while they work to figure out a long-term plan for a community space.”
“It’s heartening to see the community step up to support, even if our government agencies are unable or unwilling to fund their effort at this time. Young people especially are galvanizing around this. It’s really exciting to see.”
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From Criminalizing to Reinvesting in Youth of Color
TOMORROW, July 8 at 5pm PT via Zoom
This panel will delve into how cities and school districts can invest in programs and services to address the needs of local youth of color. How can cities move funding to create and reimagine youth programs? How can we address the wellness and mental health of young people in our community? Join us to hear from local youth leaders and organizers about how we can incorporate youth in the decision-making process and advance transformational change for the next generation. Register now!
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Volunteer with Santa Barbara Rescue Mission (SBRM)
JOC members Molly Kellogg and Kathryn Dean met with Trinity parishioner Tim Molloy to learn about SBRM and the current status and volunteer needs of this important resource for our homeless neighbors. He is the financial officer for SBRM. For more information see: https://sbrm.org/about-sbrm/volunteer
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Stories of Shared Ministry |
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Every month we publish a story of shared ministry and volunteerism from a Trinity parishioner. This month’s story is from Michael Dean.
"Many a wise person has said, “Follow your passion and you will never work a day in your life”. And I found that to be true in my professional life. I began working at the County Welfare Department (later renamed the Department of Social Services) thinking, like many of my fellow recent college graduates, I would be there just a short while, but 36 years flew by with very few mornings when I wasn’t eager to get up and get to work. I did little to prepare for my post-retirement life, so I was grateful to have volunteer opportunities at Trinity."
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Celebrate and Support Justice |
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The Justice and Outreach Council (JOC) has continued its important work while Trinity has been in diaspora. 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 by visiting our website or by clicking HERE and under “special instructions” designate your donation for JOC and 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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