"Once you say you believe..."

The 2011 Episcopal Charities annual appeal for diocesan ministries is under way – with the excitement of two ambitious goals in this, our 60th anniversary year.

First, we want to offer every parishioner throughout the diocese the opportunity to work together with us as we find innovative ways to serve not only those longing for a relationship with Jesus Christ and with the Church, but also those in need whom we find by the wayside: "As you do for the least of these, my brothers and sisters, so you do for me."

Second, we want to inspire every parishioner throughout the diocese with our goal of raising $600,000 for new and expanded ministries. In these tough economic times, the need for such ministries continues to increase – even as resources once available to us through government funding and private-sector grants have dwindled. But if we believe with Bishop Provenzano that,"Once you say you believe, everything else is mission," then we know that we cannot retreat in the face of such obstacles. We must press forward.

And press forward is what we are doing! The planned Diocesan Scholars Program will offer promising but less-advantaged high-school students a three-year program of academic classes, internships, enrichment activities and spiritual growth opportunities to prepare them to be future leaders.

Planned collaboration and synergy among our established social and health ministries will see Episcopal Health Services and Episcopal Community Services jointly develop a full-service youth center near the St. John's Episcopal Hospital campus, aimed at reclaiming the hopes and dreams of teenagers in one of the poorest areas of the diocese.

On the planning board is a new "aging in place" ministry, a loving ministry aimed at helping aging family members to remain in their homes by easing their burdens and the burdens on their families. Also envisioned is a diocesan volunteer ministry offering services to seniors and seniors' family caregivers, coupled with an information and referral program to promote better access to services for older adults.

And, of course, parish-based, parishbacked ministry initiatives are a renewed priority: parish-based ministry is at the heart of the historical Episcopal Charities mandate and at the heart of the mission of the diocese.

As Christians we recognize that giving is based on our understanding that all of our financial resources—like everything else that we possess—come from God. Our personal resources are a gift, not to be hoarded, but to be used in building up the Kingdom of God. We give joyously because we know that we are only acting as good stewards of that with which God has entrusted us.

I am thrilled to tell you that every member of the senior staff of the diocese has already pledged to contribute to this year's annual appeal, and pledges from our board members are still coming in.

I am thrilled, too, to tell you that we have begun to solicit major pacesetting gifts from new prospective donors —five-figure and even six-figure gifts from philanthropists who have been inspired by the new mission spirit abroad in the diocese. You'll be hearing much more soon about this new mission spirit, and about ways that you can be a part of it all—and about giving opportunities in the next few months.

Remember, as you prayerfully consider your ability to give, that all of the administrative and fund-raising costs of Episcopal Charities are underwritten by our endowment— every penny that you donate goes directly to serving those in need.

Your gift, your selflessness and sacrifice, will make an almost unimaginable difference in the lives of struggling families, children and elders: our neighbors in Brooklyn, Queens, Nassau and Suffolk— God's Dominion in the Sea.

The Rev. E. Clare Nesmith, Executive Director

Episcopal Charities of Long Island, 36 Cathedral Avenue, P.O. Box 510, Garden City, NY 11530, email address ECLI@dioceseli.org. To use a credit card, please click here, or call (516) 248-4800, ext. 19 and speak with Mrs. Nancy Kennelly, Administrative Assistant. When you make a donation in memory of or in honor of someone, their name will be recorded in the Book of Remembrance and an acknowledgement sent.