By giving to the Christmas Joy Offering, you honor God's gift of Jesus Christ by providing assistance to current and retired church workers in their time of need and developing our future leaders at Presbyterian-related schools and colleges equipping communities of color. Below are some stories of individuals helped by your donations:
A few years into her ministry, Dr. Judi McMillian had to unexpectedly leave her congregation, and found herself between calls and in the position of being the sole person responsible for her children, and her mortgage. She reinvented herself by working at a flower shop, but her life stress simply proved too much. A friend and clergy colleague told her that the Assistance Program of the Board of Pensions, made possible by gifts to the Christmas Joy Offering, could help. Now pastor of the Presbyterian Church of Bella Vista, Arkansas, Judi says “since we can’t always predict when we might need financial assistance, knowing that there’s a safety net there is both lived grace and love.” “At a time when I was scared and unsure, the Christmas Joy Offering filled the gap. This was God’s doing. I was so very thankful for the work of Christmas Joy and for the concern of my colleague and the generosity of our denomination.”
LaTrell Clifford Wood came to Stillman College as a business and fine arts major but was drawn to history and its practical application for her as an aspiring scholar and leader, and she soon realized that social justice was her calling. One of her many achievements at Stillman was to co-found the college’s Sustainable Healthy Food Initiative Task Force. Not long after graduating, she served as an intern in Washington, D.C., with the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation. Now she is the hunger policy advocate for Alabama Arise, advancing public policies to improve the lives of Alabamians who are marginalized by poverty, truly carrying “The Stillman Way” into the world by “providing an environment that delivers the pursuit of intellectual excellence, the development of personal honor, and a commitment to the common good.” “I see the Christmas Joy Offering as a way to support restorative justice,” said LaTrell. She also believes that schools like Stillman prepare the way for more changemakers in the future..
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