Diocese of North Carolina Celebrates the Awarding of Four Grants to Diocesan Congregations and Ministries

The Diocese of North Carolina has reason to celebrate this week, as we share the news of four grants awarded to diocesan congregations and ministries.

Saint Augustine's Chapel, Raleigh, was recently awarded a $18,686 United Thank Offering grant to continue the work of restoring the chapel at Saint Augustine's University as well as renovating it to have the capacity to do online worship. Led by university chaplain the Rev. Hershey Mallette Stephens, the work continues a project begun in 2017 by the Rev. Nita Byrd, former university chaplain, who identified the need for renovation and organized the initial campaign that already has contributed to the replacement of the Chapel's stained glass windows.

Saint Augustine's University Chapel is the oldest building on the university's campus and a Raleigh Landmark. The grant to assist with its ongoing renovation and upgrade is one of 26 UTO grants awarded this last cycle to 21 Episcopal Church and five Anglican Communion missions and ministries under a focus of Recovering with Love and Gratitude: An Episcopal Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic in Local Contexts.

Abundant Life, Greensboro, has been awarded a $30,000 Growth Grant from The Episcopal Church's Taskforce for Church Planting and Congregational Redevelopment. Led by mission developer and Holy Spirit vicar the Rev. Audra Abt, the ministry is a collaborative "community focused on health, healing, worship and loving service" located in Greensboro. Founded not long before the pandemic began, Abundant Life has nevertheless created collaborative partnerships and community relationships in an online world.

Christ's Beloved Community/Comunidad Amada de Cristo, Winston-Salem, is the recipient of a $40,000 Harvest Grant from the Episcopal Church, continuing the support of the bilingual, bicultural church plant organized jointly by the Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina and the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America. They were welcomed as a mission church during the 203rd Annual Convention in 2018.

Chapel of the Cross, Chapel Hill, has been awarded a $42,000 sustainability grant to continue the work of My Spiritual Awakening (MSA), a project funded by a Lilly Endowment Grant in 2015. MSA works to equip students with resources and opportunities to reflect on the intersection of their faith with their vocational path, providing funding for seven project areas of ministry, including: Vocational Internships, My Spiritual Awakening Speaker Series, Walk in Love Mentors, Veteran Outreach, Transformative Travel, the Finding Your Purpose Conference model and the Namaste (Mind, Body, Spirit integration) projects.

The Diocese gives thanks for and congratulates all of these grant recipients on finding ways to continue the life-changing work they are doing and for being a faithful presence in the communities they serve.