Note: Region numbers in the following refer to geographic areas of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. See a map for geographic boundaries. Click here for a print-friendly version of the following list of recipients.

Women of the ELCA 
2004 Grant Recipients

REGION 1
Leadership Development
Anchorage Interdenominational Sponsoring Committee — $1,000
(1A) Anchorage, Alaska
Anchorage Interdenominational Sponsoring Committee
This ecumenical program trains and develops leaders in low- and moderate-income communities to act on and effect change on local issues that impact the health of the community.

Child Care
First Place for Children — $2,000
(1C) Tacoma, Washington
Community Childcare
First Placed for Children provides quality child care and supportive services for low-income families with children between the ages of 4 weeks and 5 years.

Support for Homeless Families
Lutheran Community Services Northwest — $3,000
(1E) King City, Oregon
HopeSpring
The mission of HopeSpring is to promote self-sufficiency for homeless women and children, most of whom are escaping domestic violence or chemical addictions, by providing housing and social services through a collaborative community effort.

REGION 2
Support for Homeless Families
Lutheran Church of Our Savior — $500
(2A) San Francisco, California
Our Savior Happy Birthday Fund
Church members host monthly social events for children residing in homeless shelters and transitional housing facilities in the area.

Computer Training
Messiah Lutheran Church — $1,000
(2B) Los Angeles, California
Saturday's Kids
At-risk children who participate in Saturday's Kids receive academic tutoring, computer training, meals, and opportunities for recreation.

Support for Torture Survivors
Survivors of Torture, International — $4,000
(2C) San Diego, California
Healthcare Access for Torture Survivors in California
In a county that is home to more than 11,000 torture survivors, this organization conducts statewide advocacy campaigns to promote basic access to health care for refugees seeking asylum in the United States.

Prison Ministry
Women of the ELCA Gloria de Cristo Lutheran Church — $1,850
(2D) Yuma, Arizona
Prison Ministry
Women in this church offer education on prison ministry, provide Bibles for inmates, and assist children of inmates with supplies for summer camp.

Prison Ministry
Denver Inner City Parish — $2,000
(2E) Denver, Colorado
Project ReNEW
As they reenter the community, Project ReNEW provides ongoing assistance to persons coming out of prison and their families.

REGION 3
Prison Ministry
Lutheran Memorial Church, Stephen Ministry, W2 Program — $4,000
(3C) Pierre, South Dakota
"Mom and Me at Camp"
Funding supports a summer camp experience for incarcerated women and their children to help improve self-esteem, build values, and strengthen family relationships.

Arts for At-Risk Children
Zion Originated Outreach Ministry — $1,000
(3G) Minneapolis, Minnesota
Through this program, children who have experienced homelessness arfe offered opportunities for weekly art projects and community-building activities while their parents meet with a family advocate.

Housing Rehabilitation
Messiah Bridge Women, Messiah Evangelical Lutheran Church — $3,000
(3G) Minneapolis, Minnesota
Bridge Women Project
Women at Messiah involve themselves and other community women in improving the interior living environments of low-income women and their families.

Summer Camp
Christ Church on Capitol Hill — $1,000
(3H) St. Paul, Minnesota
Creating Safe Spaces for Inner-City Children
Children in the economically depressed area surrounding Christ Church experience a summer day camp program while their parents learn how to advocate for justice in their communities.

REGION 4
English Training
Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church — $1,500
(4A) Omaha, Nebraska
Survival English for Sudanese Women
This project helps women from a male-dominated tribal culture learn how to function in American society and teaches them basic survival English.

Leadership Training for Teens
Zion Lutheran Church — $1,400
(4B) Ferguson, Missouri
Peer Leader Training
Funding supports leadership training and community building across racial barriers for teens who are involved in outreach ministries of the congregation.

Violence Prevention
Southeast Missouri Network Against Sexual Violence — $3,000
(4B) Cape Girardeau, Missouri
A Voice for Victims/Voces para las Victimas
This project provides interpretive and prevention services for rural Hispanic women and children who are victims of sexual violence.

REGION 4
Immigrant Support
Interfaith Refugee and Immigration Ministries — $3,000
(5A) Chicago, Illinois
The Women's Empowerment Program
The Women's Empowerment Program supports refugee women through mentoring, English training, workshops, field trips, and advisory services, and involves them in a twice-weekly sewing cooperative through which they make handcrafts for sale.

Mentoring
WINGS Program, Inc. — $3,000
(5A) Palatine, Illinois
Project Lifeline
Project Lifeline trains mentors who provide support, encouragement, and advocacy for suburban women who are overcoming homelessness and working to become independent.

Immigrant Support
St. Elias Christian Church — $4,000
(5A) Chicago, Illinois
Helping Immigrant Women and Their Children
St. Elias church provides English-language training to Middle Eastern women to increase their job opportunities, to encourage them to be active in society, and to help them understand American culture.

Immigrant Support
Muslim Women Resources Center — $1,000
(5A) Chicago, Illinois
Women Occupational Readiness Kit (WORK)
Funding supports distribution of an occupational readiness kit that offers immigrant Muslim women Enlish-language training, cross-cultural training, individual goal development, and job placement support.

Court Advocates for Children
Court Appointed Special Advocates of Will County — $1,000
(5B) Joliet, Illinois
Recruitment and Training of Volunteer Advocates
This project provides trained, volunteer court advocates to represent abused and neglected children in Will County's juvenile court system.

Life Skills Training
Zion Lutheran Church — $4,000
(5B) Rockford, Illinois
In the Bag
Clients of the food pantry at Zion can participate in a cooking and nutritional education class in which community leaders and church volunteers offer presentations and share meals with the clients.

Job Skill Training
Beacon of Belleville — $1,000
(5C) Belleville, Illinois
Relational Ministry — O' Fallon
This project offers budgeting, resume, and interviewing skills training for individuals and families that visit the O'Fallon Community Food Pantry, and for other low-income persons in the community.

Life Skills Training
W.O.W. Women of the Wilderness Lutheran Church — $2,000
(5I) Bowler, Wisconsin
W.O.W. Assistance Program
Women from this congregation support residents of a local emergency shelter by providing resources for services such as financial planning, job training, parenting skills, leadership skills, and practice in positive decision-making.

Housing Assistance
Hands of Faith of Beloit, Inc. — $2,000
(5K) Beloit, Wisconsin
Strengthening Families and Commmunities
This project assists homeless families with minor children in obtaining permanent housing and employment by offering case management and other support services.

REGION 6
Food Program
Iroquois WISE Coalition — $3,000
(6A) Detroit, Michigan
Growing Healthy Kids
This neighborhood-based food program promotes healthy nutrition practices for low-income families and children and teaches sustainable nutrition, cooking, and gardening skills.

Mentoring Teen Parents
Our Children, Our Future, Inc. — $3,000
(6C) Wabash, Indiana
Mentor Mother Program
This program addresses the needs of teen mothers and mothers at risk by offering pre- and post-natal care and support, assisting mothers in accessing community resources, and encouraging teen moms to stay in school.

Immigrant Support
Calvary Lutheran — $1,000
(6E) East Cleveland, Ohio
Project Care
The goal of this project is to assist Liberian refugee women in becoming self-sufficient by offering basic life skills and job training, tutoring their children, providing home economics classes, and providing counseling and spiritual healing.

Housing and Employment
Jefferson Behavioral Health System — $2,500
(6E) Steubenville, Ohio
Housing and Employment New Beginnings
Focusing especially on women with mental illnesses, this program assists women in finding employment and housing opportunities and provides peer support groups where women can share experiences.

REGION 7
Immigrant Support
Lutheran Church of the Redeemer — $2,000
(7A) Trenton, New Jersey
Immigrant Outreach Project
The goals of this project are to assist immigrants in making connections with local social service providers, to sponsor bi-monthly workshops for immigrants, and to offer spiritual development and healing.

After-School Child Care
Trinity Lutheran Church of Alden Terrance — $2,000
(7C) Valley Stream, New York
AfterHours@Trinity
Funding supports after-school care for working parents who need affordable child care in a safe environment that also includes academic tutoring.

Summer Camp
West Berks Mission District — $3,000
(7E) Reading, Pennsylvania
Love for Children Day Camp
At-risk children from urban and suburban congregations participate in a day camp experience that includes art, music, athletic activities, and religious education.

Summer Camp
Reformation Lutheran Church — $3,000
(7F) Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Camp RC
Organized and conducted primarily by women from the community, this project provides a 10-week summer day camp for children from low- and moderate-income families and offers summer employment to at least 18 women.

REGION 8
After School Program
Grace Learning Center, Inc. — $2,000
(8A) Franklin, Pennsylvania
Grace Learning Center After School Program
Funding supports the establishment of two additional program sites where low-income children can receive academic and social enrichment in a safe and supportive environment.

Reading Skills Development
Ohio Valley Lutheran Bible Camp Association — $1,300
(8B) Hickory, Pennsylvania
Camp Agape, Agape Ministries
This reading camp improves the reading skills of children who have completed the third through fifth grades and are below grade reading level, and trains parents to continue working with their children throughout the year.

Advocacy for Colombia
Lutheran World Relief — $2,000
(8F) Baltimore, Maryland
Give Peace a Place in Colombia
This program addresses the current military conflict in Colombia and its resulting humanitarian crisis by training Women of the ELCA participants to become advocates for social justice in Colombia.

Tutoring Program
Zion Lutheran Church/Latino Ministry — $4,000
(8G) Takoma Park, Maryland
Angeles del Barrio (Angels of the Neighborhood)
In this predominantly Salvadoran community, the Latino Ministry offers after-school tutoring for children and tutoring in English for their immigrant parents.

English Tutoring
Organizaciσn la Nueva Esperanza (New Hope Organization) — $2,500
(8G) Washington, District of Columbia
Proyecto Ruth
The goal of Proyecto Ruth is to help immigrant families ease their transition into U.S. society and to find employment by offering twice-weekly English classes.

REGION 9
Domestic Violence Recovery
Sistercare, Inc. — $4,000
(9C) Columbia, South Carolina
The Turning Point Project
This project assists battered women in addressing violence issues and acquiring the language and employment skills they need to achieve economic self-sufficiency.

Support for Low-Income Students
Rural Cumberland Resources — $1,000
(9D) Crossville, Tennessee
Bridging the Gap
The goal of this program is to assist schools in more effectively incorporating low-income students into the school community and to develop a "Facing Diversity" guide for use in the community.

Support for Undocumented Families
Resurrection House Mission — $2,000
(9E) Dade City, Florida
Teen Santuario
Through this program, undocumented families learn about the legislative process and interacting with the legislators who make the laws that directly affect them, thus empowering women and youth to have a voice in a world where they are often forgotten.

Sewing Classes
St. John's Evangelical Lutheran Church — $2,500
(9E) Jacksonville, Florida
A Stitch in Time Sewing Ministry
Women and girls participating in this year-long program learn to produce and repair their own clothes and to develop the skills necessary to start their own sewing business.

Support for High-Risk Families
Santisima Trinidad Evangelical Lutheran Church — $1,000
(9F) Lomas Verdes, Bayamon, Puerto Rico
Fortalecimiento de Familias y Comunidad
Participating families from this low-income community have the opportunity to be involved in a physical fitness program, prepare to obtain a high school diploma, receive immigration assistance, and work with academic tutors.

INTERNATIONAL GRANTS
Microfinancing
CHEERLEADERS, Cameroon — $1,000
Revolving Loan Fund to Improve Rural Livelihood
Young women, unemployed young men, street children, and people with disabilities who have received vocational training are given small loans as seed money to begin their own small business enterprises.

Human Rights for Girls
Youth Development & Rural Empowerment Foundation, Ghana — $2,000
Empowering the Konkomba Girl Child
In a culture in which child betrothal and forcible marriage is customary, this program helps young girls become aware of their human rights and their options if they are facing a forced marriage.

Retraining Teenage Sex Workers
Achung Kenda Progressive Women Group, Kenya — $1,000
Teenage Sex Workers Rehabilitation Program
This program offers training to teenage girls who recently abandoned prostitution, teaching them tailoring, dressmaking, and handcraft-making, and providing them with follow-up support as they become self-reliant.

Human Rights for Females
Jirani Christian Women Network, Kenya — $1,000
Advocating Women, Girl Child, and Orphan Rights
The goals of this project are to educate women, children, and public policy-makers about issues such as wife inheritance, female genital mutilation, and lack of educational and economic opportunities, and to work for laws that address these issues.

Educational Enrichment
The Mexican Association for Urban and Rural Transformation (AMEXTRA), Mexico — $2,000
Capacity Building for Mothers of Young Children
Mothers of children involved in the AMEXTRA daycare center receive childhood stimulation training and participate with their children in peace education workshops.

Violence Prevention
Proceso Kairos, Peru — $1,000
Ecumenical Project for the Prevention of Violence
As part of their ongoing involvement in the World Council of Churches Decade to Overcome Violence, this project trains women and men leaders of churches and social organizations in preventing violence and promoting non-violence.

Nutritional Enrichment
Moscow Protestant Chaplaincy, Russia — $2,000
Improving Nutritional Quality for Refugee Families and Students
Through its food-sharing program, this ministry helps refugees improve the quantity and nutritional quality of basic food items and provides nutritional training with a focus on meeting the nutritional needs of women and families with young children.

Preventing Female Circumcision
Women's Department of the Evangelical Lutheran Church, Arusha Diocese, Tanzania — $1,000
Anti Female Genital Mutilation Campaign
Women leaders in local parishes are trained to sensitize their parishes and communities about the harmful effects of female genital mutilation with the expectation that community attitudes will turn against this barbaric practice.

Literacy Training
Women of the Evangelical Lutheran Church, Pare Diocese, Tanzania — $1,000
Binti-Mama Literacy Seminars
This project offers literacy training seminars to women and girls in the Pare Diocese of Tanzania in order to improve their educational standards, self-confidence, and talents.

Vocational Training
St. Thereza Girls Boarding/Day Primary School, Uganda — $2,000
Vocational Training Project
Students involved in this project, especially girls who have dropped out of school and elderly women, receive life skills training to enable them to become employed.

INDIA ENDOWMENT FUND RECIPIENTS
In addition to funds awarded through the Women of the ELCA Grants Program, special grants to programs in India are awarded each year through the India Endowment Funds, a legacy of predecessor women's organizations. Grants from these funds are designated for health care, women's medical and nursing training, women's high school and higher education, and support for lay women evangelists.

$10,000 to the ELCA Wittenberg Center in Germany for a Lutheran Heritage Seminar for women representatives of the Indian Lutheran churches.

$16,400 to the Northern Evangelical Lutheran Church in India for scholarships for women studying at (1) the Chondorpura, Haraputa Martha Mariam, and Gaurang Bible schools, (2) the Mohulpahari Nursing School, (3) the Don Bosco High School, and (4) the Santhal Theological College.

$8,000 to Vellore Christian Medical College and Hospital for delivery and care of HIV/AIDS mothers and their babies.

$6,500 to Karanalaya Hospital for purchase of a new ambulance

$13,400 to the Andhra Evangelical Lutheran Church in India to support the Christian Ashram program

SUMMARY