CHICAGO (ELCA) -- St. Paul Lutheran Church, Hampton, Va., has won the Annual Accessibility Award of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America (ELCA). The award includes a $1,000 prize, a certificate and prominence on the Web site of the ELCA Division for Church in Society.
The Rev. Lisa Thogmartin-Cleaver, director for disability ministries and deaf ministry, ELCA Division for Church in Society, said the National Organization on Disability and Aetna U.S. Healthcare provided the cash prize. The money is meant to help the congregation support its disability ministries.
The Rev. Christine L. Farrow, pastor at St. Paul, told Thogmartin- Cleaver the money would be used to change the water fountains in the church so they can be raised or lowered to accommodate people in wheelchairs.
St. Paul was selected for the accessibility of its buildings and for the extent to which the congregation includes people with disabilities in worship, leadership and other activities of the congregation, said Thogmartin-Cleaver.
"The first step is getting people in the building," said Thogmartin-Cleaver. "We are not meant just to go to worship and sit there passively and not participate. If the gifts of people in wheelchairs or with disabilities are not being used, then certainly we are not utilizing the talents that God has given them. We are not answering God's call to mission completely either."
The congregation's health committee installed ramps throughout the church. Then it joined forces with the congregation's social ministries committee to build ramps at appropriate places around town, said Thogmartin-Cleaver.
St. Paul has about 280 baptized members, and about 150 attend worship there each Sunday, said Thogmartin-Cleaver. "They are a relatively small congregation, and yet they are really putting a lot of resources into this project," she said.
The health committee provides resources, such as braille materials and hearing devices, for people in the congregation who have disabilities. "If someone needs a wheelchair and can't afford it, they provide them with a wheelchair, so they are really doing a lot of outreach," said Thogmartin-Cleaver.
"This emphasis is apparently something that has existed since the beginning of this congregation, and it certainly seems to be a real mission for the pastor, too," said Thogmartin-Cleaver.
Three congregations each received "honorable mention" certificates this year and $100 certificates of deposit from the ELCA Mission Investment Fund: + Zion Lutheran Church, Staten Island, N.Y.; + Emmanuel Lutheran Church, Cheney, Wash.; and + Ascension Lutheran Church, Waukesha, Wis.
Ascension Lutheran Church, Albert Lea, Minn., won the ELCA Accessibility Award in 2000.
The ELCA disability ministries and deaf ministry assists congregations and other church institutions in inclusive ministry with people with disabilities. Four networks serve as the ministries' core: the ELCA Braille and Tape Ministry, the Lutheran Network on Mental Illness/Brain Disorders, the Lutheran Services in America-Disability Network and the youth-led Definitely Abled Advisory Committee.
The ELCA Mission Investment Fund provides loans to new Lutheran mission congregations to purchase land and construct new church buildings. Fund investors earn competitive interest rates while furthering the mission and ministry of the church. -- -- --
The ELCA Division for Church in Society maintains information about the church's disability ministries and deaf ministry, including resources on accessibility, at http://www.elca.org/dcs/disability.html on the Web.
St. Paul Lutheran Church has its home page at http://www.unidial.com/~spelc/index.html on the Web.
For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or NEWS@ELCA.ORG
http://listserv.elca.org/archives/elcanews.html
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About the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America:
The ELCA is one of the largest Christian denominations in the United States, with 2.8 million members in more than 8,500 worshiping communities across the 50 states and in the Caribbean region. Known as the church of "God's work. Our hands.," the ELCA emphasizes the saving grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ, unity among Christians and service in the world. The ELCA's roots are in the writings of the German church reformer Martin Luther.
For information contact:
Candice Hill Buchbinder
Public Relations Manager
Candice.HillBuchbinder@ELCA.org
