More than 40 percent of American teens have tried some type of alcohol, tobacco or illicit drug, which is half of those who were presented with the opportunity — this is a staggering statistic. Rosecrance wants you to understand the signs of teen addiction, so you can seek help before it’s too late.
United Voices for Children has announced the recipients of its 2018 annual awards for outstanding advocacy and service for children and youth in Northern Illinois. The Bishop Jesse R. Dewitt Award will be given to Deacon Wes Dorr of United Church of Rogers Park (Chicago). The Katherine B. Greene Child Worker Award goes to two recipients: Karen Klaus of First UMC Crystal Lake; and to Chana UMC. The Rev. Margaret Ann Williams Service Award will be given to Licia Knight of St. Mark UMC (Chicago).
The Rev. James E. Swarthout will be the featured speaker at the United Voices for Children’s Annual Breakfast on Tuesday, June 5th, 2018. Fr. Jim is Director of Clergy and Alumni Relations for Rosecrance Health Network. At the Breakfast Fr. Jim will speak on “’The Art of Possibility.”
The United Voices for Children (UVC) Board of Directors is both grateful and pleased to announce receipt of a financial bequest from the Estate of Nancy Culbertson. Nancy Ruth Culbertson of Melrose Park, Illinois passed away February 18, 2016 at the age of 71.
Child advocates have two important challenges--(1) motivating church folk to take to the streets to work with vulnerable youth and children... and (2) working with your legislators and community leaders to see that resources become available through prevention-oriented programs that will motivate these youth in becoming upstanding men and women in their communities.
Jesus lives and dies for neighbors I don’t want to hang with. I may share a common communion cup with them or open a soup kitchen on their behalf. I will even support a treatment center for God’s sake or my safety’s sake, so they can kick a habit. But don’t ask me to love them. Let them be mission projects.
Whether we want to admit it or not, race matters, especially in America. Systematic racism affects children of color, in particular, black and brown children, emotionally, spiritually, physically and often socio-economically. Particularly harmful is the form of colorblind racism which denies, dishonors and devalues students of color culture and God-given physical attributes. To be colorblind – to not see race, is to refuse to see the beauty of God’s creation in students of color and to assimilate them into our own ideas of normalcy.
At some time in our lives we experience loneliness. It’s normal and necessary. It should be appreciated not feared. During seasons of loneliness, the dis-eased soul can discover the greatest of cure with time, prayer and surrender —God’s constant presence. We are never truly alone no more than the stand-alone Sequoia Redwood tree.
Congregations in Northern Illinois are invited to participate in an important growth and training opportunity, Skin in the Game: Equipping Congregations to Challenge Racism. This half-day workshop on August 19 will provide practical guidance and resources for clergy, lay leaders and Christian Educators to address one of the most troublesome issues in our churches.
God won’t help us out of a dark place or even the dark night of the soul. But a flashlight will. Thoughtful reflection of how much we matter to God and praying to Him might help us through desperate times. But when we pray, we should pray— not for the deus ex machina to drop down out of the sky but pray for the constancy of God’s presence and voice.