May2006

On Sunday, April 23, 2006, 21 volunteers representing five different faith groups (Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, Baha’i, Muslim and Hindu) worked together to make the Day of Interfaith Service for Collegians a success. Together, volunteers stained wooden playground equipment and the surrounding wooden fence of the Head Start /Youth in Need Center on 3013 Meramec in south St. Louis. After completing the assigned tasks, volunteers engaged in interfaith dialogue in small groups, discussing questions related to faith and service. Launched in October 2003, Days of Interfaith Service for Collegians are service days in which young adults complete a community improvement project and engage in various activities that promote dialogue and understanding.

Special thanks to Youth in Need Staff, Fran Ventimiglia and Caren Moore. Also to SLU intern Evan Krauss.

Faith Beyond Walls joined many neighborhood organizations on April 22, 2006 to dedicate and install Phase I of the Officer Nicholas Sloan Memorial Garden on the corner of West Belle and Newstead in north St. Louis. This project was initiated and organized by Operation Weed and Seed, a U.S. Department of Justice community-based initiative designed to strengthen communities. Over 30 volunteers, including neighbors in the community, local police, and firefighters, worked side by side to create this beautify memorial. Officer Sloan, a St. Louis City Police Officer, was killed in the line of duty in January 2004 during the time that he was dedicated to Operation Weed and Seed in the Vandeventer, Fountain Park and Lewis Place Neighborhoods. St. Louis Mayor Francis Slay and Chief of Police Mokwa where among those leading the dedication and ground-breaking held immediately before the project.

Special thanks to Kim Norman, Executive Director for Operation Weed and Seed and to Mary Pedersen and Tyler Searle from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

The downpour outstide couldn't dampen the outpouring of service on April 29 when 13 volunteers worked hard to prepare two apartments for families in need at Lydia’s House. Before the project began volunteers where given a presentation regarding the ways in which Lydia’s House provides transitional housing for abused women and their children, providing the time and support necessary for them to move to safe, independent, permanent housing. Tasks included everything from washing walls and windows to steam cleaning and vacuuming carpet. Faith Beyond Walls would like to thank Overland Christian Church and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints for sending such wonderful, hard working volunteers.

On April 7, a group of 12 students and parents from the eighth grade of St. Clement Catholic School, in Des Peres, volunteered at Bryan Hill Elementary school in the College Hill Neighborhood. Students spent the day learning about how neighborhood challenges are met by Bryan Hill’s continued commitment to excellence for their students, as they worked on their painting projects. One group of St.Clement’s students painted a mural depicting Mary Meacham’s historic crossing of the Mississippi as she attempted to free slaves. This event happened not far from the College Hill area. The other group painted educational murals on to plywood which will be used to cover windows in a near by abandoned building. Special thanks to Principal Carole Johnson, Americorps Volunteers assigned to Bryan Hill and Ethel Maynes from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints for all the extra effort to make this project such a success.

On March 25, over 50 Faith Beyond Walls Volunteers beautified NBA ECHO, Emergency Children’s Home. Volunteers spend the morning painting campus benches, garbage cans, and window sills a pretty blue color! They also raked leaves and picked up trash around the campus to make a cleaner and more aesthetically pleasing campus for the foster care youth that reside at ECHO . Volunteers included representatives from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Overland Christian Church, St. Monica Parish ,Jumpstart, Tau Kappa Epsilon, SLU School of Social Work, Sigma Chi and Chaminade High School. Thanks to Mr. Lawson Calhoun NBA ECHO’s Executive Director, for all his assistance. FBW was grateful to continue the partnerhship with ECHO that we began last year when our volutneers painted the boys dorms.

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Upcoming FBW Projects
Contact Beth Damsgaard-Rodriguez to register for any of these projects at
(314) 531-4787 or by e-mail

MAY

Saturday, May 6, 2006
Third Ward Neighborhood Council Area Clean–Up 9:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m. Lunch provided
Assembly location: 3808 W. Florissant, St. Louis, MO 63107
Volunteers Needed: 20 (all ages)
Activities: Tasks include alley clean up, trash pick up and neighborhood beautification

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Sunday, May 7, 2006
2:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m. Refreshments provided
Metro-East Youth, Edgemont Elementary School
Assembly location: 8601 Washington Street, East St. Louis, IL 62203
Volunteers Needed: 10 (all ages)
Activities: Volunteers will engage in service and interfaith dialogue to promote dialogue and understanding among those involved. Tasks include clearing an overgrown fence, painting stencils on asphalted playground, and general improvement projects.

This unique project offers interfaith youth from at least three different faith groups in the metro-east to join together with community leaders in East St. Louis to beautify the school grounds of Edgemont Elementary School.

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Saturday, May 13, 2006
National Letter Carrier’s Food Drive
Shift #1: 12:00 p.m. – 3:00 p.m. And Shift #2: 3:00 p.m. – 6:00 p.m. Refreshments Provided
Locations:
Weathers Station – 3415 N. Kingshighway,63115
Jennings Station - 9810 Halls Ferry Road, 63136
Creve Coeur Station - 331 N. New Ballas, 63141
South County Station – 5636 Telegraph Road, 63129
Southwest Station – 3232 Clifton, 63139
Affton Station – 55 Grasso Plaza (at Gravois & Rock Hill), 63123

Volunteers Needed: 20 per location (ages 12 and up)
Activities: Volunteers will sort and package donated cans and dry goods. This is our fourth year partnering with the St. Louis Area Foodbank.

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Saturday, May 20, 2006
HeadStart-St.Charles
9:00 a.m.-2:00 p.m. Lunch provided
Assembly location: 207 N. Kingshighway, St. Charles, MO 63301
Volunteers Needed: 20 (all ages)
Activities: Volunteers will create a safer play area for children. These tasks include; creating a more safe sandbox, staining wooden playground equipment and surrounding wooden fence. We look forward to this new project that will expand our partnership with HeadStart into the St. Charles area.

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JUNE-JULY-AUGUST

St. Louis Interfaith Community Explorations (SLICE)
Take a SLICE out of your summer for a second year! SLICE is a summer program designed to provide a weeklong service experience for local interfaith youth. Materials and lunch are provided. Participating groups are asked only to provide transportation. We can accommodate 30 youth per group. Youth leaders must complete a Group Registration Form in order to participate. Forms are due on May 5th .

Monday , June 12- Friday, June 16

Monday, June 26- Friday, June 30

Monday, July 10-Friday, July 14

Monday, July 24- Friday, July 28

Monday, August 7- Friday, August 11