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The Creative Ministries Offering Committee met in Louisville, Kentucky, March 2003, and approved grants totaling more than $958,000 from the 2002 Thank Offering (including Health Ministries). Selections were made by a committee of six members from the Churchwide Coordinating Team of Presbyterian Women and one representative from each of the General Assembly Council's three ministries divisions---National, Congregational and Worldwide. This year, 58 projects were chosen from the 109 proposals received; 26 projects in the United States and 32 projects overseas.

There are 14 criteria that must be met, including consistency with the mission concerns and policies of the PC(USA), a purpose that meets crucial needs of people and being a new effort or a new direction for an existing program. Programs are chosen based on merit, regardless of their geographic location. At least 40 percent of the Thank Offering (including Health Ministries) funds go to health-related projects.

The 2003 Grant Recipients

1. Comprehensive Conflict Management Program, Athens, OH, $10,000
Fund a comprehensive conflict management program in an Appalachian school

2. Friends of the Family Mentoring Program, Pittsburgh, PA, $23,000
Provide mentors for children of incarcerated or recently released mothers to help the family unit achieve stability

3. Ethiopian Children's Book Center, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, $20,000
Establish a children's book center where children may learn to read, receive books and listen to stories for free

4. Out of the Shadows Into the Rainbow, Czech Republic, $15,000
Fund a network of churches, organizations and individuals to eliminate sex trafficking, forced prostitution, pornography and sexual abuse of children

5. Lighthouse Project, Czech Republic, $15,000
Provide housing and training for young Roma women leaving institutional care homes

6. Missionary Upa C. Bukchhuaka Memorial Mission Building, Myanmar, $8,000
Complete construction of a building that will serve as the Synod of Mindat office and an activities building

7. Angela's House, Atlanta, GA, $30,000
Hire a teacher to provide on--site supplemental educational services for sexually exploited girls while they reside at this safe house
8. Ringwood Road Shelter Expansion, McHenry, IL, $20,000
Provide funding necessary to connect city water to a building that shelters homeless women and children

9. Emergency Shelter Care, Raleigh, NC, $20,000
Provide funds for hiring a social worker to work with children placed in short--term foster care by parents who retain custody but need temporary help and respite

10. Open Arms, Kokomo, IN, $10,000
Renovate a family bedroom and bathroom in a building providing long--term shelter for homeless women and children

11. Radio Ministry, Pompano Beach, FL, $10,000
Fund a Christian radio ministry to South Asians in South Florida for one year

12. Hillcrest Family Services Make a House a Home Project, Dubuque, IA, $20,200
Purchase furniture for a home for emotionally disturbed children

13. Enhancement of Urban Lebanese Women with Physical Challenges, Beirut, Lebanon, $30,000
Provide counseling, self-confidence seminars, spiritual encounters and vocational training for women who are physically challenged

14. "It's Not Fair," Nashville, TN, $15,000
Fund the production of public service announcement, educating the public about poverty in Appalachia

15. CSS-Asylum Program, Tucson, AZ, $15,000
Provide legal representation and community outreach for persons seeking political asylum, primarily women persecuted because of their gender

16. Center for Life Experiences, Hays, KS, $20,000
Provide support for programs that assist junior high students, parents who have lost a child and senior citizens

17. Camp Soaring Wings for Families, Louisville, KY, $9,900
Fund a family camping experience for children whose parents are infected with HIV/AIDS

18. The College of Nursing Project, Vellore, India, $12,300
Equip village women with skills to start income--generating projects by hiring instructors, purchasing sewing machines and supplies, and upgrading the nursing library

19. Seminary Internship Project, Johnson C. Smith Seminary, Atlanta, GA, $30,000
Fund internships, match seminarians with small churches and provide continuing education for sponsoring pastors

20. Seniors' Activity Day Ministry, Charleston, SC, $30,000
Provide enrichment programs, community service information and nutritional meals for senior citizens

21. Domasi Mission Teachers' Houses, Domasi Church of Central Africa Presbyterian Mission, Malawi, $15,000
Provide housing for teachers on Domasi Mission campus

22. Montoursville Presbyterian Church Tot Club, Montoursville, PA, $10,000
Fund a church--related preschool

23. Reading Right From the Start, Prestonsburg, KY, $9,526
Improve literacy by providing free books for infants, children and youth

24. House of Hope, Waterloo, IA, $15,000
Provide safe, affordable housing for homeless women and children

25. Literacy Program for Rural Poor Women, Andhra Pradesh, India, $4,000
Fund salaries for five teachers to conduct adult literacy education and self--supporting handcraft activities to raise self--esteem

26. Basket-making Scheme, Cuddapah District, South India, $2,100
Provide disadvantaged women with self--employment opportunities

27. Dairy Project for Empowerment of Rural Women, South India, $3,500
Purchase 20 buffaloes and train 20 women in dairy production and money management

28. Presbyterian Women's Vocational Institute, Begoro, Ghana, $20,000
Purchase a truck to be used for school duties, meetings and transporting supplies for the school

29. Candle-making Project for Self Development of Rural Poor Women, Nandalur, South India, $3,230
Teach 30 women to make candles and save enough money to start their own business

30. Primary School for Agona Duakwa Presbyterian Church, Ghana, $15,000
Build a six--classroom primary school to educate the children of peasant farmers

31. Westrand Christian Centre Sewing/Knitting Project, Johannesburg, South Africa, $15,000
Enable women to develop skills for long--term employment and to make clothing for needy families

32. Computers for Christian High School, Gujranwala, Pakistan, $11,000
Purchase computers to provide students with the skills necessary to compete for high--paying jobs

33. Stipend for Bible Teachers, Lahore, Pakistan, $8,000
Fund the work of eight Bible teachers, working among illiterate Christian women and girls in Pakistan

34. Hands of Christ Back to School Project, Charleston, SC, $6,000
Provide clothing and school supplies for children whose parents are poor, immigrants, migrants, unemployed and/or homeless

Health Ministries Projects

1. FTKN Corn Meal Project, Haiti, $14,375
Construct 40 manual mills to grind corn and train 40 women in management techniques and technical information

2. Homeless Outreach Project, Marillac Clinic, Grand Junction, CO, $10,000
Provide primary health care services to homeless people by funding a nurse practitioner

3. Health and Hope for Children, Bon-a-Dos, Haiti, $15,000
Establish a feeding program for 360 children and complete the building of a new church/school

4. Training Doctors for Tibet's Rural Areas, Tibet, $22,000
Train 22 medical workers to serve in the remote villages of Tibet

5. Elmwood/University Parish Nurse Partnership, Syracuse, NY, $22,000
Provide funds for a parish nurse program serving low--income areas of Syracuse

6. Project Hope and Healing, Oceanside, CA, $11,200
Purchase prescription medicines and transportation vouchers for homeless and working poor

7. Child Nutrition Project, Kampala, Uganda, $10,000
Purchase a machine for milling grain and bean seeds to provide nutritional food for village children

8. Children's Therapy Clinic, Inc., Charleston, WV, $20,000
Provide additional funds to give children below the poverty level free physical, occupational and speech therapy services

9. Used Minivan for OCD Foundation, Bayamon, Puerto Rico, $10,000
Purchase a used van for transportation around the island to educate teachers, medical professionals and families about Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

10. Mental Health Training for Slavic Refugee Populations, Fresno, CA, $20,000
Fund a mission to share Christ's love by building communities of hope with new Americans

11 APOYO Free Clinic, Ellensburg, WA, $8,000
Provide prescription medications and diabetic supplies to members of Hispanic communities who lack health insurance and cannot afford healthcare

12. Training Health Care Professionals, Denver, CO, $20,410
Provide health care professionals with the tools, knowledge and confidence to identify cases of domestic violence

International Health Ministries Program Area of the
Worldwide Ministries Division PC(USA), $275,000

1. Renovation of Nursing School at Memorial Christian Hospital, Sialkot, Pakistan, $25,000
Provide additional bathrooms, bedrooms and recreational lounge for nursing students

2. Prevention and Treatment of Tuberculosis, North Korea, $14,000
Provide medication and vitamins to poor patients and construct greenhouses to raise nutritious food

3. Evangelical Church of Egypt, Synod of the Nile, $15,000
Support church-based program for women, focusing on health and personal development

4. Mombele Maternity Center, Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo, $22,000
Establish a maternity center to provide basic healthcare services

5. Lubondai Hospital, Democratic Republic of Congo, $20,000
Rehabilitate an old hospital to provide healthcare services in the West Kasai region of Congo

6. PC(USA) AIDS Coordinator for Southern and East Africa, $15,000
Provide initial funds needed for AIDS coordinator to facilitate educational programs in HIV/AIDS prevention, counseling and orphan care

7. Mother-to-Child Transmission AIDS Prevention, sub-Saharan Africa, $25,000
Provide prenatal programs that educate, counsel and support pregnant women infected with HIV

8. 0.7% Initiative/AIDS, $40,000
Support innovative projects and educational activities addressing the link between poverty and AIDS

9. Community Health and Development Program, Nepal, $15,000
Equip health posts and provide training for staff and village health committees

10. Health Transformation Workshops, Mexico Border Ministries, $10,000
Fund workshops for six projects of Mexico Border Ministries implementing new programs focusing on empowerment of women and girls making health decisions

11. NetWorkers Malaria Prevention, $23,000
Fund the expansion of the malaria prevention program

12. Interchurch Medical Assistance (IMA) Medicine Box Program, $51,000
Purchase medication and pay shipping costs for 170 I.M.A. Medicine Boxes for five mission hospitals in Malawi and four mission hospitals in the Democratic Republic of Congo

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