Petition help needed. This seems to be a good case of the system shooting itself in the foot, but YMMV. And yes, I do indeed support getting or keeping access to non-Christian groups as well as mainstream Catholic and Lutheran. Ditto agnostic if there is an organization of agnostic support that fills the bill. BTW: this is couched in terms of Hennepin County, but the requesting organization is definitely Minneapolis, so I hope the listowner can accept the forward in good conscience:
From: Greater Minneapolis Council of Churches (GMCC) E-News
Action Alert
November 2003
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URGENT ACTION NEEDED
HENNEPIN COUNTY TO CUT PRISON CHAPLAINS FROM 2004 BUDGET
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We need your help to save a vital program about to be cut from Hennepin County's budget. Studies nationwide show that inmates involved in faith activities are less likely to re-offend once released. Hennepin County contracts with the Greater Minneapolis Council of Churches (GMCC) to provide
chaplains in the county's juvenile and adult correctional facilities. For $175,000 a year, three full-time chaplains and one half-time chaplain provide worship, Bible study, and nearly 8,000 personal counseling sessions that turn lives around. In addition, chaplains recruit and train 450 faith-based volunteers each year to work in the county's correctional facilities.
Please help restore this contract in the 2004 county budget by calling or writing your commissioner today. We need to flood the Hennepin County Board of Commissioners with calls and letters before NOVEMBER 21, 2003. In a similar situation in 1995, hundreds of calls and letters to commissioners did restore an impending budget cut. Your efforts do make a difference on behalf of the "least of these" in our midst whom we are called to serve.
Hennepin County commissioner district boundaries, names, addresses, and telephone numbers can be found at http://www.gmcc.org/savechaplaincy/commissioners%20main.html. Seven different sample letters, a sample petition, and a brief summary of the case for restoring the chaplaincy contract are also available online in Microsoft Word at http://www.gmcc.org/savechaplaincy. Please feel free to download and edit them.
Please pass this action alert on to individuals and groups who would make calls or send letters. Please put this action alert in your congregation's newsletter or worship bulletin. Please pray that our chaplains can continue to represent the faith community in service to those imprisoned in our community.
Thank you!
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Contact Information
email: [EMAIL PROTECTED]
voice: 612-721-8687
web: http://www.gmcc.org/
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Please consider forwarding this e-mail news report to members of your congregation, organization, or circle of colleagues and friends.
If you would like to see other publications of GMCC, please click on
http://www.gmcc.org/news%20and%20links%20main.html.
<<<<
--Emilie Quast
SE Como
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