Justice and Local Church Ministries

The Power of Our Vote: Ensuring Safe and Affordable Housing for All

By Jamar Doyle | September 11, 2024
Jamar Doyle

This article is reprinted from the UCC’s Our Faith: Our Vote. As we approach the November general election, it’s essential to reflect on what’s truly at stake — for our neighbors and communities across the nation as well as for ourselves. The right to decent, safe, and affordable housing is not just a policy issue;…

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CHHSM’s Day-Long Retreat Hosted by UCC Heartland Conference Offers Unique Leadership Training Experience

By Barb Powell | September 13, 2023

During a recent one-day leadership retreat led by the UCC Council for Health and Human Service Ministries (CHHSM) and hosted by the Heartland Conference, participants gained resources for becoming better leaders. But one of the most unexpected outcomes was leaving the day feeling centered and closer to God. “Water in Desert Places,” held Aug. 30,…

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Donation to Support Unleashing Potential’s Track Record of Academic and Socio-emotional Success and Expand STEAM Programming

By CHHSM Staff | May 8, 2023

Unleashing Potential, based in St. Louis, recently received a $6,000 Neighbors in Need (NIN) grant from the UCC’s Justice and Local Church Ministries. The funds will be used to support Unleashing Potential’s track record of academic and socio-emotional success, as well as expand Science, Technology, Engineering, Cultural Arts, and Math (STEAM) programming. NIN grants support…

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CHHSM/JLCM Reproductive Justice Toolkits Offer Tangible Ways to Advocate for Women’s Rights

By Barb Powell | July 13, 2022

In the wake of the Supreme Court’s Dobbs decision overturning Roe v. Wade, the UCC’s Reproductive Justice Working Group has released a Reproductive Justice Messaging Toolkit, which includes five state-specific toolkits for areas with extreme or trigger laws that have been enacted following the Supreme Court decision. Key in the production of the toolkits has…

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‘I Will Remember Being Held’: Essence Ellis Reflects on Her Year as UCC Fellow

By Barb Powell | June 13, 2022

As her year-long experience of being the inaugural UCC Fellow with the UCC’s Council for Health and Human Service Ministries (CHHSM) and Justice and Local Church Ministries (JLCM) comes to an end, Essence Ellis is in a unique position to reflect. Not only has her year as UCC Fellow taken her in unexpected, rewarding directions,…

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UCC Fellow Essence Ellis Plays Key Role in New Reproductive Justice Toolkits to be Released Next Month

By Barb Powell | May 12, 2022

Part of UCC Fellow Essence Ellis’ work includes participation in the UCC Justice and Local Church Ministries (JLCM) Washington office’s Reproductive Justice Working Group. And her main focus in that group has been helping to develop a set of state-specific toolkits, which are slated to be released next month on the heels of the Supreme…

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Reproductive Justice: A Movement Affirming Women, Families and Communities

By CHHSM Staff | February 7, 2022

By Essence Ellis. This article is reprinted with permission from UCC News. Almost 50 years after Roe v. Wade, a landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision that ruled that the United States Constitution protects women’s rights to choose an abortion without government intervention, the reproductive justice issue is once again up for debate. In this commentary,…

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Inaugural Fellowship Proving Fruitful for UCC Fellow Essence Ellis and Her UCC Colleagues

By Barb Powell | December 13, 2021

In her first six months as the Council for Health and Human Service Ministries (CHHSM)/Justice and Local Church Ministries (JLCM) UCC Fellow, Essence Ellis has attended meetings, networked with a variety of UCC people across the denomination, worked with experts from various CHHSM member organizations, and found the time to author articles and resources for…

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It All Starts at Home

By CHHSM Staff | August 13, 2021

This month, Mike invited our newest employee, Essence Ellis — CHHSM and JLCM United Church of Christ Fellow — to author an article. This column originally appeared in the Justice and Local Church Ministries’ Witness for Justice. By Essence Ellis  The national eviction ban ended on July 31. While tens of thousands of people attended…

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In Countless Ways, CHHSM’s Presence Adds to Richness of General Synod Experience

By Barb Powell | July 19, 2021

The UCC’s Council for Health and Human Service Ministries (CHHSM) played an important role throughout the denomination’s Thirty-Third General Synod, which closed Sunday evening, July 18. Sometimes prominent and sometimes behind the scenes, CHHSM’s presence and advocacy for health equity remained at the forefront of many Synod-related conversations — beginning with a Resolution of Witness…

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