Chapel of the Cross, Chapel Hill, NC

Perhaps the ABC Sale is a series of many miracles. With our individual attic, basement and closet discards, we join together to create something much larger. It is rather like those few loaves and fishes feeding 5000! What wonderful things can happen when we stand and work together. The ABC Sale is part of our parish's social outreach, part of what we are called to do as witnesses to the presence of the living God. But what happens after the goods are sold, the leftovers distributed, the tables put away and the parish hall is once again readied for Sunday morning? How does the money raised get distributed and where does it go?

Who can receive ABC Sale Funds?

The guidelines set by the Social Ministry Committee for distribution of ABC funds are as follows:

Grants should benefit organizations and activities with no direct ties to the Chapel of the Cross.
Grants should be awarded to organizations, not to individuals.
Grants should not be given to support regular operations for an organization, but instead given to support special projects or special needs.
A major part of the proceeds is used for local needs, but organizations and activities outside of the Chapel Hill/Carrboro area may also be supported.
The committee will consider if this support will make a difference, if the organization has a proven track record capable of carrying out its objectives and goals, what population the organization is serving and the urgency of the need.

How do organizations request funds?

Groups interested in receiving funds must make application via the Social Ministry Committee. They are asked to complete a request form and a financial statement in which they share information about their organization, why they are requesting the funds and how much money they are seeking. Over the past three years we have had 25-30 requests yearly totaling $40,000 to over $60,000 each year.
To study those requests a subcommittee of the Social Ministry Committee is formed. Three members of the subcommittee are members of the Social Ministry Committee and three are volunteers from the ABC Sale Committee. This group meets several times after the sale to study all the requests, to prioritize them and finally to assign monetary amounts to the requests.
The final recommendations from the sub-committee go to the Social Ministry Committee and finally to the vestry which must approve the recommendations for disbursement of ABC funds.

How many groups receive funds?

In each of the last three years the committee has funded about 20 of the 25-30 requests it has received. Last year $22,753 in sale profits was disbursed. Nine of those 20 requests were fully funded. The 20 groups funded last year included:

Freedom House, with scholarship funds for their inpatient and outpatient programs.
The Augustine Project, with funds to cover the cost of 4 trainee scholarships.
The Carrboro Community Health Center, with funds to purchase educational materials for their childbirth classes.
Project Compassion, funded for 1 3/4 new care-giving support teams.
OPC Foundation for Mental Health, with funds to send three children with disabilities to a therapeutic day camp.
Inter-Faith Council, funded for ½ of an AmeriCorps position to coordinate Hispanic outreach.
The AIDS Community Residence Association, with funds to purchase appliances for their apartments.
The Orange County Department of Social services, funded to purchase a digital camera to use in their family treatment.

Thanks to all who share their many blessings and help make this ABC miracle happen each year.

Send items for inclusion in future "Cross Roads."
The deadline is the first Thursday of the preceeding month.