What 7 Recent Latter-Day Saint Charity Projects, Small and Large, Reveal About the Church
Every week, this newsletter shares links to articles about The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
Every week, there are links about the church’s charitable works to sift. Some are about tiny, local projects. Some are about massive donations in the tens of millions of dollars.
After the “60 Minutes” piece about church finances on Sunday, the church said it saves a portion of tithing receipts each year to ensure it can fulfill its mission. Here are seven new items from the past week about the church’s efforts to care for the poor and needy on six continents, from small to large:
1. The Ocala Florida Stake provided diapers, wipes, hygiene products and money to purchase two new stoves to the GFWC Williston Women’s Club, according to a local newspaper. The baby items will support the county’s guardian ad litem program, which represents children in custody or adoption cases. The stoves replace damaged ones so the club can continue operations.
2. The High Plains Food Bank in Amarillo, Texas, announced that the church donated a full truckload of nonperishable food items. The donation will benefit people experiencing food insecurity in the Texas Panhandle, according to a local news item.
3. When two cyclones hit the islands of Vanuatu in March, the church had a container full of necessary items parked behind a meetinghouse in Port Vila. Chainsaws, generators, portable water containers, wheelbarrows, hammers, nails, ladders and machetes were available to help people clear debris and rebuild their homes, the church’s Pacific Newsroom reported.
4. After flooding damaged two Ugandan schools and forced 1,000-plus students to drop out or attend class outdoors, the church funded repairs and upgrades that were completed last month. The church built two new three-classroom structures, a new office structure with computer lab, a new kitchen and new toilet facilities, and provided associated equipment and new 10,000-liter water-collection tanks for the Buyanga and Dhakaba primary schools, the church’s Africa Newsroom reported.
“As The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, we do not only care about the spiritual well-being of God’s children, but also their physical well-being,” Jinja Stake President Mbiro Moses said. “That is why we don’t take a back seat when there is a need. We have come to help just as our Savior did while doing charity for others. We do as much as we can, no matter how little.”
5. The church’s JustServe app helped more than 200 Arizonans unite to clean up around Lake Pleasant. The diverse group of volunteers included high school clubs, Girl Scouts, Boy Scouts, first responders, families, retirees, political candidates and local businesses. They gathered 250 bags of trash over two days, the Church News reported.
6. After earthquakes in Turkey and Syria killed 50,000 people and displaced 2.8 million more, the church contributed over $13.5 million in aid through 20 relief projects. The director of development for NuDay recently described both how the church helped initially and how her organization is partnering with the church on new aid:
“With the support of (the Church), we distributed food baskets, meals and infant formula — all of which continue to be in high need,” Huda Alawa said. “Now we are working together to develop long-term recovery plans, such as repairing infrastructure, supporting households and rebuilding livelihoods so that the future of Syria can find hope once again.”
7. Finally, the First Presidency met Tuesday with the president of the United Nations General Assembly. The church has partnered with the U.N. on humanitarian aid projects worldwide for years, providing tens of millions of dollars. For example, the church:
