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COVID-19 Kits in Middle East

Describes MCC's efforts to address Covid needs in the Middle East

Do you ever catch yourself staring off into the distance, maybe looking out the window and getting lost in the wind rustling through the trees for a moment or two? Though the pandemic has disrupted just about every aspect of our daily life, looking out the window can be grounding and can offer some peace. We've reached out to MCC workers around the world to catch a glimpse of the views from their windows. We've asked them to describe how their life has been impacted by the pandemic and to show us the view they see every day. So take a virtual trip and jump into a new reality with us. We hope this change of scenery will give you a chance to pause and remember our MCC friends around the world.

COVID-19 Grant Awardee

On November 2, 2020, the Albert Lepage Center for History in the Public Interest at Villanova University announced Anabaptist History Today as one of 17 COVID-19 Grant awardees. The award provides critical funding for projects that contribute to advancing history in the public interest in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic and its aftermath.

COVID-19, racial justice and community

Ken Hochstetler, President and CEO of Everence, discusses how the first seven months of 2020 have brought dramatic change and upheaval for all of us – and it’s during times of uncertainty that our relationships with each other are more essential than ever.

A reading list on race and economic justice

We must look deeper at what it means to live in community with one another. From the disproportionate impact COVID-19 has had on diverse and economically disadvantaged communities to attacks on people of color to protests denouncing injustice across our country, it is imperative that we consider how our neighbors, brothers, sisters and friends experience community – as well as if, how and why their experiences may differ from our own. To help all of us step up to this responsibility, Everence has developed a Faith, Race and Money reading list might help you and/or your group learn more about issues of race, faith, money and injustice – how they came to be, intersect, and continue to impact communities of color yet today.

National church financial trends: Before and after COVID-19

Webinar recording: Churches have rapidly adapted to the financial swings of the COVID-19 pandemic – on top of significant adaptations in recent years due to changing societal trends. Lake Institute on Faith & Giving has conducted comprehensive research on this topic in two studies: 1) the National Study of Congregations’ Economic Practices, and 2) Faith and Giving in the Time of COVID-19. Listen to this webinar recording on these studies to learn more about the economic practices of congregations, including how they receive, manage, and spend financial resources in the midst of change.

Washington, D.C., NFL team agrees to reconsider racist name

News release: Praxis Mutual Funds®, a fund family of Everence®, signed on to letters calling on Nike, Pepsi, and FedEx to terminate their business and public relationships with the National Football League’s Washington, D.C., franchise if it does not stop using the name “Redskins,” a term long considered racist by American Indians.

Everence to celebrate 75th anniversary virtually

News release: Everence® is not letting social distancing deter plans to commemorate the organization’s 75th anniversary. Instead of an in-person gathering, the faith-based financial services company will celebrate virtually, with a videocast scheduled for Sunday, July 19, 2020, at 3 p.m. (EDT).

We can and must do better

All of us at Praxis Mutual Funds®, a fund family of Everence Financial®, are distraught by the systemic racism and police violence plaguing our country. We commit ourselves to using the many tools at our disposal as investors – screening, shareholder engagement, proxy voting, positive impact bonds, community investing and more to address the inequity and systemic racism that infect our lives in so many ways. We can do more. We can do better ... and we must.

A message of lament

From Everence President and CEO Ken Hochstetler, in response to the discrimination and oppression that are an ever-present and daily reality for many who are part of the Everence family – including our employees and members.

New African Development Bank social bond targets COVID-19 response

MarketScreener and several other news outlets recently highlighted Praxis Impact Bond Fund’s investment in the African Development Bank’s Fight COVID-19 social bond: London Stock Exchange: African Development Bank celebrates milestone with first social bond listing on London Stock Exchange.

COVID-19 Congregational Relief Fund distributes most of initial funding

News release: In just over a month since its launch, the COVID-19 Congregational Relief Fund distributed more than $735,000 to 159 churches in the United States facing critical financial challenges due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Caring for each other through crisis

News release: How one church in the epicenter of the COVID-19 crisis offers support, connection and hope.

Grants provide help for Anabaptist churches facing financial crisis

News release: From April 13 to May 11, 2020, the COVID-19 Congregational Relief Fund has received more than 300 grant applications from churches facing financial hardships.

MDS, Everence and MCC launch COVID-19 Congregational Relief Fund

News release: Mennonite Disaster Service (MDS), Everence® and Mennonite Central Committee U.S. (MCC U.S.) have joined together to launch a COVID-19 Congregational Relief Fund to aid churches facing financial crisis due to the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic.