UPDATE: Sign the petition to City Council! CLICK HERE
On November 1, the Hollywood Adventist Church joined with a coalition of clergy and representatives from other congregations and faith communities in Los Angeles, pledging to move $2 million and 200 years of business from Bank of America and Wells Fargo.
More details on this commitment are developing at the church. For more information, check out this post by Move Our Money USA on the recent action.
“We the clergy and leaders of LA Voice stand here today, willing to lead by example,” said Pastor Ryan Bell of the Hollywood Adventist Church, one of many LA Voice clergy leaders who are pulling out their congregation’s money and organizing to pass a Responsible Banking Ordinance through the Los Angeles City Council.
HomeWalk is United Way of Greater Los Angeles’ annual 5K Run/Walk to end homelessness taking place on November . Each year thousands join together to do their part by fundraising and spreading the word that homelessness is a solvable problem.
WHY HOMEWALK?
In Los Angeles County 51,000 people are homeless. Over the past 4 years, HomeWalk has mobilized 18,000 walkers, raised $1.7 million and funded organizations that have moved 9,000 people into permanent housing. All proceeds go directly back to the community, supporting permanent solutions to end homelessness for chronically homeless people, veterans and families. Solutions such as permanent supportive housing and rapid rehousing have proven highly successful in citied such as New York and Denver. In Los Angeles County the solutions we support have over 85% success at keeping people off the streets for good with a 43% cost savings for tax-payers.
Join us in providing relief for those suffering in East Africa.
East Africa is experiencing a devastating famine, some estimate the worst in 60 years, that is causing extreme suffering in the region. Recent news reports suggest that more than 29,000 children under the age of 5 have died in the last 90 days in southern Somalia alone. The U.N. indicates that 640,000 Somali children are acutely malnourished and many families have left their homes and headed to refugee camps in Kenya and Ethiopia. Rains are not expected for the rest of the month and conditions are expected to worsen. More than 12 million people in Somalia, Kenya, Ethiopia and Djibouti need aid.
In partnership with Worship Harvest Church in Uganda and Community of Faith in Texas, Hollywood Adventist Church invites you to join in the effort to relieve suffering in East Africa by committing to pray or fast during the week of September 10th-17th or by giving a financial gift to provide 80 tons of food (water, rice and beans) to feed 300,000 people in a refugee camp in Northern Kenya. The food will be distributed in person by Hollywood Church members David and Syd Shook along with their Burundian team leader, Claude Nikondeha. The church will receive a video update letting our members know how their participation impacted those involved in the relief effort. Please take a moment to watch this message about the relief effort from Claude Nikondeha.
If you’ve already signed up to pray, fast or give then we thank you for your commitment. Some church members expressed an interest in online giving. The last day we will be accepting online donations is Wednesday, September 17. To donate online, click “Donate Now” which will take you to the church’s online donation website, and enter your donation amount in the field marked “East Africa Famine Relief.” If you’ve missed the deadline to give, we still invite you to pray and fast with us during the week of September 10–17. For those who have committed to pray, a prayer guide will be available for you at church on September 10.
Thank you for your commitment to stand with those who are suffering both here in Hollywood and around the globe. We are excited to see your participation make an impact in coming weeks. May God bless you as you support our brothers and sisters in East Africa.
We’d like to invite you to be a part of a very special relationship that’s been forming between a team from the Hollywood Adventist Church and a family that recently transitioned out of homelessness through our partners at Imagine LA.
Last year, a group from Hollywood Church decided to take up the Imagine LA challenge and are currently partnered with the Ortega family. They’re a 4-member household: a single mother, April, and her three children, Evelyn, Francisco and Aprilenese. Our team has been able to provide the Ortegas with the love, laughter and support they needed to get back on their feet again, and have in return reaped a beautiful new friendship and a chance to experience homelessness firsthand in Los Angeles.
The Ortegas have a special need right now. April (the mother) recently sustained an injury and is unable to work which is putting an extra financial strain on the family. One way we could really bless the Ortegas this month is to donate healthy groceries. A local organization called The Treasure Box provides families and individuals with a substantial box of grocery store quality food retailing between $60–$85 for only $32. Each Treasure Box contains between 21–25 pounds of high quality, frozen foods, including meat, as well as vegetables, fruit, a side dish and a dessert. One Treasure Box is enough food to nutritiously feed a family of four lunch and dinner for almost a week.
To donate a food box to the Ortega family this month, click “Donate Now” which will take you to the church’s online donation website, and enter your $32 donation in the field marked “Imagine LA”. The Hollywood team will make sure that the Ortegas receive your gift. If you’d like to be a part of delivering your food box personally or are interested in volunteering please contact Brianne at bjslus@gmail.com.
We are planning a very special Sabbath service for September 10 to commemorate the 10-year anniversary of 9/11. We will be joined by local imam Jihad Turk as we commend our shared Christian and Muslim value and practice of peacemaking to our members and our community.
Join us on September 10, 2011 at 11 a.m. at the church.
WE DID IT!! We’ve been on a long journey, dreaming and planning for the Crossroads at Hollywood mural that will be painted on the west wall of the church (facing the freeway). This week it’s time to celebrate! We exceeded our fundraising goal of $10,000 and raised a total of $10,260! We’re now working closely with artist Man One to move the project toward completion. We’re excited to collaborate with local taggers, artists and community members as we communicate a message of peace in our neighborhood. There will be lots of opportunities for volunteer involvement so keep your eyes and ears peeled for updates in the coming weeks!
Four years ago we started the process of putting a mural on our West wall. While the challenges we faced have taken time to overcome, now we are now ready to move forward! All that stands in our way is $10,000 for materials and scaffolding. We currently have a web page for fundraising:
There is a time limit. We have 60 days to raise the money or a percentage gets taken by IndieGoGo.
There are two things you can do to help:
1. You can donate!
2. Share the link to this site with friends and colleagues you believe would have an interest. This project is about our community, for our community, and communicates our desire to be a place of peace in the midst of Hollywood.
We are proud to be a part of a coalition of 20 faith communities across Los Angeles committed to justice and dignity for all Angelenos. On Tuesday, April 12 at 6 p.m. we will gather with our fellow LA Voice congregations to share a meal, share work, share faith reflection, receive some training, and move forward together. This is an excellent opportunity to learn more about who we are as a church and what it means to join in our work for justice in Hollywood.
Location:
First Baptist Church of Los Angeles
760 South Westmoreland Avenue, Los Angeles 90005 [ Google Map ]
We are inviting our local community to support and celebrate the Just Food program. The Ribbon-Cutting and Benefit Event will be held in our community garden—rain or shine—with Councilman Tom LaBonge scheduled to speak at the ribbon-cutting ceremony. We need volunteers! If you would be willing to help prepare food, decorate, or serve guests on the day of the event email Corrine Galván (corrinemgalvan@gmail.com).
Join us for a moderated discussion between our Councilmember candidates for District 4 and you, at the Hollywood Adventist Church. Email your questions for your future councilmember to cd4forum@gmail.com.
February 24, 7:30 p.m.
1711 N. Van Ness Ave., Hollywood, CA 90027
Sojourners, the organization and blog dedicated to faith, politics, and culture, recently published an article about the power of community organizing. Our own congregation’s missional journey and long-time partnership with local community organizing non-profit, LA Voice/PICO, is featured in this article via an interview with senior pastor Ryan Bell.
When Ryan Bell took over as pastor of Hollywood Adventist Church in California, it was a withering congregation with only about 50 active members. And, he says, “We had a homeless ministry we couldn’t afford and a debt that was about to kill the church.” Bell reluctantly closed the feeding program for the homeless but resolved to find a more practical way to address the issue.
