TABLE OF CONTENTS
From Our Executive Director:
LIGHT A CANDLE, LEARN A LITTLE
In December, vandals attacked several outdoor menorahs and crèches across Long Island. These are hardly major hate crimes, and Hanukkah is a minor holiday in Judaism - it has grown in importance only because our culture hypes Christmas shopping so much - but nobody likes to see their traditions trashed.
When menorahs were destroyed in 2006, a number of us from the LICC and the Smithtown Interfaith Clergy Association joined the public lighting ceremonies over the next few nights. We did not make any speeches - we just showed up - and our presence was deeply appreciated by a community that has suffered too many bias attacks. The following year we encouraged Christians and others across the Island to attend menorah-lighting ceremonies with their Jewish neighbors - and the number of bias incidents declined. This December, the Knights of Columbus added menorahs to some of their Nativity displays in solidarity with those whose symbols were attacked. By standing with Jews on the Feast of Freedom, Christians can demonstrate that we actually mean what we proclaim each December about peace on earth and goodwill to all. You might even get some latkes. I got to ride on top of a fire company's hook-and-ladder truck to help light an 18-foot-high Menorah in Roslyn, something you don't get to do every day. Shouldn't interfaith work be fun?
I prefer to see crèches in front of churches and menorahs in front of synagogues, rather than on taxpayer-funded public places. When someone is trying to intimidate and isolate our neighbors, though, we should stand with them, wherever their symbols are located. After all, as Rabbi Marc Gruber said at a Menorah lighting at Temple B'nai Shalom in Rockville Centre, "the meaning of Hanukkah is that we have a right to be different."
You do not need to wait until December to stand with your neighbors or to invite them to learn something about your tradition. Sunday School and confirmation classes might learn about Passover (and Holy Week) by visiting the "model Seder" at a synagogue. Each year, Temple Beth-El of Great Neck invites neighbors of all ages and all faiths to their annual Interfaith Seder before Passover, doing a wonderful job of telling of the central story of Judaism. Floral Park United Methodist Church took this step a further, inviting LICC Board member Werner Reich, to lead a Seder in their fellowship hall. This year they have asked yours truly to come on Maundy Thursday, April 1, to lead a model Seder, sharing with them what I have learned as a Christian about the meaning of Passover.
Such interfaith events require sensitivity, of course. Werner reminds his guests that as someone who is Reform he celebrates a Seder somewhat differently than the Orthodox Jews do. Before I ever led a model Seder in a church, I asked my colleague, Rabbi Rievan Slavkin, to review the abridged Haggadah (the Passover liturgy) I planned to use. In some faith communities, it is inappropriate for those outside the fold to enter into worship, but visitors are almost always welcome to watch, listen, and learn. The point of these visits, after all, is to learn about one another - which often leads us to understand our own tradition in a new way - and to affirm our freedom of worship.
Churches could invite non-Christian neighbors to come to a Palm Sunday procession that they do through the community. My first parish had a three-mile parade each year, with a Japanese-American Jesus on horseback, since we could not find a donkey to borrow anywhere on the entire island of Oahu. Of course, inviting Jewish neighbors to your parade should cause you to review whether or not your liturgy says anything unfairly blaming Jews for the execution of Jesus, which no legitimate Jewish authority had any part in doing. For Christians to ask ourselves this question each Holy Week is a good thing.
Non-Bahais might, likewise, join their Bahai neighbors for their spring festival, No Ruz.
Goyim might attend a Yom Ha Shoah or Holocaust Remembrance service at a synagogue. This year Yom Ha Shoah is Sunday, April 11. In my last two parishes, attending such a service was, as Bogey says at the end of Casablanca, "the beginning of a beautiful friendship."
Non-Orthodox Christians might see how our Orthodox brothers and sisters celebrate the ''Holy Maccabean Martyrs'' on August 1, the first day of the Dormition Fast, though this is a minor holiday in Orthodoxy, as Hanukkah was in Judaism. One of the hymns used by the Orthodox Church in America is for the Holy Seven Maccabean Martyrs with their Mother and Their Teacher:
"Seven pillars of the Wisdom of God
And seven lamp stands of the divine Light
All-wise Maccabees, greatest of the Martyrs before the time of the martyrs,
With them ask the God of all to save those who honor you."
Or you might see how Hindus, Jains, Sikhs, Brahma Kumaris, and many Indian Christians observe Diwali, their fall Festival of Light. During Ramadan, you might fast with Muslim neighbors from dawn to dusk and then join them for the iftar meal that breaks the fast. Many mosques, such as the Islamic Center of Long Island in Westbury, have an annual Interfaith Iftar where they explain the meaning of Ramadan to non-Muslims - and ICLI has even erected a Sukkot booth next to its mosque so their members can learn about the Jewish harvest festival.
In December, goyim might stand with their Jewish neighbors as they light menorahs in front of synagogues. Fr. Eric Tosi of the Orthodox Church in America, suggests that another good occasion for interfaith visiting might be the Sunday before Christmas, when they celebrate the Jewish ancestors of Jesus (Matthew 1:1-17, Luke 3:23-38). Both Christians and non-Christians might visit a presipio, a wonderful Italian Catholic custom that extends the Nativity display to show what is taking place throughout the rest of the town and countryside around Bethlehem. At McGann-Mercy High School in Riverhead, for example, Chaplain Jerry Cestare has created an elaborate presipio that fills an entire room, dramatically showing how the Mystery of the Incarnation happens in the midst of our everyday life and work.
Learning how to explain what we do to those of other faiths often helps us reach those from our own flocks who are lapsed or unaffiliated. There are plenty of Christians who worship only on Christmas and Easter, Jews who are seldom seen in shul, etc, etc.
Who knows? Inviting your own flock to take part in interfaith events such as this just might convince your unaffiliated neighbors that your congregation is worth a visit.
Shalom/Salaam/Shanti/Pax,
Tom
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DEVELOPMENT DEPARTMENT:
Sara C. Weiss, Director of Development
A special thanks goes to the WE CARE Advisory Board of the Nassau County Bar Association for its generous gift of $18,000 to help support our emergency food and social service programs in Nassau County. We also thank three individuals who gave $500 each, and another who gave $750. And we thank the following institutional donors for their gifts of $500 and more:
| Church World Service | $961 Crop Walk, Emergency Food |
| Garden City Community Church | $3,200 Emergency Food & Where Most Needed |
| Grace United Methodist Church | $600 Where Most Needed |
| Presbytery of Long Island | $1,000 Where Most Needed |
| Riverhead Building Supply | $500 Where Most Needed |
| United Methodist Women/Babylon | $500 Where Most Needed |
| West Gilgo Protestant Mission | $700 Riverhead Emergency Food |
We are also grateful to the institutions that gave less than $500, and to all of our individual donors, though we do not list them because they have asked to remain anonymous.
Most Urgent Need
Our most urgent need this month is prescriptions for Riverhead - a chronic need. Two of our uninsured clients were released from the hospital, each with two pills and prescriptions for medications costing $250 that they must take or they will end up right back in the hospital at tax payers' expense. Neither can afford even a fraction of the price. They went to the Department of Social Services to apply for Medicaid, but have to wait 45 days before they learn if their applications will be accepted. We gave them discount cards, but not all pharmacies accept them and they don't cover anywhere near the full price an uninsured patient has to pay. A gift of $500 will allow us to help both Riverhead clients.
Memorial/Tribute Gifts
A great way to remember a loved one, whether living or deceased, is to give a memorial or tribute gift in his/her name. In your letter accompanying such a gift, please tell us who the gift is in memory or tribute to, and who is giving the gift. We will send a thank you letter to the contributor and to the family of the loved one in accordance with your instructions. Please send your contribution to the LICC, attention Sara Weiss. If you have any questions, call Sara for further information at 516-565-0290, ext. 207. Naming and Tribute opportunities are also available for our programs. Please call Sara for a list. We also have planned giving opportunities that will sustain these programs in perpetuity.
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SAVE THE DATE - Thursday, May 6
The Long Island Council of Churches will have its annual meeting on Thursday, May 6, at 1st Presbyterian Church of Smithtown from 11:00 to 2:00. Stay tuned for details!
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WORTH QUOTING
What Grieves God
"As a mother is grieved when her children wrong and hate each other, so God is grieved by every unbrotherly act or thought."
--The Probationers Manual of the Methodist Episcopal Church (1928), shared by Dorothy Lunt
Why Our Neighbors Are Hungry
"The new Long Island Index study found that 20% of households on Long Island spend more than half of their income on housing-and that is clearly not sustainable."
--John McNally, Rausch Foundation program officer, Long Island Cares/Island Harvest press conference, Feb. 3 at Hofstra University
"Many people who have done all the right things throughout their lives now find that they cannot provide for themselves or their families."
--Art Gianelli, CEO of Nassau University Medical Center, Long Island Cares/Island Harvest press conference, Feb. 3 at Hofstra University
The Church in the Fields - What They Did Right
"At the entrance was a sign, NO PERFECT PEROPLE ALLOWED.
Good, I thought. We can come in!"
--Don & Marti Schneider, reporting on their visit to a Seventh-Day Adventist congregation in Australia, Ministry January 2010
The Lord's Prayer for Twitter
"God@heaven.org. You rule, up and down. We need grub and a break. Will pass it on. Keep us focused. You totally rule, long term. Amen."
--the Rev. Stephen E. Moore, Bellevue, WA, a winner in a text the Lord's Prayer contest
Chosen by Ship of Fools, The Magazine of Christian Unrest (www.shipoffools.com)
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IDEAS YOU CAN USE:
Get a Bicycle Rack
Bonnie Miller led a workshop on Jan. 23 for United Church of Christ's "Casting Your Nets" program. Here's a great idea from one of the participants, a way to attract visitors, "Go Green," and encourage your congregation to get more exercise - while saving money: "Put a bike rack in front of the church, signaling that the church is bike-friendly."
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DID YOU KNOW?
- There is a new Web site for MICAH, the Mobilized Interfaith Coalition Against Hunger - http://micahlongisland.org/
- 70% of the emergency food pantries and 59% of soup kitchens are operated by faith-based agencies and houses of worship.
- According to the US Dept. of Agriculture's recent annual study, the number of Americans who are "food insecure" (not sure where their next meal is coming from or not certain to get enough to eat) rose 36% last year.
- According to the newly released study "Hunger in America 2010: The Local Report for Long Island," 283,700 people a year turn to emergency food pantries and soup kitchens affiliated with Long Island Cares and Island Harvest. In other words, one in ten of our neighbors needs help in order to have enough to eat. 110,000 of these neighbors are children.
- 19,000 of the 23,000 families in Nassau County receiving SNAP (formerly known as food stamps) are working.
- Catholic, Lutheran, and Episcopal congregations in Long Beach recently met together weekly for three weeks to study similarities and differences among their denominations. LICC Board members Richard Visconti and Donald Beckmann and former Board member Laurie Cline were among the leaders of the program-and they would be happy to do similar dialogues elsewhere on Long Island.
- According to David Kallick's recent study for the Fiscal Policy Institute, immigrants are more likely than US-born residents to start businesses, and they contribute more than their share to the Gross State Produce and to the Long Island economy. Legal immigrants pay nearly as much in taxes as other New York residents, even though they generally earn less and are ineligible for some government benefits. Even half of undocumented immigrants pay income and social security taxes-and never collect on them. Millions of "illegal" immigrants have, in fact, already been approved for visas and have been waiting years to receive them.
- Garden City Community Church had such a good time last year with "U2charist," a rock music liturgy focused on reducing poverty around the world, that they are doing it again on Sunday, March 21, at 5 p.m. at 245 Stewart Avenue. All are welcome. Call 516-746-1700 for further information.
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OFFERED/NEEDED
Offered:
- Serenity Sunday Worship
- Mt. Sinai Congregational Church (233 N. Country Road) offers a "Serenity Sunday" worship service for those in recovery on the last Sunday of each month at 5 p.m. Each service is built around one of the 12 steps. American Sign Language interpretation is available and all are welcome. For further information, visit http://mtsinaichurchli.org or call 631-473-1582.
- Angel Food Offers Good Grub at a Great Price
- Angel Food Ministries offers groceries (frozen meats, fresh veggies, eggs, dry goods) once a month at a great price. The menu changes each month, and the point is to offer high-quality, brand-name foods at a fraction of the cost. The basic $30 box would normally cost someone at the grocery store about $60 on average. The supplier buys in bulk and the churches provide the middle-man, so that patrons don't need to buy in bulk and can save much of the labor costs. Dix Hills United Methodist Church is their first site on Long Island, but they would be glad to have more.
People place their order a week or more before the monthly distribution on the fourth Saturday (1-3pm) and then pick up their order at a local congregation. $30 can feed a family of four for a week and Orders can be paid by credit/debit card, check, money order, SNAP (food stamps), or cash. Orders can be placed either online (angelfoodministries.org) or through Dix Hills UMC (631-499-1940).
- Free Advocacy Training in DC for Young Adults
- In a World of Plenty, Hunger Is an Outrage. Be Part of the Solution.
Bread for the World, a Christian voice urging our nation's decision makers to end hunger, is seeking 20- to 30-year-olds to participate in a training June 12-15, 2010. These participants will then lead advocacy efforts in their churches, campuses, and communities.
- Gain skills in advocacy and community organizing
- Connect with like-minded leaders from across the U.S.
- Explore the biblical foundations of faith and justice
- Speak out on Capitol Hill by visiting your members of Congress
Apply now for an all-expenses-paid advocacy training in Washington, DC. Application deadline is March 12. Visit www.bread.org/bealeader to apply.
- Free Refrigerator
- New Beginnings Christian Ministries (571 Grand Boulevard in Brentwood) has a 14.7 cubic foot refrigerator for the taking. Call 631.581.7324 to arrange pick up.
- Free Food for Seniors
- The Commodities Supplemental Food Program offers free food to those 60 and older whose monthly income is less than $1174 for singles or $1579 for a couple. The program provides cheese, milk, cereal, juice, canned fish, meat, vegetables, and more. For info in Nassau or Suffolk, call Catholic Charities at 631-491-4166 or 631-491-4156.
- Great Deals on New Homes
- Courthouse Commons - This is a 252-unit development located in Islip near the courthouse, Long Island Ducks stadium, and Touro Law School. There are 51 non-age-restricted, 2-bedroom, apartment-style condominiums available for first-time homebuyers making less than 120% of the Adjusted Median Income. Sales prices range from $195,000 to $220,000 after subsidies. Applications are available, first come, first served.
- Islip VII (Town of Islip Housing Authority) - This program has 3 homes to be built. Two are in Bay Shore and one is in Islip. They will be sold to first time homebuyers making less than 80% of the AMI and cost $160,000, after subsidy.
For further information, please call Lisseth at the Long Island Housing Partnership, 631- 435-4710.
- Help Paying for College
- Billions of dollars are available to help students pay for school through the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA). However, the Department of Education estimates that nearly eight million college students each year fail to apply for financial aid using the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA), or fail to apply for it on time, leaving more than 2.3 million students without much-needed resources to cover the increasing cost of college. The next school year may seem a long way off, but now is the time to start thinking about how to pay for it - before grant, loan and scholarship money runs out. In response to President Obama's historic investment to make college more affordable and accessible and to help more students succeed, the Health & Welfare Council of Long Island has launched a college access initiative to serve as a benchmark for integrating college access services at community-based FREE tax sites. Through this pilot initiative, the Council will offer FREE ASSISTANCE with FINANCIAL AID APPLICATIONS to individuals and families at tax sites, schools, community based organizations, and events across Long Island. The Health & Welfare Council of Long Island's Earned Income Tax Credit Coalition of Long Island connects students to available financial aid through a two step process:
- Step 1) FREE TAX PREPARATION
With most of the information on the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) coming from the tax return, financial aid starts with free tax preparation for aspiring students.
- Step 2) Help filling out FAFSA
With the tax return in hand, we walk students through the FAFSA and provide them with information on grants, loans and scholarships.
Contact the Health & Welfare Council of Long Island for more information or assistance in filling out your FAFSA:
- Free Heart Screening
- St. Francis Hospital has a mobile unit that is offering free heart screening on Wednesdays from 10 to 2 for those 18 and older who have no medical insurance, or have Medicare or have only Medicaid, and are not already on heart medication or already are seeing a physician regularly. They will be at the LICC's Hempstead office on March 10 and 31. For an appointment or further information, please call 516-562-6025 and leave a message.
- Free Grand Piano
- Former sanctuary piano in good working order available for the taking from Church of Our Savior, Lutheran, 1901 Northern Blvd, Manhasset. It can be seen and played by appointment scheduled with Office Administrator, Dorothy Maus - office hours 8:30am-1pm, Tuesday through Friday. 516-627-2430.
- Free Vestments
- Hempstead United Methodist Church has a box full of robes, stoles, and clergy shirts to give away. If you are interested, please call 516-485-6363.
- Free Home Energy Audit
- Since January 2009, more than 500 Long Island families have received LI Green Free Home Energy Audit services. Our not-for-profit organization, which is based at Stony Brook University and affiliated with the Advanced Energy Research Center, has ramped up this program and is ready to dramatically increase the number of homes to be served in the next 12 months.
The LI Green Free Home Energy Audit program provides a no cost preliminary residential energy screening to any Long Island homeowners. Our trained engineers and technicians conduct a one on one meeting with families to determine what energy challenges exist in their home and the best ways to solve them. The outcome of the meeting is an individualized "Home Energy Action Plan" along with the technical assistance needed to deliver it.
Making their homes more energy efficient is the single largest contribution that families can make to reducing global warming. It also will save significantly on energy costs while their homes also become warmer and healthier to live in. To participate, sign up online at www.ligreen.com.
- Free Resource for Earth Day Sunday
- The National Council of Churches' Eco-Justice Program is offering a free Earth Day Sunday Resource Sacred Spaces and Abundant Life: Worship Spaces as Stewardship. You can download it from http://nccecojustice.org/resources/index.php#earthdaysundayresources or you can request hard copies by emailing elizabeth@nccecojustice.org and providing a name and mailing address. Sacred Spaces and an Abundant Life empowers congregations to take actions within their Church buildings to conserve energy, reduce toxic materials and products, and conserve water and land. It includes worship resources and study guides to help your congregation reflect on God's call to care for Creation.
- Personal (or Congregational) Finance Seminars
- The LICC will be offering a series of personal finance seminars at the Salvation Army in Blue Point, for an audience of 25 each time, focused on how to know if you should refinance your mortgage and how to set a family budget. They will be on Wednesday mornings from 10:00 to 11:30:
- March 3 Re-Fi
- Mar 10 Budgeting
- Mar 31 Re-Fi
- Apr 7 Budgeting
The LICC offers seminars on how to manage your money well - and not get ripped off on loans. Our presentations usually run an hour to 90 minutes, and we will tailor it to the needs of your audience. We can do shorter programs, for example, for a college class, campus ministry group, or youth group and their parents. They could be a great addition to your congregation's stewardship campaign, helping people to think faithfully about our stewardship of all our resources. Each presentation is shaped around the needs of the audience and we are prepared to address a wide variety of topics.
We would also be glad to do presentations for religious leaders on how to manage a congregation's money more effectively, reduce expenses, pay for energy conservation measures, etc. And as the Wall Street Journal reported recently, a growing number of houses of worship are in trouble with their mortgages. We'd be glad to help your congregation think about its options in managing money.
The LICC will arrange speakers, educational materials, and other freebies. There is no charge for this program. (Thanks to grants from Astoria Federal Savings, Bank of America, Bethpage Federal Credit Union, Capitol One, Citibank, JPMorgan Chase, Ridgewood Savings Bank, the State Bank of Long Island, TD Bank, and Wells Fargo Home for making it possible for the Long Island Council of Churches to provide this free program!) We have speakers who can handle a variety of languages. If you would like to have such a seminar, call 516-565-0290, ext. 206, fax 516-565-0291, or e-mail tomgoodhue@optonline.net.
- Shelter for Homeless Families
- On February 28 Family Promise of Nassau County will be opening its doors for service. Family Promise is an interfaith network of churches and synagogues working together to address the problem of homelessness in our community. We are currently seeking families from the Nassau County area that are homeless or may be at risk of becoming homeless. The Family Promise staff are caring, compassionate volunteers who will offer warm beds and home cooked meals in a home-like environment. Case management services are available to assist families with finding housing, accessing needed benefits, and securing job placement assistance. Please contact Jakki Silkiss, Director of Family Promise of Nassau County at 516-640-2196. Our intake process and program requirements will be explained at the time of your call. All calls will be kept confidential.
- Help Finding Help
- Available by telephone (2-1-1) and online at www.211longisland.org, 2-1-1 provides callers and web visitors with detailed information on nearly 10,000 community resources for help and assistance - from basic daily needs such as food, heat and shelter to job training, financial services, child and/or elder care and more. Launched recently by United Way, the 2-1-1 Call Center operates 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., seven days a week, and can be reached by calling 2-1-1 or 1-888-774-7633. Multi-lingual and TTY services are available. Online, www.211longisland.org is available wherever internet-ready computers are available, and is updated daily by Middle Country Public Library.
- Free Seeds for Gardeners
- Dinner Garden will provide free vegetable seeds to anyone who requests them at DinnerGarden.com. All they ask is that gardeners share any excess produce they cannot use themselves with local soup kitchens and emergency food pantries - and the LICC would be glad to give your excess produce away.
- Free Support Group for Kids with Parents with Breast Cancer
- North Shore Child & Family Guidance Center offers free support groups for teens & pre-teens that have a parent who has been diagnosed with breast cancer. Groups are led by professional social workers and are designed to provide peer support for teens and pre-teens, to help them with their day-to-day functioning and to reduce feelings of isolation. Groups are forming now and will meet throughout the year in Roslyn Heights. For further information or to schedule a pre-group family meeting with counselors, please call Bruce Kaufstein, LCSW, at 516 626-1971, ext. 316.
Needed:
- Bakery Donations Needed
- The LICC's Riverhead pantry at 407 Osborne Avenue needs some comfortable chairs or a small couch. We could also use donations of bread, bagels, and such. We are regularly receiving much-appreciated donations from Panera and a local bagel shop but could use much more.
- Mentors Needed
- Are you caring for a child whose mother is incarcerated? Are you looking for new ways to volunteer your time? Have you thought about mentoring?
Mentoring benefits both children and families. Children with an incarcerated mother are a diverse group of children with a shared experience. They can benefit from mentoring in a variety of ways. Many children benefit from an additional adult who can help them with their homework and encourage them in school. Other children may enjoy playing games and sports with their mentor. Often times, mentors can provide an empathetic ear and support as children deal with their mother's incarceration. Research indicates that children with mentors have better relationships with parents and peers, are less likely to skip school, and are more likely to feel confident about their schoolwork and themselves.
BUDDY (Building Unique, Dynamic & Diverse Youth) Mentoring Program brings together three of Long Island's premier nonprofit organizations - the Long Island Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence, the Long Island Council of Churches, and the Mentoring Partnership of Long Island - who have teamed-up for a mentoring program for children in Nassau County whose mothers are incarcerated.
The BUDDY program is supported by the federal Administration for Children and Families and relies on volunteers. There will be an orientation session on March 23, at 6:00pm in the Peter & Paul Room at the Church of St. Aidan, 508 Willis Avenue in Williston Park. This session provides an opportunity for prospective mentors to meet each other and learn more about the structure and goals of the program. If you have an hour a week to mentor a young person between the ages of 4-18, please call Valerie Taylor at 516-747-2606 or visit www.licadd.org for more information and an application.
- Rolling Racks, Clothing, Carpeting
- The LICC's Emergency Food Center in Freeport needs rolling racks (shelves on wheels), to implement the last phase of our conversion to "client choice"-where our guests can pick what they need rather than settling for whatever we bag for them. The Freeport pantry is now ready to receive donations of clothing, including shoes. The Freeport pantry also needs a copier, vacuum cleaner, and small shopping carts. The Riverhead pantry needs some comfortable chairs or a small couch. Our Hempstead offices need 20x25 carpeting.
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FREE TAX PREPARATION
March 8th, 15th & 22nd from 1pm to 4pm
Bethpage Federal Credit Union will once again be on site at Island Harvest locations offering the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program.
The VITA Program offers free tax help to low- to moderate-income (generally, $49,000 and below) people who cannot prepare their own tax returns. Bilingual Tax Assistors are available. If you bring your taxes to be prepared, please remember to bring:
- Photo identification
- Social Security Cards for you, your spouse and dependents
- Current year's tax package if you received one
- Wage and earning statement(s) Form W-2, W-2G, 1099-R, from all employers
- Interest and dividend statements from banks (Forms 1099)
- A copy of last year's Federal and State returns if available
- Bank Routing Numbers and Account Numbers for Direct Deposit
- Total Paid for Day Care
- Day Care providers Id number
March 8, 2009 1pm to 4pm at 199 Second Street 2nd fl, Mineola Phone (516) 294-8528
March 15, 2009 1pm to 4pm Holbrook Warehouse, 90-7 Collin Drive, Holbrook Phone (516) 805-4783
March 22, 2009 1pm to 4pm Holly Patterson Warehouse, 875 Jerusalem Ave, Uniondale Phone (516) 805-4782
You can file your tax return and receive your refund in 10 days with any e-file preparation at NO cost to you. Volunteer Income Tax Assistance Sites located throughout Nassau and Suffolk help thousands of people each year to file their taxes for FREE and claim the Earned Income Tax Credit. If a person worked at any time in 2009 and earned less than approximately $50,000, they can receive FREE tax preparation assistance at a VITA site in their community. IRS certified volunteer tax preparers help you keep 100% of your refund.
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DON'T WASTE YOUR HARD EARNED MONEY
Millions of dollars are spent unnecessarily each year when individuals and families pay high fees to commercial tax preparation firms that offer Refund Anticipation Loans (RALs) at an interest rate of 40% to 700%!!! Put your tax refund to work for you! Open a savings account, pay bills, and improve your credit. Don't let this opportunity for additional income pass you by. Take the Money. You've Earned It!
AARP's TaxAide Program is also available at many libraries and senior centers. To find a site, ask your librarian or go to www.aarp.org/taxaide. For more information contact:
Rushka Tcholakova
Long Island Earned Income Tax Credit Coalition
Health and Welfare Council of Long Island
One Helen Keller Way, 4th Floor, Hempstead, NY 11550
Phone: (516) 505-4425 Fax: (516) 483-4794
Email: rtcholakova@hwcli.com
www.HWCLI.com
Nearly 12,000 free tax preparation sites are open this year as the Internal Revenue Service continues to expand its partnerships with nonprofit and community organizations performing vital tax preparation services for low-income and elderly taxpayers. The IRS Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) Program offers free tax help to people who earn less than $42,000. The Tax Counseling for the Elderly (TCE) Program offers free tax help to taxpayers who are 60 and older. A VITA site near you can be found by visiting www.irs.gov. Both programs also help people file for the Earned Income Tax Credit, the government's largest cash assistance program for low-income Americans. In addition, the Health & Welfare Coalition of Long Island will help taxpayers with information about the Disability Credit and Financial U info about help paying for college. Taxpayers need to bring to the VITA/TCE sites:
- Photo identification
- Valid Social Security cards for the taxpayer, spouse and dependents
- Birth dates for primary, secondary and dependents on the tax return
- Current year's tax package, if received
- Wage and earning statement(s) Form W-2, W-2G, 1099-R, from all employers
- Interest and dividend statements from banks (Forms 1099)
- A copy of last year's federal and state returns, if available
- Bank routing numbers and account numbers for direct deposit
- Other relevant information about income and expenses
- Total paid for day care
- Day care provider's identifying number
To file taxes electronically on a Married Filing Jointly tax return, both spouses must be present to sign the required forms.
Trained community volunteers can help eligible taxpayers with all special credits, such as the Child Tax Credit or Credit for the Elderly. Workers who earned more than $3000 in 2009 can get a CTC refund, up to $1000 per qualifying child. Also, many sites have language specialists to assist people with limited English skills.
In addition to free tax return preparation assistance, most sites use free electronic filing (e-filing). Individuals taking advantage of the e-file program will receive their refunds in half the time compared to returns filed on paper - even faster if taxpayers have their refund deposited directly into their bank accounts.
As part of the IRS-sponsored TCE Program, AARP offers the Tax-Aide counseling program at nearly 8,000 sites nationwide during the filing season. Trained and certified AARP Tax-Aide volunteer counselors help people of low-to-middle income with special attention to people age 60 and older. To locate the nearest AARP Tax-Aide site, call 1-888-227-7669 or visit AARP's Internet site.
The military also partners with the IRS to provide free tax assistance to military personnel and their families. Volunteers are trained and equipped to address military specific tax issues, such as combat zone tax benefits and the effect of the EITC guidelines. Military personnel, for example, can file for the Child Tax Credit even if absent from their children due to deployment.
An IRS phone number has been assigned to assist callers in finding the locations of VITA (Volunteer Income Tax Assistance) and TCE (Tax Counseling for the Elderly) free return preparation sites. The number is 1-800-906-9887. To find the nearest location for the AARP Foundation's free tax preparation and assistance program for low- and middle-income taxpayers, call 888-AARP-NOW or visit aarp.org/taxaide.
The University of Missouri also has launched a new web site to find free tax preparation sites nationwide: http://extension.missouri.edu/hes/taxed/vitasites.htm Sites can be located by state, county, and city. You can also call 1-800-TAX-1040 to find the nearest tax assistance site.
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TEN THINGS You May Not Know About the Earned Income Tax Credit
The Earned Income Tax Credit is for people who work, but have lower incomes. Here are some things you may not know about the EITC.
- A quarter of all taxpayers that qualify don't claim the credit. The Earned Income Tax Credit is money you can use to make a difference in your life. Just because you didn't qualify last year, doesn't mean you won't this year. As your financial situation changes from year-to-year you should review the EITC eligibility rules to determine if you qualify. Those who lost income or employment are those most likely to not claim the EITC or Child Tax Credit - and are most likely to need a refund.
- If your income is less than $43,279 for 2009, you could receive more money than last year, up to $5,657. The EITC is based on the amount of your earned income and whether or not there are qualifying children in your household.
- Your filing status cannot be Married Filing Separately. Your filing status must be married filing jointly, head of household, qualifying widow or single.
- You must have a valid Social Security Number. You, your spouse (if filing a joint return) and any qualifying child listed on Schedule EIC must have a valid SSN issued by the Social Security Administration.
- You must have earned income. This credit is called the "earned income" tax credit because you must work and have earned income to qualify. You have earned income if you work for someone who pays you wages or you are self-employed.
- Married couples and single people without kids may qualify. If you do not have qualifying children, you must also meet the age and residency requirements as well as dependency rules.
- Special rules apply to members of the U.S. Armed Forces in combat zones. Members of the military can elect to include their nontaxable combat pay in earned income for the EITC. If you make the election, the combat pay remains nontaxable, but you must include in earned income all nontaxable combat pay you received.
- You can visit the IRS Web site to estimate your credit online. It's easy to determine whether you qualify for the EITC. The EITC Assistant, an interactive tool available on IRS.gov, removes the guesswork from eligibility rules. Just answer a few simple questions to find out if you qualify and to estimate the amount of your EITC. You will see the results of your responses right away.
- E-file programs will figure the credit for you. If you are preparing your taxes electronically, the software program you use will figure the credit for you. If you qualify for the credit you may also be eligible for Free File. You can access Free File through the IRS Web site at IRS.gov.
- Advanced Earned Income Tax Credit. You don't have to wait until you file your tax return to receive your EITC. Advance EITC is a portion of the EITC that qualified workers may be able to receive in advance payments, added to their wages throughout the year. For more information, see Form W-5, Earned Income Credit Advance Payment Certificate.
For more information about the EITC and Advance EITC see IRS Publication 596, Earned Income Credit (available in English and Spanish) and Form W-5, which can be downloaded from IRS.gov or ordered by calling 800-TAX-FORM (800-829-3676).
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ADVERTISING IN THE PRELUDE
Each month we mail about 3000 copies of our newsletter The Prelude to the clergy leaders and lay leaders of 1350 faith organizations. We also email this newsletter to 2200 religious leaders and post it on our Web site (www.liccny.org), which receives more than 2000 visitors each month. Filled with timely articles, news briefs, updates and notices affecting Long Island's communities and churches and the wider world, The Prelude is a must read for all who would "work together to improve Long Island and promote interfaith understanding and cooperation." The LICC accepts paid sponsorship ads, display ads and simple listings (classifieds). Advertising in The Prelude is a great way to reach clergy, lay leaders, and volunteers in Long Island's congregations. To receive a "media kit" with advertising rates, copy requirements, and copy deadlines, please call 516-565-0290 or email tomgoodhue@optonline.net. Congregations that join the LICC and groups that join the Friends of the LICC receive a free classified ad in thanks for paying their annual dues.
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ADS & ANNOUNCEMENTS:
DIRECTOR/HEAD TEACHER WANTED
The Lutheran Church of the Epiphany is seeking a full-time Director/Head Teacher for its New York State Licensed Early Childhood Program, offering full and part time care to children ages 2-5 years old, located in Hempstead, part of the ministry of the Lutheran Church of the Epiphany. Current enrollment of 25 children, with a first floor capacity of 44. There are three floors available for the expansion of the program.
The successful candidate will have a degree in Early Childhood Education, supervisory experience, and be director certified (or eligible to be certified) by OFCS. Interested candidates should forward resumes to info@epiphanyhempstead.org or fax to 866-487-7744 or mail to Lutheran Church of the Epiphany, 35 Fulton Ave., Hempstead, NY 11550 An Equal Opportunity Employer.
CLASSROOM & OFFICE SPACE AVAILABLE in Franklin Square
Ascension Lutheran Church, 145 Franklin Ave. in Franklin Square, has plenty of space available for office or school use. For further information, please call 516.352.1263 or email ascensionpastor@optonline.net.
HOUSING & MORTGAGE ASSISTANCE EXPO March 1 in Coram
Do you need help staying in your home?
CONGRESSMAN TIM BISHOP invites you to attend a Housing and Mortgage Assistance Expo
March 1, 6:30pm - 8:30pm at the Coram Fire House (303 Middle Country Road).
Contact Congressman Bishop's office for more information at (631) 696-6500
LONG ISLAND FAITH AND HUNGER CONFERENCE
Mobilizing Faith Communities to End Hunger
Friday, March 5 - 11:30 to 4:00 PM
Lunch will be served gratis
Upper Room Ministries
722 Deer Park Avenue, Dix Hills
(1/4 mile south of the LIE)
On Feb. 3, Island Harvest and LI Cares released a study of hunger on Long Island that found over 280,000 people seeking help at food pantries and soup kitchens each year. This conference will address what people of faith can do end the scandal of 1 in 10 Long Islanders being hungry on any given day.
Nearly all religious traditions teach the dignity of people in poverty in God's sight. People of all faiths need to come together to take action to end hunger beyond donating and handing our food. Join us on March 5th to learn about critical hunger issues at the federal, state and local level, how these issues affect Long Islanders and the important role that the faith community needs to play in the fight to end hunger.
Registration and lunch begin at 11:30 followed by presentations and discussion. Please RSVP by Monday, March 1, at 5 p.m. to LIFaithNHunger@gmail.com or 212-741-8192 Ex. #3.
Speakers:
- Randi Shubin Dresner, President & CEO - Island Harvest
- "Hunger in America 2010: The Local Report for Long Island"
- Mark Dunlea, Esq., Executive Director - Hunger Action Network of New York State
- "State Budget and Issues You Need to Know"
- Rev. Derrick Boykin, Northeast Regional Organizer - Bread for the World
- "Strengthening and Protecting Federal Tax Credits for Low Income Families"
- Richard Koubek, PhD., MICAH Steering Committee
- "A Tool Kit for Congregations to Educate and Advocate to End Hunger on Long Island"
Conference Sponsors: Mobilized Interfaith Coalition Against Hunger (MICAH;) Hunger Action Network of New York State and the Faith and Hunger Network; Bread for the World
Co-Sponsors: Health and Welfare Council of LI; Island Harvest; Long Island Cares; Long Island Council of Churches; Mazon - A Jewish Response to Hunger; Muslims Against Hunger; Reform Jewish Voices; Suffolk Community Council; Upper Room Ministries
WORLD DAY OF PRAYER CELEBRATIONS
- Community United Methodist Church in Massapequa (100 Park Blvd.) will host at World Day of Prayer celebration on Friday, March 5, at 1:30 p.m. This is an ecumenical service and everyone is welcome. Ample parking is available at the rear of the church. Visitors can use the back entrance and walk through the building to the sanctuary. Call (516) 541-7008 for further info.
- Beach United Methodist Church on Mill Road in Westhampton Beach will host one at 4:00 p.m. All are invited. We are blessed that the women of Cameroon have spent countless hours preparing this service and will share their happiness, sorrows, hopes and dreams with us. The service will be directed by Rosemary Terchun Cline from Westhampton Presbyterian Church. For further information, call Marianne Terchunian at 631-258-3489.
In addition, the Freeport Clergy Council is sponsoring an "Inter Faith Prayer Service" focused on justice, homelessness, immigrants, and hunger on Saturday, March 6, 6:00-7.30 p.m. at Word of Life Ministries at 80 W. Merrick Road
INTERFAITH DIALOGUE ON MEDICAL ETHICS IN STONY BROOK
The Three Village Clergy Association will be having two Medical Ethics Discussions in March: The first on March 7th, 3:30-5:30 at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship on Nichols Road will be about "Issues in Assisted Reproduction." The second will be at Temple Isaiah on Stony Brook Road on March 21st at 3:30-5:50 and the topic will be "Stem Cell Research."
VOLUNTEER DISASTER CHAPLAIN TRAINING COURSE - GARDEN CITY - MARCH 8-9
Co-sponsored by the Episcopal Community Services, Long Island Council of Churches, and the Mercer School of Theology of the Episcopal Diocese of Long Island, this training is open to faith leaders of all faiths. Florida participants who complete this certification can volunteer with the Long Island Council of Churches or through Long Island VOAD partners. NDIN can also assist unaffiliated volunteers in finding disaster spiritual care volunteer opportunities in local communities across the United States. Emergency managers and disaster mental health professionals may take this course to develop their knowledge of disaster spiritual care best practices.
Registration Information: This two-day training prepares faith leaders or institutional chaplains to volunteer as disaster chaplains in mass care settings or to serve as disaster chaplains within their house of worship, religious community or professional institution. Each registrant must be endorsed for this training and/or currently serve as a professional chaplain and/or credentialed religious leader. Emergency managers and disaster mental health professionals may register using their agency affiliation.
Monday, March 8 and Tuesday, March 9 • 8:15-5:00PM
The George Mercer, Jr. Memorial School of Theology
65 Fourth Street • Garden City, NY 11530
For Driving or Train Directions: www.mercerschool.org/directions.html
Attendance is limited to 35 participants • Register by March 1
Tuition is $195 - Paid in Advance (Continental breakfast, lunch and training materials included)
This course is compliant with NIMS (National Incident Management Systems) and incorporates FEMA Incident Command System (IS 100) training. It also complies with the National VOAD (Voluntary Organizations Active in Disaster) Points of Consensus for Disaster Spiritual Care.
The Course Curriculum incorporates:
- Operations & Spiritual Care: General Principles; Interventions; Sites and Specifics
- Emotional and spiritual phases of the disaster "life cycle"
- Spiritual First Aid: PCAID (Presence, Connect, Assessment, Intervention, Develop Plan of Care) as an intervention appropriate in any phase of a disaster
- Disaster human services operations and disaster site operations
- Practice in applying principles of spiritual and emotional care in various disaster scenarios
- Mental Health: Introduction; Impact of Disaster; Response and Reaction
- Phases of psychological reaction to disaster and impact on behaviors, thoughts, & feelings
- Psychological First Aid as a basic intervention that does not require professional training
- Indicators that referrals for professional mental health care may be appropriate
- Self-Care: The Need and Techniques; Individual and Community Resilience
- The need for caregivers to develop effective self-care practices
- Practices that minimize compassion fatigue ("the cost of caring") and other stresses related to providing care in times of crisis
- Strategies to promote recovery and resiliency, especially through support systems that monitor, nourish and maintain self-care for individuals and communities
FREE "NETWORKING FOR SUCCESS" March 9 in Stony Brook
FEGS Health and Human Services System and the Suffolk Y Jewish Community Center in collaboration with North Shore Jewish Center, Temple Isaiah & Temple Beth Chai of Hauppauge
NETWORKING FOR SUCCESS SEMINAR & SPEED NETWORKING EVENT
Networking Events, Career Fairs, and Social Engagements -- All Great opportunities to: Meet New People, Exchange Ideas, Collaborate, Generate New Business, & Help Others Learn:
- Practical Tips to Maximize your Next Networking Event
- How to Master the Art of Working the Room
- Become Engaged in a Speed Networking Event
Networking is a great way to find a good job!
Tuesday, March 9, 7:00- 8:30 pm at Temple Isaiah, 1404 Stony Brook Rd., Stony Brook
There is no charge for this program but please RSVP to Chickie Cohen at 631.486.2521, 631.462.9800 ext. 151, or connect-to-care@syjcc.org.
LEARN ABOUT MEDICARE MARCH 10 IN HAUPPAUGE
10am-12pm at H. Lee Dennison Building, Hauppauge
It's Free and It's Perfect for Seniors, Caregivers and Professionals!
Learn about Medicare Parts A, B, C, and D
Learn how to save money on Medicare costs
Learn how Medicare works with other health coverage
Find out how EPIC can save money on prescription costs
This program is free but seating is limited. Call 631-853-5802 to register.
Light refreshments will be served.
NEW DIRECTIONS IN AMERICAN HEALTH CARE:
INNOVATIONS FROM HOME AND ABROAD
Thursday and Friday, March 11 and 12 at Hofstra University
Keynote Speakers:
- Vicente Navarro, M.D., Ph.D., Dr.P.H., Professor of Public Policy, Sociology and Policy Studies, John Hopkins University's Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD
- Peter Zweifel, Ph.D., Professor of Economics, University of Zurich, Switzerland
Faced with social, political, economic and health burdens as a result of uninsured and underinsured residents, the states and localities have emerged in the past few years as hotbeds of U.S. health coverage innovation. Simultaneously, many other nations (while having long ago achieved universal coverage) have experimented over the past few decades with a spectrum of organizational innovations as they have grappled with issues of cost, quality and persistent health disparities.
The successes and failures of state and local efforts and the experiences of other nations contain valuable lessons that should inform American health care policy. The goal of the New Directions in American Health Care conference, which the LICC is co-sponsoring, is:
- to facilitate discussion from an interdisciplinary perspective, a year into the new presidential administration, around transferable solutions to America's health care coverage crisis; and
- to help set a research and policy agenda to ameliorate critical dilemmas in coverage, cost and quality of health care.
For more information contact the Hofstra Cultural Center at (516) 463-5669, Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
FREE YOUTH DRAMA WORKSHOP IN CUTCHOGUE
Youth, grades K-and older along with parents or adult volunteers, are invited to participate in a Youth Drama Workshop, Saturdays, March 13 and 20, 10 a.m,-Noon, with a public performance on Sunday, March 21 at 3 p.m. The Workshop teaches acting, singing and stage craft in an affirming, spiritual setting, and culminates in the public performance of an original children's musical, BUTTERFLIES 'R ME, which carries the timely message that greed is bad and together we must be good stewards of the Earth. All events are free and will be held at the Cutchogue United Methodist Church, Main Road (Route 25), Cutchogue, NY 11935. For information and registration, contact Pastor Mary Crump, (631) 734-6033, mhcrump@yahoo.com.
ART EXHIBIT MARCH 20 AT PATCHOGUE CONGREGATIONAL CHURCH
Zig is an artist whose work is based on juxtapositions of epic concepts and time periods. His work is both startling and humorous in its treatment of media and religion. The artist, like his work, is also a juxtaposition of epic concepts: (raised Jewish, fascinated with Jesus). His career reflects the same iconoclasm (classical painter, motorcycle designer, freelance artist, website designer, and former artist for Grumman Aerospace Corporation with contracts with NASA and the U.S. Army).
Come see the art, meet the artist, enjoy refreshments, engage in lively conversation, and listen to techno-music with a live DJ at the National Historic Landmark Congregational Church of Patchogue, 95 East Main Street, on Saturday, March 20th at 7 p.m.
EASTER DAWN SERVICE
Easter Sunday, April 4, 6:00 A.M.
Jones Beach State Park•Parking Field 6
East of the East Bathhouse
Dress warmly & Bring beach chairs/blankets
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The Long Island Council of Churches is a 501(c)3 charitable organization. The Long Island Council of Churches unites diverse Christians to work together in ministry with the poor and to promote interfaith understanding. All donations are tax-deductible and much appreciated.
The Rev. Thomas W. Goodhue
Executive Director
Long Island Council of Churches
1644 Denton Green
Hempstead, NY 11550
voice: 516-565-0290, ext. 206
fax: 516-565-0291
email:tomgoodhue@optonline.net
Web: www.liccny.org
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