Diocese of Missouri Awarded Young Adult and Campus Ministry Grant

From The Episcopal Church Office of Public Affairs
March 7, 2023

The Diocese of Missouri is receiving a $4,000 grant to relaunch a campus ministry at Calvary Episcopal Church in Columbia.

ELCM - Episcopal Lutheran Campus Ministry $4,000.00 Diocese of Missouri Episcopal Lutheran Campus Ministry Calvary Episcopal Church in conjunction with a local Lutheran partner (St. Andrew’s ELCA) and the Diocese of Missouri (DioMO) are relaunching a campus ministry in Columbia Missouri at the University of Missouri (MU) and other local colleges (Columbia College, Stephens College, and a satellite of Missouri Area Community College (MACC)). The goal of this campus ministry is to build upon the rich liturgical and faith traditions of both the Episcopal and Lutheran churches to form an open, affirming, curious, and creative community of students dedicated to following Jesus’s radical way of love. ELCM strives to be a place where all are truly welcome and students and chaplains (both lay and ordained) together encounter God. As both congregations are already engaged in supporting and growing the ministry, the biggest need is recruiting students. So ELCM is seeking grant funding for outreach programming, events, and materials, as well as other marketing and startup costs.

This is one of 20 grants awarded by The Executive Council of The Episcopal Church, totaling $145,000, to young adult and campus ministries from dioceses across the U.S. and Cuba. The recommended grant applications were approved during the council’s February 2023 meeting.

Young Adult and Campus Ministry grants provide funding for dioceses, congregations, and community colleges, tribal colleges, and university campuses that engage or seek to engage with young adults on and off campus.

This year’s recipients include two projects in the Episcopal Diocese of South Dakota: the Church of the Good Shepherd’s “Environmental Stewardship and Campus Ministry: From a Food Desert to a Food Forest,” designed to develop a 2-acre vegetable garden to support local young adults and the community; and “Tiospaye Wakan,” which seeks to support young adults in learning the Lakota language and building a strong community, as well as develop a guidance and support program for young adults from Lakota elders.

Other recipients include the UMass Dartmouth Episcopal Campus Ministry, seeking to build the only progressive campus ministry at the university; and the “Proyecto JEC: Resurrección Joven” in the Episcopal Diocese of Cuba, building on a Young Adult and Campus Ministry grant received last year as it seeks to develop young missionary groups, promote creation care, and strengthen Episcopal/Anglican roots among young leaders and disciples.

“The Young Adult and Campus Ministry grants serve a vital role in building up, sustaining, and breathing new life into young adult communities throughout the church,” said the Rev. Shannon Kelly, director for the Department of Faith Formation and officer for Young Adult and Campus Ministries. “Young adult ministries and campus ministries churchwide serve a fundamental role in the life of the church as they walk with young adults during a critical time of spiritual exploration and growth, life discernment, and creating connections with their peers.”

The grant review team included provincial coordinators for young adult and campus ministry, leaders in the area of young adult ministry, staff, and a member of Executive Council. The team scored and commented on the applications, with each application read by at least three people. Reviewers gathered to discern which grants should be recommended for funding.

Grant recipients, listed by category, are as follows:

Campus ministry grants, which provide seed money to help in the startup of new, innovative campus ministries or to enhance an existing ministry:

• AIC Interfaith Campus Ministry, Episcopal Diocese of Western Massachusetts, $3,000
• Canterbury Foundation of San Luis Obispo, Episcopal Diocese of El Camino Real, $5,000
• Canterbury MSU, Episcopal Diocese of Michigan, $3,000
• Church of the Good Shepherd, Episcopal Diocese of South Dakota, $7,900
• ELCM – Episcopal Lutheran Campus Ministry, Episcopal Diocese of Missouri, $4,000
• Episcopal Chaplaincy at Harvard, Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts, $7,000
• Grace Village Campus Ministry, Episcopal Diocese of Indianapolis, $5,000

• Niner United, Episcopal Diocese of North Carolina, $8,000
• UMass Dartmouth Episcopal Campus Ministry, Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts, $4,000

Development grants, which establish new, restore dormant, or reenergize existing campus ministries:

• Nightsong, Episcopal Diocese of Arizona, $11,750
• Province V Campus Ministry Consultant Position, Province V, $20,000
• Proyecto JEC / Jóvenes Episcopales de Cuba, Diócesis de Cuba, $27,000

Project grants, which provide money for a one-time project to enhance and positively impact a campus or young adult ministry:

• Ellsworth Community College / St. Matthew’s By-the-Bridge, Episcopal Diocese of Iowa, $1,500

Young adult ministry grants, which provide seed money to help in the startup of new, innovative young adult ministries or enhance existing ministries:

• 20s/30s at Saint Mark’s Episcopal Cathedral, Episcopal Diocese of Olympia, $7,000
• Ascension School Camp & Conference Center, Episcopal Diocese of Eastern Oregon, $3,650
• Church of the Holy Nativity, Episcopal Diocese of Maryland, $8,000
• Life Together, Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts, $5,000
• Living Waters, Episcopal Diocese of Central Gulf Coast, $4,000
• The Flock – San Mateo Episcopal Church, Episcopal Diocese of Texas, $2,200
• Tiospaye Wakan, Episcopal Diocese of South Dakota, $8,000

View a full list and description of grant recipients online.

For more information, contact the Rev. Shannon Kelly. Learn more about Young Adult and Campus Ministry grants and other Episcopal Church grant and scholarship opportunities.