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First
Fruits for California's Working Poor?
California Council of Churches offers Congregational Study
Guide
on the next five years of CalWORKs
With
the status of social programs the primary news in California's
budget
crisis, California Council of Churches has prepared a new
congregational
study guide that will unite the factual issues in the federal
and state
'welfare-to-work' programs with faith principles concerning
care for the
poor.
The guide is the outgrowth of a collaborative project between
the Council
and California Catholic Charities. The project goal is to
bring greater
awareness to people of faith about the lives and conditions
of those
receiving federal Temporary Aid to Needy Families (TANF) through
the state's CalWORKs (California Work Opportunity and Responsibility
to Kids) programs.
Created and written by CCC Associate Director Rev. Kathy Cooper-Ledesma,
the
guide offers six study sessions ranging from the exploration
of personal values concerning work, learning, dependence,
and other issues that affect public policy followed by a review
of theological teachings on those same issues. Participants
will learn how TANF participants live, how much money they
receive, how much they need to work, what survival strategies
they must make, whether they can receive training and education,
how their children fare while parents work and go to school
The guide will look at the current status of TANF and CalWORKs
and proposals for change at both federal and state levels
that threaten to reduce educational opportunities and eliminate
benefits for both adults and
children. The link between those who are blessed with material
comfort and
those who have little or none is examined in light of theological
precepts
that are the core of our faith traditions. Finally, practical
suggestions
for congregations as to how to help the growing numbers in
need are offered.
Designed in part to be used as a Lenten study session, the
guide may also be used in various other settings, in compressed
numbers of workshops, or
divided into more lessons. The creation and distribution of
First Fruits for California's Working Poor? has been
made possible by a grant from the California Wellness Foundation.
In order to make the guide most useful, in February the California
Council of Churches is offering "train the trainers"
sessions around the state.
For
dates and locations of training sessions,
or to register for a workshop, click
here.
For
more information, call our office at: 916-442-5447
or call Kathy Cooper-Ledesma at: 323-256-3162
Dowload
the Study Guide!!!
Complete the Online
Evaluation Form!!!
* Some of the files on this page are PDF documents. An
Adobe Acrobat Reader is required to view them. If you do not
have a Reader, you can download
the program for free from Adobe.
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