Methodist group joins Mt. Olive pickle boycott
1/24/2004The United Methodist Board of Church and Society has joined a 4-year-old boycott of the Mt. Olive Pickle Co. organized by the Toledo-based Farm Labor Organizing Committee.
The agency s executive committee voted to participate in the boycott, which seeks to pressure the North Carolina-based pickle company to negotiate improved wages and working conditions for farm workers who produce the cucumbers Mt. Olive uses for its products.
In November, the boycott received the endorsement of the National Council of Churches. Other religious groups supporting the boycott include the United Church of Christ, the Alliance of Baptists, and the American Friends Service Committee.
Contemporary Christian music star Michael Tait will be featured at a free pastor appreciation luncheon to be held at noon Monday at the Mill, 5115 Glendale Ave.
Mr. Tait, a founding member of Christian hip-hop trio dc Talk, also leads his own band called Tait and is starring in the touring musical Hero. He will perform a set of acoustic songs and will speak to local youth pastors and church leaders before taking questions from the audience.
Also performing will be Forefront recording artist Kimberly Perry.
The event includes a lunch of pizza, sandwiches, salads, and breadsticks for all who register by 10 a.m. Monday by phone, 419-389-0893, or by sending an e-mail to mia@yeshome.com.
Jazz interpretations of Jewish and African-American sacred music will be performed in concert tonight by bassist David Chevan and pianist Warren Byrd in Trinity Episcopal Church, Adams and St. Clair streets.
Tickets for the 8 p.m. concert are $15, or $10 for students and seniors.
Mr. Chevan and Mr. Byrd have been performing together since 1998 and return to Trinity Episcopal after a concert at the downtown church in May, 2003.
Bettina Gray, interview host, producer, and composer, will be the featured speaker at the Third Annual Multifaith Banquet, 5:30 to 9 p.m. March 4 at the Islamic Center of Greater Toledo, 25877 Scheider Rd.
Participating will be members of the Baha i, Buddhist, Christian, Hindu, Indigenous, Jain, Jewish, Islamic, Sikh, Sufi, and Unitarian faiths.
Tickets are $15 for adults, $10 for children 12 and under, with reservations required by Feb. 15.
For more information, call the Multifaith Council of Northwest Ohio, 419-476-6535.
Two parishioners of St. Joseph Catholic Church in Monroe were among 11 people presented with Keep the Dream Alive Awards on Monday by the Archdiocese of Detroit for their efforts in continuing the work of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Joan Allor was honored for her work in jail ministry in Monroe County, where she trains and organizes other chaplains as well as provides prayer and counseling, the Detroit archdiocese said in a statement.
Paul Ogbonna Amadi was honored for his work with Catholic Social Services of Monroe County, where he reaches out to the minority community by bringing them services and resources.
The awards were presented by Bishop John Quinn at Blessed Sacrament Cathedral in Detroit.
The Toledo Area Council of Churches has reported that $7,344.20 was raised by its annual CROP Walk, held Oct. 5.
More than 150 walkers from 25 churches participated in the event, held in Ottawa Park and Pearson Metropark.
Three-quarters of the proceeds goes to groups fighting world hunger.
TACC said that nearly $1,800 stays in the Toledo area to be divided equally between its Feed Your Neighbor Program and the Rural Life Project of the Toledo Catholic Diocese.
TACC also reported that $7,088 in profits from its presentation of the musical Lazarus in November will go to Bread for the World, Toledo SeaGate Food Bank, the Northwest Ohio Food Bank, and Feed Your Neighbor programs.