CHICAGO, Oct. 20, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Local,
regional and national leaders of the United Church of
Christ announced Oct. 20 that
church donations have wiped out $5.3
million in medical debt for 5,888 South Side Chicago
families. Families in three ZIP codes are now receiving letters
telling them that their debt, averaging $907, has been forgiven.
In a news conference and celebration at Trinity UCC that
included national and Conference UCC representatives, the church
leaders said the project focused on ZIP codes 60621, 60628 and
60636. The church bodies raised $38,000 over the summer and then worked with the
New York-based nonprofit RIP
Medical Debt to buy the debt at pennies on the dollar. In
addition to Trinity UCC and two wider UCC agencies -- Justice and
Local Church Ministries and the Illinois Conference --
generous contributors included St. Pauls UCC of Chicago, Covenant UCC of South Holland, Ill., and The Leaders Network,
a consortium of Baptist churches serving Chicago's west side neighborhoods.
The urban neighborhoods were chosen because of their
demographics, said the Rev. Traci
Blackmon, the national UCC associate general minister for
Justice and Local Church Ministries.
"Today we thank all the supporters of this beautiful vision,"
said the Rev. Dr. Otis Moss III,
senior pastor of Trinity UCC, the lead congregational contributor.
"Because of your generosity, thousands of families in Chicago will now be free to pursue dreams and
celebrate this holiday season without the weight of medical
debt."
"When medical debt piles up, families have to make difficult
financial decisions, sometimes cutting back on food, clothing or
other basics," said the Rev. Justo González II, interim Illinois
Conference minister.
"The talent, time and treasure of the church have touched a core
need of people without means, or a way out of no way," said the
Rev. Dr. Ozzie Smith Jr., senior
pastor of Covenant UCC. "God be praised for faithful collaborative
efforts!"
"Saint Pauls is so happy to be part of this effort," said its
senior pastor, the Rev. Matt
Fitzgerald. "It's like Jesus feeding thousands of people
from a few loaves of bread and two fish. We just watched
$38,000 become more than $5 million."
Blackmon also announced that the UCC is planning a similar
campaign throughout the denomination on Giving Tuesday, Dec. 3. Updates on that project can be
found at this page at the UCC website.
"Our efforts in the Chicago
area serve as a launching pad, in collaboration with the UCC's 38
conferences and almost 5,000 congregations, to medical debt relief
efforts for those living at or below poverty in the 44 states we
currently serve," Blackmon said. "We view this ministry as one that
also embodies what it means to love God, love our neighbors and
proclaim Good News to the poor, whether they worship in our
churches or not."
Fact sheets on the impact of medical debt relief are in this
section of the UCC website.
The United Church of Christ, a
mainline Protestant denomination, has nearly 900,000 members and
5,000 congregations nationwide. Headquartered in Cleveland, it is a church of many firsts: the
first mainline denomination to ordain a woman, the first to ordain
an openly gay man and the first predominantly white denomination to
ordain an African American. More on the UCC's justice ministries
is here.
Contacts:
- Connie Larkman, UCC News
Director, Cleveland, 216-736-2196,
larkmanc@ucc.org
- Donna L. Hammond, Trinity UCC,
Chicago, 773-738-7989,
dlhammond@trinitychicago.org
- On Oct. 20: Hans Holznagel, UCC News Team, 216-375-8776,
holznagelh@ucc.org
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SOURCE United Church of Christ